Latest horse racing news from UK, Ireland, and around the world.
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Click on course names to view our course guides. Click on race times to access that racecard. Times highlighted in yellow are free races of the day.
| Catterick |
Good to Firm |
14:15 | 14:45 | 15:15 | 15:45 | 16:15 | 16:45 | ||
| Stratford |
Good to Firm |
14:27 | 14:57 | 15:27 | 15:57 | 16:27 | 17:00 | 17:35 | |
| Windsor |
Good to Firm |
16:21 | 16:52 | 17:25 | 18:00 | 18:30 | 19:00 | 19:30 | 20:00 |
| Ayr |
Good to Firm |
17:45 | 18:15 | 18:45 | 19:15 | 19:45 | 20:15 |
Precision timing proved key when Richard Hughes tasted Coolmore Wootton Bassett Nunthorpe Stakes glory as a jockey and his expert judgement could see Sayidah Dariyan peak at the perfect moment when she takes aim at York’s feature sprint on Friday.
Often content to bide his time in the plate, patience has again been the Irishman’s watchword in the training ranks, ending his long wait for an elusive first Group One success as a trainer when No Half Measures won the July Cup earlier this summer.
And ahead of Sayidah Dariyan’s attempt to quickly double his tally at the highest level, the 52-year-old remembers delivering Edward Lynam’s Sole Power with aplomb in the 2014 Nunthorpe, a ride which is often referred to as Hughes at the height of his powers.
A shock winner when surging home at 100-1 four years previously, the seven-year-old was an established name in the spiriting division and fresh off victory at Royal Ascot when Hughes entered the stalls aboard the 11-4 favourite.
What would ensue in the following 57.92 seconds was a display of calculated decision making as Hughes weaved his way to the front in the nick of time in an exhibition of horsemanship which was a hallmark of his decorated career in the saddle.
“It was really straightforward and I always felt it was a race you needed to get your fractions the same every furlong,” said Hughes
“It looked like Sole Power was quickening but he was going the same speed from the two-furlong pole to the one as he did from the one-pole to the winning post, I would say, and it was the others which stopped.
Sole Power 🚀
Watch the 2025 Ebor Festival live on Racing TV next week @yorkracecourse 📺 pic.twitter.com/OnKSXx9d0s
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) August 13, 2025
“I had no choice for four furlongs as I was flat to the bat, I know I was sitting on him but I couldn’t go any quicker.
“It was only then when the pace finally collapsed – and it took a good while but it eventually did – and they were all in a bit of a heap and collapsed at a similar time that I got going, and I had a bit of luck along the way to get through the pack.
“It does give you some extra satisfaction when you win like that and I enjoyed it, that’s for sure.”
There are many ways to get a job done and while Sole Power’s daring late dash is the showreel finish any jockey would be proud to wax lyrical about, in stark contrast, Hughes’ first Nunthorpe triumph aboard Oasis Dream in 2003 was a mere formality as the outstanding sprinter of his generation blew away his rivals.
Majestically handled by John Gosden, he was an impressive winner of the July Cup before dropping back to five furlongs to prove equally spellbinding on the Knavesmire, leaving Hughes with little doubt where he stands in the pantheon of sprinting greats.
He said: “He was very, very fast and able to maintain it. He was a young horse at the time so he was exuberant.
“He would be one of the best sprinters I rode, he was third at Royal Ascot but won a July Cup and a Nunthorpe and not many do that, he was very good.”
With triumphs in the saddle now confined to the memory bank and perhaps the odd photographic reminder on a wall, attentions turn to the next chapter in Hughes’ Nunthorpe history book when Sayidah Dariyan takes her place in the showpiece sprint event.
Successful over the course and distance in her most recent outing, Hughes is confident the talented daughter of Dariyan is coming to the boil at just the right time, as the Weathercock Stables handler looks to cap a breakout year in the training ranks at the scene of some of his finest hours on horseback.
One of the better rides you will see from @loughnane_billy, steering Sayidah Dariyan to victory in the Group Three @WilliamHill Summer Stakes, the filly staying on strongly to the line 👏 pic.twitter.com/BBlYb5DXxX
— York Racecourse (@yorkracecourse) July 11, 2025
“It would be lovely to win as a trainer,” continued Hughes. “It might be a bit harder than when I was a jockey but we hope we have a great chance.
