Photo by Mathew Schwartz
As we leave winter behind, we can start to look forward to a year of stellar horse racing – both on U.S. soil and overseas.
There’s a pantheon of major races heading our way in 2024, so if you love the sport and want to watch the best in the business do battle, here are five dates to mark your card for this year.
Grand National (April 13)
Steeplechase racing is something of a rarity on a global basis, but they love it in the UK – the Grand National being the pinnacle.
In some ways, the Grand National is like the Super Bowl to Brits – it’s the most bet-upon event each year, with race horsing enthusiasts joined on the wagering front by casual bets and workplace sweepstakes.
The Grand National betting will see the likes of I Am Maximus (+1000), Vanillier (+1000) and defending champion Corach Rambler (+1200) battle for prominence, while the horse racing tips columns will be trying to solve the puzzle of who has been the best treated by the handicapper – that is, which of the horses will carry the lightest weight relative to their ability.
The Aintree racetrack, near Liverpool, features some fearsome fences too, such as Becher’s Brook and The Chair, so the Grand National is a race that makes for a fascinating spectacle.
Kentucky Derby (May 4)
Horse racing in the United States doesn’t get much bigger than Kentucky Derby day – literally, with more than 150,000 people cramming into the Churchill Downs track to watch the drama unfold.
This Grade 1 renewal is the first leg of America’s Triple Crown of racing, with 13 horses going on to win this renewal, the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes to secure their place in the hall of fame.
The one-and-a-quarter mile track takes around two minutes for these majestic animals to complete, with winning connections bagging $3.1 million in prize money – that’s a handsome hourly rate!
Preakness Stakes (May 18)
First held in 1873, the Preakness Stakes has a lot of history and deserves its place as the second leg of the Triple Crown.
The Pimlico course in Baltimore has the honor of hosting the action, which has seen some of the great and the good anointed as champion – Secretariat holds the course record, while Triple Crown winners Justify and American Pharoah has also claimed victory in the Preakness Stakes within the past decade.
The Derby (June 1)
Early on in the UK summer, jumps racing gives way to action on the Flat – with The Derby being just one of a handful of prestigious renewals.
It’s the richest race on British soil, with the winner clinching more than $1 million, and certainly the most prestigious given its status as one of the ‘Classics’ and as the middle leg of UK Flat racing’s Triple Crown.
Breeders’ Cup Classic (November 1)
The Breeders’ Cup World Championships is a stunning two-day meeting held at the start of winter, with trainers and owners from all over the globe heading to American soil to try and claim their slice of history.
Photo by Elena Rabkina
The Breeders’ Cup Classic is arguably the standout race of the meeting, attracting an outstanding field and unofficially being recognized as the fourth leg of America’s ‘grand slam’ of racing, which also features the Triple Crown.
This race will bring the curtain down on another stellar year of horse racing on both sides of the Atlantic!
