How are racecourses graded?

Each racecourse in Britain is officially graded 1, 2, 3 or 4, depending on the General Prize Find (GPF) grant it receives from the Horserace Betting Levy Board (HBLB). The HBLB is a statutory body, established by the Betting Levy Act 1961, which annually collects a percentage of bookmakers’ gross profit from horse racing as the so-called Horserace Betting Levy.

General Prize Fund (GPF) grants, which must be paid out as prize money, are calculated annually based on the Executive Contribution (EC), or ‘merit’ – that is, the amount of prize money contributed by the racecourse authority – and the amount of off-course betting turnover generated by fixtures in the last three years for which figures are available. The grade of a racecourse can also impact peoples approach to racing tips. There’s a prestige aspect too of course.

Essentially, the higher the GPF grant, the higher the grade of the racecourse. Newmarket, for example, which stages nine Group One races during the season, received just over £2 million in 2018 and is classified as Grade 1. By contrast, Carlisle, which stages just one Class 1 race – the Listed Eternal Stakes, worth just shy of £40,000 in total prize money – received just over £165,000 in 2018 and is classified as Grade 4. Note that the grade of a racecourse does not, necessarily, reflect the standard of the facilities available for owners, trainers, jockeys or the racing public, but it is not unreasonable to expect a gulf between the best and the worst, consummate with the grade.

Much like in the football world, where all factors that feed into your football predictions matter, whether a stadium or a racecourse, its important to know the state of the terrain you’re playing or racing on.

Who are the top jockeys and trainers in 2025?

In Britain, thoroughbred horse racing is divided into two disciplines, or codes, namely Flat and National Hunt. Jockeys and trainers championships are staged in both, but the method by which the respective champions are determined varies, as does the length of time over which the championships run.

On the Flat, the jockeys’ championship is decided by the number of winners ridden, on turf or all-weather, between the start of the Guineas Festival at Newmarket in early May and British Champions Day at Ascot in mid-October. The trainers’ championship, on the other hand, is decided not on the number of winners trained, but the total prize money won during the entire calendar year, between January 1 and December 31.

In National Hunt racing, both the jockeys’ and trainers’ championships run for 51 weeks of the year, between early May and Jump Finale Day at Sandown Park in late April. As on the Flat, the jockeys’ championship is decided on the number of winners ridden during that period, whereas the trainers’ championship is decided on the total prize money won.

At the time of writing, Oisin Murphy leads the Flat jockeys’ championship, having ridden 97 winners from 424 rides in the specified period, so far, at a strike rate of 23%. Billy Loughnane lies second, with 71 winners, and Rossa Ryan third, with 62. Irish trainer Aidan O’Brien leads the way in the Flat trainers’ championship, having amassed just over £6 million from just 24 winners on British soil. John and Thady Gosden lie second, with £5.4 million, and Andrew Balding third, with £5.37 million.

Over the sticks, Sean Bowen holds a healthy lead in the jockeys’ championship with 66 winners from 245 rides, at a healthy 27% strike rate. His younger brother, James, and Brian Hughes lie joint-second with 28 winners apiece. The leading trainers are James Owen, with £287,000, Mickey Bowen, with £279,000 and Dan Skelton with £227,000.

How can I understand horse racing odds?

In horse racing, odds represent the ratio of the probability of a favourable outcome for the punter (a winner) to the probability of an unfavourable outcome (a loser). However, as Mark Twain put it, “It is the difference of opinion that makes horse races,” so it is worth noting that probability, here, is nothing more an expression of the expectation of the bookmakers.

Simply, odds tell you how likely a horse is to win, in the eyes of the bookmakers, and what your payout will be if your bet is successful. If, for example, bookmakers offer a horse at odds of 3/1, the implied probability of that horse winning is 3/4 – that is, the odds divided by one plus the odds – or 0.75, which equates to a 75% chance of winning and a 25% chance of losing. A successful £1 win bet on said horse would yield a payout of £3 in winnings, plus the original £1 stake, making a total return of £4.

In Britain, odds are traditionally displayed, as above, in fractional format, as two numbers separated by a slash. The number on the left of the slash, e.g. 3, indicates your winnings if your bet is successful, while the number on the right of the slash, e.g. 1, indicates the stake required to achieve those winnings.

Nowadays, online bookmakers also offer the option of displaying odds in decimal format, as is popular elsewhere in Europe, Canada and Australia. Decimal odds are expressed as a single number, which represents the total payout on winning bet, including the stake. Thus, fractional odds of 3/1 become 4.00 in decimal odds and you can calculate your total return by simply multiplying your stake by the decimal number. Decimal odds facilitate easier side-by-side odds comparison, particulary in the case of less straightforward fractions, such as 11/8, 13/8 and so on.

What are widely seen as some of the best racecourses in the world?

Cheltenham

Occupying 350 acres in Prestbury Park, a natural amphitheatre at the foot of Cleeve Hill in the Cotswolds, Gloucestershire, Cheltenham Racecourse is considered the home of National Hunt racing. Indeed, its name has become synonymous with the Cheltenham Festival, the most popular National Hunt meeting in the world, which is staged annually ovetr four days in March.

Ascot

Situated in 179 acres of beautiful wooded countryside adjacent to Windsor Great Park in Berkshire, South East England, Ascot Racecourse is synonymous with Royal Ascot in mid-June and, more recently, with British Champions Day in mid-October. The former is a five-day festival, featuring a total of 35 races, including eight Group 1 contests, and prize money of £10 million, making it the most valuablerace meeting in Britain. The latter, which features seven races, worth £4.35 million in prize money, is similarly the most valuable raceday in Britain.

Longchamp

Longchamp Racecourse, situated in the Bois de Boulogne, on the western edge of Paris, France, in a loop of the River Seine, enjoys an idyllic location. A vast facility, occupying over 140 acres, Longchamp is home to 17 of the 28 Group 1 races staged during the French Flat season, the highlight of which is the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, run over a mile and a half, usually on the first Sunday in October. Inaugurated in 1920, the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe is, nowadays, worth £5 million in prize money, making it the most value race run in Europe.

Churchill Downs

Famous for its iconic Twin Spires, not to mention being the home of the ‘Race for the Roses’, the Kentucky Derby, Churchill Downs occupies 175 acres on Central Avenue in Louisville, Kentucky. Aside from the first leg of the American Triple Crown, which is run over a mile and a quarter on dirt, Churchill Downs also plays host to the ‘Lilies for the Fillies’, the Kentucky Oaks, and has been the venue for the Breeders’ Cup World Championship on eight occasions.

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