“Sayidah Dariyan really is going the right way and last time when she won at York, it was the first time she was ridden the way I like.
“She was covered up and ridden for a turn of foot by Billy (Loughnane) and she just exploded. We were able to see the best of her ridden that way.
“I don’t think coming back to five furlongs will be too much of a hindrance to her, she’s quite fast.
“I wouldn’t swap her for anything and with No Half Measures as well, we know we have two nice fillies.”
Racing’s planned strike next month could be a “futile political gesture” that risks “antagonising” the Government, the Betting and Gaming Council has warned.
The British Horseracing Authority, in conjunction with racecourse operators the Jockey Club and Arena Racing Company, has announced there will be no racing on September 10 in protest at a proposed change in the existing structure of online gambling duties, with fears the current 15 per cent tax on racing could be increased to the 21 per cent levied on games of chance.
Fixtures at Carlisle, Uttoxeter, Lingfield and Kempton will not take place on their original date, instead being rescheduled, while a campaign event will be held in Westminster on the day of the strike, with senior leaders set to be joined by racing figures in highlighting the issue.
The BGC, which is the industry body, has said bookmakers were not consulted on the strike decision and feel collaboration with racing is key to a satisfactory outcome.
A spokesperson said: “Racing’s decision to reschedule fixtures was taken without consultation with betting operators, whose support for the funding of the sport is mission critical. We are concerned that futile political gestures will only antagonise the Government and frustrate punters, instead of delivering a solution to a shared challenge facing both racing and betting.
“We want to work with racing constructively to prevent further damaging tax rises, as any new tax rise on any part of betting or gaming can only undermine racing’s revenues and threaten investment in the sport – already a more expensive and less profitable product for operators.
“At the same time, higher costs and avoidable disruption risk driving customers to the unsafe, unregulated black market, which pays nothing to racing or the Treasury and offers no protections for consumers.
“The regulated betting and gaming industry contributes £6.8billion to the economy, generates £4bn in tax, and supports 109,000 jobs. Crucially, our members provide £350million a year to racing, alongside vital funding for other sports. Put that at risk, and it is customers and communities across the country that lose out.”
Speaking earlier in the day on Racing TV’s Luck On Sunday programme, the BHA’s acting chief executive Brant Dunshea explained the sport felt compelled to take “its own position”.
He said: “We’ve been trying to sit down with the BGC for months and talk about issues around the levy reform and that has proven to be a challenge.
“So on this occasion, racing is taking its own position. We are taking a clear, strong position on what we believe the impacts of this principle of harmonisation will have on us.
“We have to back ourselves, we are an enormous sport across the country – we are the second biggest spectator sport. Five million people attend racecourses every year, we’ve got to be able to stand up on our own two feet and argue a case for us and that’s what we’re doing.”
A Treasury spokesperson said: “We are consulting on bringing the treatment of online betting in line with other forms of online gambling to cut down bureaucracy – it is not about increasing or decreasing rates, and we welcome views from all stakeholders including businesses, trade bodies, the third sector and individuals.”
A giant leap with the talented Nahraan is unlikely this season, with connections inclined to take a patient approach with the unbeaten son of Make Believe.
Out of a half-sister to owner Prince Faisal’s recent Prix Maurice de Gheest scorer Sajir, the John and Thady Gosden-trained colt impressed in his first two outings before taking the step up to Listed level in his stride in the Glasgow Stakes at Hamilton.
He did have the option of following in the footsteps of the owner’s illustrious Mishriff in Deauville’s Prix Guillaume d’Ornano or York’s showpiece Juddmonte Stakes and while a trip to France was always favoured from those two, the Nahraan team have decided to keep their powder dry for the time being.
ParisLongchamp’s Prix du Prince d’Orange on September 14 – a race the Clarehaven team won with Ombudsman 12 months ago – could prove a suitable alternative, although Prince Faisal’s racing adviser Ted Voute stressed there will be no rush with the exciting prospect.
