Category Archives: News

When it comes to female jockeys’ participation in elite events, racing has reached something of a strange juncture. We can point to the fact that more work needs to be done, but we can also see tangible progress in some cases. The most important factor, however, is that some women are simply excelling at the highest level of the sport. On the flat, we can cite Hollie Doyle, who had a record-breaking 2019 and 2020, finishing fourth in the Flat Jockey’s Championship last year. Doyle was later names The Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year for 2020.

In jumps racing, there are several names who pop up as trailblazers for female jockeys, including Bryony Frost, who became the first woman to win the King George VI Chase last month. But if we are to look ahead to the Cheltenham Festival (16-19^th March), there is one woman who could truly blow the roof off in 2021 – Rachel Blackmore. The 31-year-old from Tipperary is no stranger to success at Cheltenham. And, if you look back at Cheltenham Festival results from previous years, you’ll see she has already had some big wins, notably in the Grade 1 Mares’ Hurdle (2020) and the Albert Bartlett (2019).

However, it seems that the stars have aligned for Blackmore leading up to 2021. She has enjoyed a fruitful partnership with trainer Henry de Bromhead, whose stable is shaping up for an excellent Festival. Paul Townend, who will ride the pick of Willie Mullins’ horses, is the favourite for the top jockey award, but Blackmore is not far behind her countryman, and nobody would be surprised if she pulled it off given her book for Cheltenham 2021. Below we look at some of her best chances:

Honeysuckle

The winner of the 2020 Mares’ Hurdle, Honeysuckle is 3/1 (co-favourite with Concertista) to give Blackmore and de Bromhead another Grade 1 victory in 2021. Honeysuckle has nine wins from nine starts in her career. The only question is whether de Bromhead decides to go for a bigger prize at Cheltenham, like the Champion Hurdle. The mare is booked for the Irish Champion Hurdle on 6^th February, and that might have a big impact on his decision.

Minella Indo/A Plus Tard

At the time of writing, Minella Indo is the second-favourite for the most prestigious race at Cheltenham – the Gold Cup. The 8-year-old has shown plenty of class over the last couple of years, but there are question marks over whether he is good enough to do it in the toughest race of the Festival. A Plus Tard is just behind Minella Indo in the odds, and there is an assumption that Blackmore will opt for him over Minella Indo. Darragh O’Keefe was in the saddle when A Plus Tard beat the latter (Minella Indo fell) at Leopardstown.

Bob Olinger

A horse that has only really positioned himself as a Cheltenham chance in recent weeks, Blackmore rode Bob Olinger to a fine victory in the Grade 1 (Blackmore’s 11^th) Lawlor’s of Naas Novice Hurdle in mid-January. Bob Olinger has now been placed as 5/1 second-favourite for the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle, just a fraction behind the Paul Nicholl’s-trained Bravemansgame in the betting odds.

Aspire Tower

Assuming that Honeysuckle avoids the Champion Hurdle, then Blackmore will likely ride 16/1 shot Aspire Tower. The horse certainly has the credentials to tempt punters in the each way markets, but questions over race favourite, Epatante, could open the door further. It would be considered a shock if Blackmore and Aspire Tower take the Champion Hurdle, but only a minor one.

Notebook

Notebook flopped at the Festival last year when favourite for the Arkle. But there are still some who believe that the 8-year-old can turn things around. He is likely to have a tilt at the Champion Chase, where he is priced up at 22/1 in the ante-post markets. Notebook finished six lengths behind current Champion Chase favourite, Chacun Pour Soi, at Leopardstown over Christmas. Another each-way chance, but don’t be shocked if Blackmore can go one better.

One of the world’s most prominent horse racing competitions, the Pegasus World Cup, will take its 5th edition in the next couple of days. On January 23, 2021, the world’s best racehorses, jockeys, and trainers will arrive at Gulfstream Park to vie for this tournament and clinch the $3 million prize at stake.

The Pegasus Cup is bringing out the top twelve most hefty and vigorous three-year-old and up racehorses today. These horses are bringing their talents and skills and the racing achievements they have earned since debut. With this, there is no reason why the 2021 Pegasus Cup is as exciting as its past seasons.

Apart from the thrilling event, betting is another reason why the Pegasus Cup is worth celebrating. For fans and sports bettors, this is the best opportunity to find the deserving Pegasus Horse Race picks to wager and win.

Here are the possible straight and exotic bets that might emerge as big winners in the Pegasus race.

