List of British Racecourses. The UK is blessed with many amazing horse racing courses spread across the entire country, so no matter where you are you are, you are certain to find a racecourse to attend should you fancy a day at the races with friends, family or on our own. Here at British Racecourses, we have reviewed all the racecourses in Britain, looking at both National Hunt and flat. At the forefront, we have the UK racecourses, even in Northern Ireland, that have been upholding the horseracing tradition for hundreds of years already. Famous racecourses like the Ascot, Cheltenham and Aintree Racecourses, the Epsom Downs, which can host up to 120,000 spectators. The home of Glorious Goodwood – a superb and iconic flat racing festival held in British Summertime – Goodwood racecourse is a beautiful track set in the picturesque English countryside. #AD New UK & NI customers only. Promo code SPORTS60. Deposit and place first sports bet of £10+ in one transaction, at odds of Evens (2.0)+, settled within 60 days. First bet must be on Sports. £30 in Free Bets credited within 48 hours of bet settlement. Payment restrictions apply. Located in the heart of the Goodwood Estate, belonging to the Duke of Richmond, Goodwood racecourse couples the value of traditional pageantry with the buzz of modern horse-racing like perhaps no other racecourse in Britain.
Horse racing is a year-round sport in Britain,switching between the flat racing of the summer to the National Hunt featuresthe rest of the year. Such a massive staple of British culture is horse racingthat well over 50 racecourses across Great Britain exist.
There is tremendous variety among the manytracks in terms of conditions, layout and of course, weather. This is a massivepart of why British racing is so popular, the different challenges. A one-milesprint at Chester is likely going to be a lot different from a one-mile trip atCheltenham, just because of terrain and course lay out.
Among all of the racetracks in Britain, there are those special ones which are steeped in rich racing history. There are just some racecourses which immediately jump to mind and that is because of them hosting big festivals and some of the top races laden with financial riches and prestige.
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The English Racecourse Classics
Famous Race Tracks Uk
There are five Classics in British racing, the2,000 Guineas and 1,000 Guineas at Newmarket. The Epsom Oaks and the Derby Oaksat Epsom Downs and the St Leger at Doncaster.
A combination of these creates the Triple Crown, which is a tough feat to pull off in modern day racing, because of the different challenges each of the races presents.
The 2,000 Guineas is the first leg of theTriple crown over 1 mile. The second leg is the Epsom Derby at 1 mile 4furlongs and then the third leg is the St Leger Stakes at 1 mile and 6furlongs.
The 1,000 Guineas and the Epsom Oaks are onlyopen to fillies which creates a Fillies' Triple Crown along with the St Leger.That having been said fillies can still compete in both the 2,000 Guineas andthe Derby as well.
Ascot
If you are looking for a course which hosts one of the highest amounts of top British races, then Ascot it is. The operation of the Berkshire racecourse benefits from hosting both flat and national hunt racing all year round. It is host to around one third of the annual Group 1 races that are run in Britain.
There is the big Royal Ascot Festival thereand the course is only a stone's throw from Window Castle. The notable race ofRoyal Ascot Festival is the Gold Cup. The course was founded back in 1711 and acentury later an act was passed to ensure that it stayed as lands of thepublic. Ascot also hosts British Champions day, the climax of the BritishChampions Series.
Cheltenham
Prestbury Park in Cheltenham is home to one ofthe most famous races in the world. That is the eponymous Cheltenham Gold Cup,a blue riband fixture of national hunt racing. That race itself is the pinnacleof the four-day national hunt Cheltenham Festival which is held annually inMarch.
The Gloucestershire course hosts some of the biggest races in the calendar year just in that one festival, with the likes of the Queen Mother Champion Chase, Ryanair, Stayers Hurdle and the Champion Hurdle highlights alongside the Gold Cup. Cheltenham has two courses, an old one and a new one with setups for steeplechases, hurdles and cross country.
Aintree
Aintree has to make it onto the list because of one thing. That one thing is a big thing, the Grand National. The course itself is only for national hunt races but there are two courses there, both of them left-hand turns. The Grand National is part of the Aintree Festival which is a three-day event in April.
It is just the rich history of the famoussteeplechase that is the Grand National which has made Aintree what it is. It'swhere great moments of British horse racing have been created such as Red Rum'shistoric treble.
Epsom Downs
The famous Surrey course is public space and still to this day, the public can get to watch one of the great Classics of British racing, the Derby, for free. It's all flat racing at Epsom although the course has a steep rise up to the famous Tattenham corner (a big left turn) before descending on the straight.
Along with the Derby, the course plays hoststo the Oaks and the Coronation Cup. The Oaks did actually come into beingbefore the Derby did. This is another of the British racing institutions whereBritish Royalty usually puts in an appearance. The history of racing on theDowns goes back to the 1600s.