“There was no rain forecast at Deauville and John just felt he’s unbeaten so far, why risk him,” said Voute.
“It’s a shame we couldn’t go for the Prix Guillaume d’Ornano with Charlie Appleby not running Ruling Court, the last chance to run against his own age and sex for decent prize-money.
“Oisin (Murphy) suggested the Prix du Prince d’Orange could be a nice alternative, but I haven’t spoken to John to see what he is thinking.
“He won’t be jumping up far and we won’t be doing something silly. We’re happy to take a patient approach and if that boils over into a four-year-old career before he tackles the big targets, then so be it.”
Prince Faisal also has a two-year-old on the rise housed with the Gosdens, with Frankel colt Oxagon holding plenty of significant entries for the latter stages of the season.
Not disgraced in a hot Newmarket maiden on debut, he then bolted up with a degree of ease when an eight-length scorer at Sandown, with Voute intrigued to see where his training team will head next.
“He’s got entries in all the right races, but John and Thady will decide where they want to go,” added Voute.
“In real terms we did have an apprentice on claiming in a class four last time, but he won like a good horse and his time was good and the style in which he did it was very good.
“We’ve got to keep our feet on the ground at this stage, but John and Thady may be showing their hand a little bit with the entries which suggests they see something they like, so it will be exciting to see which race they choose.”
Tornado Alert is on a break before some lucrative targets in the Middle East beckon.
Saeed bin Suroor’s latest Group One winner had been asked four stiff questions in the first half of the season, running in the 2000 Guineas, Derby and at Royal Ascot before his success in Germany.
The Godolphin trainer now has his sights set on Bahrain before taking him out to Dubai and potentially Saudi Arabia.
“He’s fine, in good form, but I’ve given him a break. It’s likely that I’ll keep him back for the race in Bahrain (International Trophy, November 14),” said Bin Suroor.
“I just want to give him an easy time and miss York as he had been very busy, he ran in the Guineas, then the Derby, then Royal Ascot.
“I’ll get him started on some light exercise, then in September we can start working him before going to Bahrain, he’ll be ready for it. He needed a break.”
He added: “After Bahrain I’ll take him to Dubai and if he’s good enough, I’ll take him to Saudi Arabia. We’ll see how good he is on the dirt first and if not he can run in the turf race, I’ll have to see.”
Diego Velazquez held off a late charge from Notable Speech to come out on top in the Aga Khan Studs Prix Jacques le Marois at Deauville.
The Aidan O’Brien-trained colt was recently purchased by Sam Sangster and was running for the first time in the family’s famous silks under Christophe Soumillon.
The bay was running alongside stablemate The Lion In Winter in the Group One, who was joined by Roger Teal’s Dancing Gemini in making much of the running throughout the one-mile trip.
Diego Velazquez was always travelling well on the outside, however, and threw down his challenge in the final stages to see off a rapid finish on the inner rail from Charlie Appleby’s Notable Speech, who was beaten just a head. Dancing Gemini was a further three-quarters of a length back in third.
Diego Velazquez just holds on from the fast-finishing Notable Speech to land the Group One @AgaKhanStuds Prix Jacques le Marois at Deauville! 🏆🇫🇷 pic.twitter.com/xrHpn7ahoE
— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) August 17, 2025
The winning trainer said: “This is a breeding operation that produces very good two- and three-year-olds. He’s a superb model, a willing horse, his last run was very good and he really came to himself last week.”
Diego Velazquez’s last run was in the Minstrel Stakes, named in honour of the late Robert Sangster’s dual Derby winner who ran in the same colours carried to success at Deauville on behalf of his son.
Of that synchronicity, O’Brien added: “The Minstrel Stakes has often proved an excellent stepping stone – it’s a sharp 1,400 metres, and you need to be sharp.
“If you think about Ballydoyle’s history, and the history of these colours with horses like The Minstrel, who could have imagined that we would have a horse running in Mr Sangster’s silks? It’s just incredible, and I’m so delighted for Sam – truly thrilled.
“We thought he might be a horse for the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Keeneland and then possibly the Breeders’ Cup Mile. He loves fast ground and he’s quick.