Knicks Go (Win)

Missing out on the Triple Crown Series last year, Knicks Go has made it to the Pegasus World Cup this season. As Kosmo’s Buddy sire, this four-year-old colt started his journey in thoroughbred racing in 2018. This year, he made a remarkable debut in the dirt track after earning his first stakes title at the Claiborne Breeders’ Futurity.

In 2019, he participated in seven major horse racing events, which made him one of the famous colts to beat out. Some of the significant placements he made were from Sam F. Davis Stakes (5th), Stonestreet Lexington Stakes (4th), Matt Winn Stakes (5th), Ellis Park Derby(2nd), Super Derby (4th), and Commonwealth Turf Stakes (10th).

Last year, Knicks Go was a big winner at Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile, which serves as his ticket to the Pegasus this year. Besides being one of the biggest dogs at Santa Anita last year, he bested the top favorites at Breeders’ Cup, and he might do that again in the Pegasus Cup, leaving everyone in awe.

Charlatan (Place)

Charlatan is one of the colts that the Triple Crown Series never had. Born on March 2, 2017, this colt had only accomplished two racing games since birth. During last year’s edition of the Arkansas Derby, Charlatan earned his first title at Oaklawn Park. Unfortunately, he had to be out of the many upcoming competitions after suffering a soft tissue injury.

The Kentucky Derby came along with the Preakness, and Belmont and Charlatan have missed these notable races. However, this colt had to take necessary medications to be able to go back in thoroughbred racing. Luckily, the odds are in his favor after he made a huge comeback during the Malibu Stakes last December, where he brought home the bacon.

Code of Honor (Show)

The show betting category in the Pegasus Cup allows you to pick a racehorse that can land either in first, second, or third place. Code of Honor is a present Pegasus contender that you can choose for the said category. This four-year-old colt has many things to offer, being one of the multiple-graded stakes conquerors.

Last year, Code of Honor ran at Belmont Park for the Westchester Stakes, where he got the victory. Not only that, but he was a big placer in some prominent races like the Clark Stakes (2nd), Whitney Stakes (4th), Kelso Handicap (2nd), and Metropolitan Handicap (3rd).

Charlatan and Knicks Go (Exacta)

Exacta bets are part of the Exotic horse racing wagers, which are a bit challenging. A newbie bettor can gamble for this, but most veteran punters are taking a risk on this. A horse racing bettor can pick two entries that can conquer both the second and first place in the exact order.

Out of the twelve possible entries of the 2021 Pegasus World Cup, Charlatan and Knicks Go are the closest picks you can select. As shown above, they are in the Win and Place category, dominating the whole competition. Knicks Go is an underdog, while Charlatan is one of the favorites. But regardless of their fame, they are the probable winners of the Exacta bet.

Takeaway

In horse racing, anything is possible, especially in Pegasus, where horses are selected carefully based on how they ended last year. One of the things that makes this event more exciting is the previous Pegasus champion who’s coming back to defend his crown and other significant placers who’d like to put an impressive exclamation point to their horse racing career.

Hence, the betting games will come lively as this will be a harder way of gambling for money. When you get the chance to bet in the upcoming Pegasus Cup, consider the best picks mentioned above in the category as they might appear as big winners.

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The Cheltenham Festival is one of British and Irish horse racing’s biggest events and its traditional running in mid-March means that it marks the beginning of the racing calendar each year.

It is one of the most attended and most prestigious horse race meetings of the year with more than a quarter of a million people attending each year. The highest attendance always occurs on Cheltenham Gold Cup Day, which saw 71,500 people pass through Cheltenham Racecourse’s gates in 2019.

The four-day Cheltenham Festival hosts 28 races, evenly spread across each day, with five feature races, the most prestigious being the Cheltenham Gold Cup. The others are the Queen Mother Champion Chase, the Champion Hurdle, the Ryanair Chase, and the Stayers’ Hurdle.

With so many people attending and so many big races taking place, there are around 250 bookmakers at the racecourse each day to take the huge number of wagers placed. In more recent years, many bettors have also been placing bets through their smartphones through the growing number of online and mobile bookmakers. These brands offer an advantage over trackside bookies in that they’re able to provide horse racing tips and other insights to help people make more informed betting decisions.

So with this in mind, what can we expect from the Cheltenham Festival in 2021?

When is the Cheltenham Festival in 2021?

The Cheltenham Festival traditionally takes place over four days in the middle of March. In 2021, things will be no different with the meeting scheduled to begin on Tuesday 16th March 2021 and end on Friday 19th March 2021.

