Sports Then and Now

Aidan O’Brien has enjoyed great success at the 2,000 Guineas, winning the event more times than any other trainer in the history of the prestigious race. The Irishman has claimed victory eight times during his career and could be on course for his ninth triumph at Newmarket.

Gustav Klimt and Saxon Warrior are the leading contenders for the crown. Both horses are from O’Brien’s yard and are quality competitors. However, a lot can still happen between now and the start of the race, therefore, it’s worth tracking Betfair’s racing news to keep up with their progress as well as today’s horse racing tips to keep the mind sharp for future punts. We’ll now look back at O’Brien’s wins at the Guineas to see whether that resulted in success for his charges later in the term.

Source: RP Weekender via Twitter

First Triumph

King of Kings brought the Irishman his first triumph at the Guineas in 1998. The bay stallion had form entering the race, having won three titles the previous season. The three-year-old made a steady start to the event with Michael Kinane in the saddle before making his move with one furlong left in the contest. He surged down the straight to claim the win ahead of Lend A Hand by one-and-a-quarter lengths. The Irish horse competed at Epsom Downs in The Derby but could not produce the same level of form before a knee injury forced him to retire.

Rock of Gibraltar

The horse was a pure stud and inhabited the winning nature of his owner Sir Alex Ferguson. He had won four titles in the previous campaign, including the Dewhurst Stakes. Rock of Gibraltar was not considered the favorite for the event but he produced a fine run to claim the victory in 2002. It was a closely-fought race, edging the favourite Hawk Wing by a neck. He went on to great success in the rest of the season, adding the Irish 2,000 Guineas, Sussex Stakes and Prix du Moulin de Longchamp to his list of victories. Read the rest of this entry →

With the big day just around the corner, there’s going to be a lot of punters looking to get some money involved with Grand National 2018 betting. Of course, if you’re looking to make your money back, it couldn’t hurt to check out the Betfair Grand National tips to see who the favourite is. Of course, not all bets made at the Grand National are solely for the sake of winning money. Some of the bets are placed with the intention of raising money for charity. One specific, and very appropriate, charity: the Injured Jockey’s Fund.

The Injured Jockey’s Fund first appeared in the 1960’s under the influence of John Oaksey. Well, his full name was John Geoffrey Tristram Lawrence, 4th Baron Trevethin and 2nd Baron Oaksey, but for obvious reasons he went by John Oaksey. Oaksey came from nobility but became a jockey because he really enjoyed riding horses and was encouraged in doing what he loved by his father. Oaksey also worked as the racing correspondent for the Daily Telegraph which meant he could report on his races first hand, including a memorable instance in 1963 where he reported directly on what was happening in a race that he lost by barely a quarter of a length. This reporting is still hailed by some as one of the finest pieces of sports writing in the world. Read the rest of this entry →

The 2018 Cheltenham Festival is drawing ever closer and horse racing fans from all over the world will be eagerly anticipating one of the biggest meetings on record. In 2017, avid racegoers travelled to Prestbury Park for the four-day event, with high numbers attending on Gold Cup Day – which takes place on the Friday.

Widely regarded as one of National Hunt racing’s most prestigious accolades, the Gold Cup is the race that everybody wants to win. Whether you are an experienced jockey or a young, up-and-coming trainer, Cheltenham’s ultimate prize is extremely lucrative and punters will be finding it tough to pick a winner this year. The 2018 renewal is looking very competitive indeed.

Sizing John, trained by Jessica Harrington, took the famous race by the scruff of the neck in 2017 to romp home for a well-received victory. But it could be all change in the winner’s enclosure this time around, a few Gold Cup debutants are surely in with an excellent chance of glory. We previewed some of the ante-post market leaders ahead of March’s big race…

Sizing John

Sizing John was well beaten in the competitive Christmas Chase at Leopardstown last month and he has now relinquished his spot at the head of the betting. Finishing almost 30 lengths behind fellow Gold Cup candidate Road to Respect is hardly ideal for his 2018 preparations but you’d have to put that defeat down to the yielding ground.

He remains as versatile as ever over various distances, winning over 20 furlongs as well as the much longer 26 furlong Gold Cup in 2017. It would be foolish to write Sizing John off just yet given how he flourished at Cheltenham last year.

Current odds: 7/1 Read the rest of this entry →

Racing Victoria is set to make a move to preserve the Caulfield Cup the much enjoyed Spring Cup Carnival feature by making dramatic changes to the manner in which the Cup winner is penalized in the Melbourne Cup, which follows 17 days later.

No More Penalties to the Caulfield Cup Winner!

As of this spring, the winner for the Caulfield Cup will no longer be penalized again if the animal has already been allocated a minimum of 56 kilograms. If the winner of the Cup has less than that in the Melbourne race, any possible re-handicap will no longer take the horse’s weight for the Melbourne Cup beyond that mark.

Horses with More Than 56 Kilograms Suffer in the Melbourne Cup

As punters who enjoy both Caulfield Cup betting and making wagers on the ensuing Melbourne Cup will well know, the Racing Victoria General Manager, Greg Carpenter, said that the past 40 years have shown that it was made difficult for a winner of the first Cup to be placed in the second with a weight of more than 56 kilograms.

The issue surrounding the Caulfield Cup penalty has been thoroughly discussed at the Victoria Racing Club, Carpenter went on to say, and everyone remains of the opinion that it is totally appropriate for the Caulfield Cup winner to be penalised if the handicapper wishes to do so. He added that, on the bases of research done as a handicapping panel over a period of 40 years, it has emerged that it is without a doubt very difficult to win the Caulfield Cup race, and then 17 days later run the Melbourne Cup with more than 56 kilograms. Read the rest of this entry →

The W.S. Cox Plate is one of the highlights of the Australian Spring Racing Calendar: the exceptional Moonee Valley circuit overlooks the city’s skyline and puts race goers as close to the action as is possible. The race, dubbed as one in which legends are made, is run over weight-for-age conditions, and stands as Australia’s premier horse racing event.

Mark the Date, Horse Racing Fans

The Cox Plate is set to take place on Saturday the 28^th of October this year, the second day of the two-day carnival that Moonee Valley race track puts together, along with the Group One Manikato Stakes, run over 1 200 meters, the night before the Cox Plate. Eight races will be run on the Friday evening, and then ten more the following day. So, whatever you have in mind for this year’s race, whether it’s a little Cox Plate betting or just the fun of watching the extravagant race-day outfits and spectacular races, this article outlines everything you need to know. Read the rest of this entry →

First held in 1860 as the National Hunt Chase, the Cheltenham Festival is a top-rated horse racing competition on the United Kingdom calendar with prize money second only to the Grand National.

Often held around St. Patrick’s Day and popular with Irish visitors, the festival features several Grade 1 races and is one of the few times during the year where many of the top British and Irish trained horses compete. The festival also includes one of the two biggest Hunter Chases of the season, the Foxhunters’, which is run on the Friday of the event.

The Cheltenham Festival is especially noted for its atmosphere, most notably the “Cheltenham roar”, which refers to the enormous noise generated by the crowd as the starter raises the tape for the first race of the festival.

The Stayers Hurdle, which was first ran in 1912, is the oldest race in the festival that is currently a championship race. The Gold Cup, established in 1924, was originally a supporting race for the County Hurdle, which was the main event of the first day, but that eventually changed as it became a championship race. The Champion Hurdle started in 1927 and the Queen Mother Champion Chase in 1959, were both championship races from the time they were introduced. Read the rest of this entry →