“A lot of money has been spent this week on his stallion career. But sometimes money isn’t what matters. What they achieved today – you can’t buy that, those are memories.”
An emotional Sangster was thrilled at his new acquisition’s success, telling Sky Sports Racing: “It means a lot, we’re so lucky.
“MV (Magnier, former co-owner) is one of my oldest and greatest friends and when I came to him with the presentation of buying the horse to stand at the National Stud, he was fully supportive.
“We were lucky to buy him and we’re even luckier now, that’s for sure!
“He’s an absolutely gorgeous horse, he’s so tough, so genuine. He’s a phenomenal mover and to be honest, when he came out of his box you could already see him at the stallion barn at the National Stud.
“I’m a little lost for words to be honest, but I’m so delighted. He deserved to get that Group One today and I’m just so delighted to be involved with him.”
Despite defeat Charlie Appleby was still pleased with Notable Speech, who returned to form to an extent having failed to hit the heights of his three-year-old career so far this term.
He said: “We’re delighted with how the horse ran. Of course it’s frustrating to be beaten by so little, but the most important thing is to see him back to his best. The mile is his optimum trip. We tried dropping him back last time – sometimes you need to experiment.
“We’ll probably go to Canada for the Woodbine Mile, and then head to the Breeders’ Cup.”
Roger Teal, trainer of Dancing Gemini, said: “He really ran exceptionally well. The ground was probably a bit too quick, and perhaps he didn’t fully settle in the last 100 metres. It was still a top-class performance.
“Once again he showed huge ability, and a Group One win will come soon. He’s also entered at Ascot but first we’ll go to ParisLongchamp for the Prix du Moulin.
“We’re hoping to find slightly easier going, that’s the next target. He doesn’t need it heavy but just ground with a bit more give.”
York Racecourse holds a special place in the affections of many within racing, including Sir Mark Prescott, who kickstarted his training career on the Knavesmire before returning to win some of the track’s biggest prizes.
The Heath House handler’s career was in its infancy when he sent Heave To up the A1 to contest the Ford Cortina Cup in 1971, but it was a victory which would become the springboard for one of the greatest training careers ever curated and by one of racing’s most decorated characters.
“York has been very good to me and in my first season I won with a horse called Heave To,” said Prescott.
“It was the richest sprint handicap in Britain at the time and as it’s name implied, it was very, very richly endowed. It was for six-furlong three-year-old sprinters and him winning made a great difference to my first couple of years.
“It would be most memorable for me because it came when I needed it and he would go on to win the Victoria Cup, he really helped get me going.”
Many York patrons will also remember fondly – as does Prescott himself – the gamble landed with Graham Rock’s Pasternak in the race formally known as the Magnet Cup and now the John Smith’s, leg one of an audacious double which would be completed in the autumn when scooping the Cambridgeshire.
However, York’s most prestigious handicap of them all and the centrepiece of the Ebor Festival would enter Prescott’s grasp in 1994 when Hasten To Add finally relieved his handler of the heartache of some previous crushing defeats.
“Before York everybody thought he had won the Northumberland Plate except a very wise old punter who was there,” reminisced Prescott on his agonising reversal prior to the Ebor at Newcastle.
“I thought he had won, television, everyone thought he had won.
“Yet as I pranced down to meet him convinced of what a wonderful trainer I was, this old punter who had been in the police force came up to me and said ‘I have reason to believe that you may not have won’ which was such a lovely phrase and way of disappointing me and of course he was right.
“He had been second in the Duke of Edinburgh and second in the Northumberland Plate and he’d also been fourth beaten at the shortest price ever in the Cesarewitch, so York was a great day and came at the right time, it was good to win the race and get it ticked off.”
For all the handicaps landed and plots successfully accomplished, Prescott has always been more than just a one-trick pony and over the years he has returned to the Knavesmire with the cream of the Heath House crop to take home some of the Ebor Festival’s most prestigious events.
Pivotal gave long-time Prescott owners Cheveley Park Stud one of their greatest days when battling to a narrow Nunthorpe Stakes victory in 1996, but an even more dramatic finish to York’s sprint showcase came eight years ago when Marsha provided the veteran trainer one of his most memorable triumphs of recent times.