Newmarket
Newmarket consists of two courses, the Rowley Mile and the July Course. It is over the former that most of the top races hosted at Newmarket are run. Newmarket is home to the British Classics the 2,000 guineas and the 1,000 Guineas and both of those are contested on the Rowley Mile. The racecourse itself came into being in 1636.
British Racecourse Site
It is located in Suffolk and is for flatracing only. Nowhere else in Britain is there a larger number of training yardsthan there is at Newmarket. It hosts famous horse auctioneers Tattersalls, aswell as the National Stud. The place itself is generally regarded as being thehome of British racing. A quarter of all Group 1 races in Britain happen atNewmarket.
Sandown Park
Famous Racecourses England
Not to be confused with Sandown in MelbourneAustralia. The Surrey course in England was opened in 1875 and it immediatelystarted charging people to come in, making it one of the first courses wherepeople had to cough up some cash for entry. Sandown Park currently hosts bothflat and national hunt racing.
It's a pretty simple design is the Sandowncourse, a right-handed oval track which is slashed across diagonally for somestraight sprint action. It is a busy and popular track for racing all yearround. Some of the popular features include the Sandown Mile, the CelebrationChase, the Bet365 Gold Cup and the Tingle Creek Chase.
York
York has to be on the list because of such afantastic history. The North Yorkshire track is one of the oldest venues inBritain and it is still going strong. York's history can be traced back to theearly 1700's but there's no definite date when the equine action went down there.
This is the home of the Ebor Festival, anannual August affair during which the Ebor Handicap is run. That is the mostprominent of the races that the course hosts.
It is a flat racecourse with the notable racesalongside the Ebor Handicap being the Dante Stakes, International Stakes andthe Nunthorpe stakes. It has been crowned racecourse of the year multipletimes.
Goodwood
The feature races that are hosted at theSussex track are The Sussex Stakes, Stewards' Cup, Goodwood Cup and the NassauStakes. They are both rolled up into the famous Glorious Goodwood Festival,which lasts for five wonderful days. There is only flat racing at Goodwood andjust on twenty days out of the calendar year.
The Goodwood course is a little strange inthat there is a long six-furlong straight at the end of which is a big loop.Along that loop there are different starting points for different distances.The loop is famous for being so uneven and the entire course itself is fairlytight. On top of that, because the straight goes downhill to the finish, horseshave to watch their balance. It creates some thrilling racing.
Doncaster
The home of the British Classic the St LegerStakes. Even though barely any horse attempts the Triple Crown any more, thefact that Doncaster hosts the last leg of it still gives it pride of placeamong Britain's top ten racecourses. Doncaster is impressive and its historystretches back to the 16th century. The South Yorkshire course plays host toboth flat and national hunt racing.
The St Leger and the Doncaster Cup are two ofthe oldest horse races in the world, and another of the feature races hosted atthe track is the Lincoln Handicap. The track is a left-handed one with afive-furlong straight.
Famous Race Tracks Uk
There are five Classics in British racing, the2,000 Guineas and 1,000 Guineas at Newmarket. The Epsom Oaks and the Derby Oaksat Epsom Downs and the St Leger at Doncaster.
A combination of these creates the Triple Crown, which is a tough feat to pull off in modern day racing, because of the different challenges each of the races presents.
The 2,000 Guineas is the first leg of theTriple crown over 1 mile. The second leg is the Epsom Derby at 1 mile 4furlongs and then the third leg is the St Leger Stakes at 1 mile and 6furlongs.
The 1,000 Guineas and the Epsom Oaks are onlyopen to fillies which creates a Fillies' Triple Crown along with the St Leger.That having been said fillies can still compete in both the 2,000 Guineas andthe Derby as well.
Ascot
If you are looking for a course which hosts one of the highest amounts of top British races, then Ascot it is. The operation of the Berkshire racecourse benefits from hosting both flat and national hunt racing all year round. It is host to around one third of the annual Group 1 races that are run in Britain.
There is the big Royal Ascot Festival thereand the course is only a stone's throw from Window Castle. The notable race ofRoyal Ascot Festival is the Gold Cup. The course was founded back in 1711 and acentury later an act was passed to ensure that it stayed as lands of thepublic. Ascot also hosts British Champions day, the climax of the BritishChampions Series.
Cheltenham
Prestbury Park in Cheltenham is home to one ofthe most famous races in the world. That is the eponymous Cheltenham Gold Cup,a blue riband fixture of national hunt racing. That race itself is the pinnacleof the four-day national hunt Cheltenham Festival which is held annually inMarch.