Day one will feature the Champion Hurdle race as well as six other hurdle and chase events. Day two will see another day of six races, beginning at 13:30 with The Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle Race, the feature race that day will be The Queen Mother Champion Steel Chase, a circa 2-mile chase for Grade 1 horses. Day two also coincides with St Patrick’s Day and will, as is always the case, be filled with people celebrating Ireland’s patron saint while they enjoy the races.

Day three sees two feature races: The Ryanair Steep Chase and The Stayers’ Hurdle, the latter being a circa 3-mile hurdle race. The final day rounds out the Cheltenham Festival with The Cheltenham Gold Cup Steeple Chase, a 3-mile 2.5-furlong chase that will see £625,000 awarded to the winning horse.

How to Watch the Cheltenham Festival in 2021?

As has been the case in previous years, you can follow all the action from the Cheltenham Festival from home if you’re not planning to attend in person. Free-to-air commercial broadcaster ITV will be showing all of the festival’s main races each day on its main channel ITV1. These three-and-a-half-hour live shows will include the feature race and several others, along with expert analysis, punditry and commentary.

If you want to catch all the action, then Racing TV will show every single race from each of the four days, so you won’t have to miss a thing.

 

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Who Will Win The Cheltenham Gold Cup Steeple Chase in 2021?

The entry list for the Cheltenham Festival has not yet been released and likely won’t be for a little while yet. However, most online betting sites and major news outlets will all be covering the event in detail, offering up-to-date odds, their picks, and predictions.

While most of the attention will be placed on The Cheltenham Gold Cup because it’s the most prominent race of the festival. However, there are plenty of other great betting opportunities among the other races taking place over the four days.

At this early stage, Al Boum is a clear front runner to win the Gold Cup after winning the race for the last two years. Many in the sport are asking whether he can make it three years in a row, joining Best Mate, Arkle, Cottage Rake, and Golden Miller.

The Melbourne Cup is one of the biggest races run in Australia every year. The two-mile classic race will take place at Flemington Racecourse on the first Tuesday of November 2020. Offering an incredible money prize of up to $8 million, the Melbourne Cup competition attracts genuine turf stars worldwide, including international raiders. Also, the $8 million cash prize makes the competition one of the richest races across the globe and second in prize after the $15 million race, The Everest that is usually held in October in Sydney.

Much like the Kentucky Derby in the United States and the Grand National in the United Kingdom, the Melbourne Cup is seen as the pinnacle of the racing season in Australia. The race usually dominates the sporting headlines for an extended period. Since 1861, the Flemington racecourse has been the host of this exciting event.

The 2020 event is closing in, and punters from Australia, the UK, the US, and other parts of the world are looking for some reliable tips for the race. Both Declare and Vow are one of the favourites to claim a victory after their famous win in 2019. But since 1976, Makybe Diva has retained the title. In the 1990s, he won three titles in a row. Also, Camelot from Russia is among the top contenders. This means that fans could well expect new names in the first position.

In any race or competition, it’s not always the favourites that win, and below are some outsiders that could be worth your bet. Go through the list and probably pick the one you feel can win the race.

Skyward

John Messara recently purchased Skyward with the aim of winning this competition. Currently, most predictions for the Melbourne Cup do not have Skyward among their favourites. And this does not mean that they cannot emerge the winner. Being the son of Camelot, the winner of the Epson Derby in 2012, Skyward can pull a surprise in the race.

Young Rascal

In the Epson Derby in 2018, Young Rascal was one of the favourites to win the race. According to most sources, Young Rascal could be ideal for the Caulfield Cup, a 2,400-metre race rather than the Melbourne Cup that is 3,200 metres. However, Alexander is sure of success at Farmington.

Master of Reality

Despite the controversy that cost the Master of Reality a top-three finish in 2019, when Dotarri was ruled to have blocked Paradiso, it is still one of the favourites. The decision was not friendly for Dotarri, but he believes that he can be the winner in the eagerly awaited Melbourne Cup competition.

 

 

Degraves

Since 2012, Lloyd Williams has won three titles in the Melbourne Cup. And with this in mind, there are hopes that Degraves could increase the number of titles under his name. Joseph O’Brien is the trainer, and both O’Brien and Williams brought success in 2017. This simply shows that Degraves is one of the favourites.

Summary

These are the main four outsiders to keep in mind if you are a punter. However, it is also worth keeping an eye on other contenders since surprises, and new winners are a common thing in the world of sports.