With Marsha going head-to-head with American hotpot Lady Aurelia in the closing stages, the race is remembered by many for Frankie Dettori’s steadfast confidence as the pair of courageous mares flashed past the winning line in unison.
Watching from afar, Prescott was one of those to be initially convinced by the mercurial Italian’s bravado at the finish, but gasps would soon ring out around the racecourse as the judge delivered the verdict in Marsha’s favour, with the victory proving a catalyst for a record 6,000,000 guineas fee at the sales later that year.
“She won a nose when no one thought she had got it, including poor Mr Dettori,” explained Prescott.
“I was looking at yearlings at Miss (Kirsten) Rausing’s in Ireland at the time so I wasn’t there and I was watching on television and thought what a shame she got beat. I went straight back to what I was doing, so I certainly didn’t read it right.
Frankie celebrates… but it's Marsha who wins the Nunthorpe in a photo! Lady Aurelia is beaten by the tiniest margin pic.twitter.com/KK1OjojdE8
— ITV Racing (@itvracing) August 25, 2017
“Richard Hoiles, the commentator, was the only person who got it right, he said something like ‘Frankie thinks he has won it, but I’m not sure he is right’ – it was his great day as well.
“Everyone you would meet in the street said they owned a bit of Marsha and when she sold for the record price, she secured the future of the Elite Racing Club and their breeding operation forever.”
York may have been the defining moment of Marsha’s career, but for one of Prescott’s greatest alumni, the Knavesmire proved just a stopping point on the road to greater things when Alpinista set up her historic Prix de l’Arc de Triomph bid with victory in the Yorkshire Oaks.
Exceptional on her travels, but still in the eyes of many swimming under the radar when making the trip to Yorkshire somewhat under duress in August 2022, she headed home with a fifth straight Group One to her name and ParisLongchamp glory within reach.
“She had been doing a lot of her Group One winning abroad and the Arc was the aim. I had it in mind that we had beaten all the French fillies before in the previous Group One so we would go for the Prix Vermeille where you knew you could beat them,” explained Prescott on his initial reluctance to head to York.
“However, Miss Rausing said she would like it to be York as Alpinista had never won a Group One in England. If it was left to me she would have gone to the Vermeille, but as it turned out Miss Rausing was right.
“She became favourite for the Arc almost straight away which was when the worries started! From then on it all began to get tense.
“She was always under the radar and she won all those Group Ones in succession yet there wasn’t any real pressure on us until after York and building up to the Arc.
“I had no one ringing up asking for quotes on how she was doing or anything and she had won five Group Ones! But then all of a sudden the phone did start ringing, quite regularly as well!”
Bookmakers have urged the Government to rethink its betting tax proposals as the sport prepares to strike on September 10.
Fixtures at Carlisle, Uttoxeter, Lingfield and Kempton will not take place after the British Horseracing Authority and the track’s owners agreed to strike, making it the first time the sport has voluntarily refused to race in modern history.
The action is in response to proposals to replace the existing three-tax structure of online gambling duties with a single tax, with fears the current 15 per cent duty on racing could be increased to the 21 per cent levied on games of chance.
Sebastian Butterworth, director of racing strategy at Flutter UKI, the parent company of Paddy Power and Sky Bet, believes that any gambling tax rise will impact the future funding of racing.
He said: “Any increase in gambling tax will have a profound effect on funding for racing – be that a rise in betting duty or a tax raid on people who play games like online bingo and poker.
“We are already having to reconsider certain investments in UK racing and we urge the Government to reconsider.”
A Treasury spokesperson said: “We are consulting on bringing the treatment of online betting in line with other forms of online gambling to cut down bureaucracy – it is not about increasing or decreasing rates, and we welcome views from all stakeholders including businesses, trade bodies, the third sector and individuals.”
Nicky Henderson feels racing has “little choice” but to press ahead with unprecedented strike action as the sport mobilises against the proposed gambling tax amendments.