The Gloucestershire course hosts some of the biggest races in the calendar year just in that one festival, with the likes of the Queen Mother Champion Chase, Ryanair, Stayers Hurdle and the Champion Hurdle highlights alongside the Gold Cup. Cheltenham has two courses, an old one and a new one with setups for steeplechases, hurdles and cross country.
Aintree
Aintree has to make it onto the list because of one thing. That one thing is a big thing, the Grand National. The course itself is only for national hunt races but there are two courses there, both of them left-hand turns. The Grand National is part of the Aintree Festival which is a three-day event in April.
It is just the rich history of the famoussteeplechase that is the Grand National which has made Aintree what it is. It'swhere great moments of British horse racing have been created such as Red Rum'shistoric treble.
Epsom Downs
The famous Surrey course is public space and still to this day, the public can get to watch one of the great Classics of British racing, the Derby, for free. It's all flat racing at Epsom although the course has a steep rise up to the famous Tattenham corner (a big left turn) before descending on the straight.
Along with the Derby, the course plays hoststo the Oaks and the Coronation Cup. The Oaks did actually come into beingbefore the Derby did. This is another of the British racing institutions whereBritish Royalty usually puts in an appearance. The history of racing on theDowns goes back to the 1600s.
Newmarket
Newmarket consists of two courses, the Rowley Mile and the July Course. It is over the former that most of the top races hosted at Newmarket are run. Newmarket is home to the British Classics the 2,000 guineas and the 1,000 Guineas and both of those are contested on the Rowley Mile. The racecourse itself came into being in 1636.
British Racecourse Site
It is located in Suffolk and is for flatracing only. Nowhere else in Britain is there a larger number of training yardsthan there is at Newmarket. It hosts famous horse auctioneers Tattersalls, aswell as the National Stud. The place itself is generally regarded as being thehome of British racing. A quarter of all Group 1 races in Britain happen atNewmarket.
Sandown Park
Famous Racecourses England
Not to be confused with Sandown in MelbourneAustralia. The Surrey course in England was opened in 1875 and it immediatelystarted charging people to come in, making it one of the first courses wherepeople had to cough up some cash for entry. Sandown Park currently hosts bothflat and national hunt racing.
It's a pretty simple design is the Sandowncourse, a right-handed oval track which is slashed across diagonally for somestraight sprint action. It is a busy and popular track for racing all yearround. Some of the popular features include the Sandown Mile, the CelebrationChase, the Bet365 Gold Cup and the Tingle Creek Chase.
York
York has to be on the list because of such afantastic history. The North Yorkshire track is one of the oldest venues inBritain and it is still going strong. York's history can be traced back to theearly 1700's but there's no definite date when the equine action went down there.
This is the home of the Ebor Festival, anannual August affair during which the Ebor Handicap is run. That is the mostprominent of the races that the course hosts.
It is a flat racecourse with the notable racesalongside the Ebor Handicap being the Dante Stakes, International Stakes andthe Nunthorpe stakes. It has been crowned racecourse of the year multipletimes.
Goodwood
The feature races that are hosted at theSussex track are The Sussex Stakes, Stewards' Cup, Goodwood Cup and the NassauStakes. They are both rolled up into the famous Glorious Goodwood Festival,which lasts for five wonderful days. There is only flat racing at Goodwood andjust on twenty days out of the calendar year.
The Goodwood course is a little strange inthat there is a long six-furlong straight at the end of which is a big loop.Along that loop there are different starting points for different distances.The loop is famous for being so uneven and the entire course itself is fairlytight. On top of that, because the straight goes downhill to the finish, horseshave to watch their balance. It creates some thrilling racing.
Doncaster
The home of the British Classic the St LegerStakes. Even though barely any horse attempts the Triple Crown any more, thefact that Doncaster hosts the last leg of it still gives it pride of placeamong Britain's top ten racecourses. Doncaster is impressive and its historystretches back to the 16th century. The South Yorkshire course plays host toboth flat and national hunt racing.
The St Leger and the Doncaster Cup are two ofthe oldest horse races in the world, and another of the feature races hosted atthe track is the Lincoln Handicap. The track is a left-handed one with afive-furlong straight.
Haydock
Haydock has a big warm place in the heart ofBritish racing. This is the other Merseyside course along with Aintree and ithosts both flat and jumps racing. There is some big action that happens atHaydock, none bigger than the Betfair Chase. That race is the opening leg ofthe £1 million Chase Triple Crown, with Kempton's King Goerge and theCheltenham Gold Cup completing it.
The racecourse as it stands today was opened in 1899 although horse racing in the area was going on before it was inaugurated. Another of the simple tracks in Britain, it is oval with an extra straight extension making up a six-furlong straight for some sprint action. Both flat and national hunt racing happens at Haydock and it's only out of action for three months of the year (March, April and October).
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