The British Horseracing Authority announced a pause in all racing fixtures on September 10, with cards at Lingfield, Carlisle, Uttoxeter and Kempton rescheduled in a statement against the Treasury’s proposed move to unify the current three-tax structure of online gaming duties into one rate.
The industry anticipates the potential tax increase to have a profound negative impact on racing’s finances and Henderson, a leading figure in the sport and the trainer of many great National Hunt horses, sees strike action as a justified step.
“I am not necessarily a person who is favour of using strikes as a tool, but the message has got to get across that this tax could be crippling,” he said.
“It is not a weapon I would ordinarily suggest we turn to, but under the circumstance I would say we probably have little choice.”
Fellow trainer Jamie Osborne was in agreement, backing the strike action with the long-term health of the sport in mind.
He told Racing TV: “I’m pleased to see we’re attempting to get on the front foot. Trainers are busy looking after their own micro-situations and we often don’t have time to get involved in the macro scenario, but the impact for all of us within the sport if this occurs is immeasurable.
“It’s just not as one-dimensional as people think it is. I think there is nothing wrong with the sport attempting to separate itself from sports betting – let them paddle their own canoe, let them make their arguments. We already have the 10 per cent levy that they don’t have. We are in effect taxed at a higher rate than sports betting.
“One thing that mustn’t be lost in this argument, and Government should bear this in mind, is the soft power the sport gives us internationally and especially in the Middle East.
“I think if they underestimate they risk damaging the sport and risk taking away that power. I think that would be a mistake.”
What is happening?
For the first time in the modern history of the sport in Britain, its participants will voluntarily go on strike for a day. A day of protest will be held in Westminster.
What does that mean?
It means there will be no racing in Britain on September 10. The meetings scheduled for Lingfield, Carlisle, Uttoxeter and Kempton that day will not take place. They have been rescheduled to other dates.
And why has all this come about?
The strike announcement has come as part of British racing’s ‘Axe the Racing Tax’ campaign, which is urging the Government to axe the Treasury’s proposal to bring existing online betting duties into one single rate.
Why would tax rises be so bad?
Economic analysis commissioned by the British Horseracing Authority has shown that aligning the current tax rate paid by bookmakers on racing with that of online games of chance could see a £330 million revenue hit to the industry in the first five years, putting 2,752 jobs at risk in the first year alone.
Strike action will surely cost the sport money?
It will, it is estimated it will cost around £200,000 in lost revenue on the day.
So does the racing industry support the strike move?
In a word, yes. Racecourses, owners and trainers are all in agreement. The National Trainers Federation said cancelling fixtures was “a huge sacrifice” which “should serve as a stark reminder to the Government of the impact its tax raid will have on our sport”.
Is this is a one-off, or will there be more strikes?
No more strikes are planned, as things stand.
Can I still have a bet anywhere that day?
Yes, there will actually be one meeting in Ireland, at Cork. Irish racing is run completely separately to British racing.
British racing will stage an unprecedented one-day strike on September 10 in protest at a proposed rise in taxes on horserace betting.
The four scheduled fixtures at Carlisle, Uttoxeter, Lingfield and Kempton will not take place after agreements between the owners of the courses and the British Horseracing Authority, making it the first time the sport has voluntarily refused to race in modern history.
The BHA set up the ‘Axe the Racing Tax’ campaign in response to proposals to replace the existing three-tax structure of online gambling duties with a single tax, with fears the current 15 per cent duty on racing could be increased to the 21 per cent levied on games of chance.
Brant Dunshea, chief executive at the British Horseracing Authority, said: “We have decided to take the unprecedented decision to cancel our planned racing fixtures on September 10 to highlight to Government the serious consequences of the Treasury’s tax proposals which threaten the very future of our sport.
“British racing is already in a precarious financial position and research has shown that a tax rise on racing could be catastrophic for the sport and the thousands of jobs that rely on it in towns and communities across the country.
“This is the first time that British racing has chosen not to race due to Government proposals. We haven’t taken this decision lightly but in doing so we are urging the Government to rethink this tax proposal to protect the future of our sport which is a cherished part of Britain’s heritage and culture.
“Our message to Government is clear: axe the racing tax and back British racing.”
The four tracks involved are operated by the Jockey Club and the Arena Racing Company, with both backing the move.
Jim Mullen, CEO at the Jockey Club, said: “We hope this pause for reflection will enable the Government to truly understand the economic impact of horseracing and its cultural significance to communities across the UK, as well as the world-class racing festivals we host.
“After this period of reflection, we hope the full implications will be understood, and we can prevent the irreparable damage that threatens a sport the nation is, and should be, proud of.”
Martin Cruddace, CEO at ARC, added: “We have always been taxed and regulated differently, and it is imperative for our future that we continue to be so.
“If the Government wants Britain to be a world leader in online casino and a world pauper in a sport at the heart of its culture, then tax harmonisation will achieve that aim.”
While the four meetings will be rescheduled, Paul Johnson, chief executive of the National Trainers Federation, underlined the “sacrifice” in calling a halt to the sport for a day.
He said: “Cancelling fixtures is a huge sacrifice by racing and should serve as a stark reminder to the Government of the impact its tax raid will have on our sport.
“Thousands of jobs are at stake alongside the loss of millions of pounds to the British economy.”
A Treasury spokesperson said: “We are consulting on bringing the treatment of online betting in line with other forms of online gambling to cut down bureaucracy – it is not about increasing or decreasing rates, and we welcome views from all stakeholders including businesses, trade bodies, the third sector and individuals.”
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Click on course names to view our course guides. Click on race times to access that racecard. Times highlighted in yellow are free races of the day.
| Southwell |
Standard |
13:22 | 13:52 | 14:22 | 14:52 | 15:22 | 15:52 | 16:22 | 16:52 |
| Pontefract |
Good |
14:12 | 14:42 | 15:12 | 15:42 | 16:12 | 16:42 | 17:12 | |
| Tramore |
Good |
14:30 | 15:00 | 15:30 | 16:00 | 16:30 | 17:00 | 17:30 |
Leinster capped a fine afternoon for jockey Dylan Browne McMonagle when emphatically landing the Comer Group International Irish St. Leger Trial Stakes at the Curragh.
Having earlier bagged a treble on the card, the Joseph O’Brien-trained Leinster was sent off at 6-1 to give the 22-year-old a four-timer in this Group Three event.
The four-strong field raced in single file in the early stages and McMonagle was motionless aboard Leinster as the four-year-old travelled powerfully into the straight full of running and seemingly ready to make his mark.
With Dallas Star and Absurde giving way with a furlong to run and Ryan Moore easing down 10-11 favourite Puppet Master, the coast was clear for Leinster to surge four-and-a-quarter lengths clear and give the young jockey a highlight reel finish to his afternoon at Irish headquarters.
McMonagle said, “We went a steady speed, and he was a bit in my hands all the way. I’d love if they had gone on a stride, but I just needed to get him to relax today because we were riding him forward and he was just doing too much the last couple of days.
“Today coming back in trip and up in grade I thought there would have been more of an even gallop on, but we did go slow again.
“I was comfortable down past the two and I just let him flow. He stays this trip well and is a good horse.”
After notching up a 877-1 four-timer, McMonagle headed to Tramore for three further rides on Saturday evening.
Zahrann produced a tremendous display to regain the winning thread and lead home a Johnny Murtagh one-two in the Newbridge Silverware Royal Whip Stakes at the Curragh.
Impressive when winning twice earlier in the season, he missed out on a hat-trick when narrowly denied by Ralph Beckett’s Amiloc in the King Edward VII Stakes at Royal Ascot.
Despite the defeat, he left the Royal meeting with his reputation firmly enhanced, and as such was sent off 2-1 second-favourite behind Aidan O’Brien’s odds-on market leader Los Angeles in his quest to get back to winning ways in this Group Three event.
A CRACKING result for @JohnnyMurtagh 🟩🟥
Zahrann overcomes some trouble in-running to lead home a stable one-two in the feature Royal Whip Stakes under @BenCoen2.
What do we make of that run from Los Angeles? 👀@curraghrace pic.twitter.com/JquyCFgjBF
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) August 16, 2025
It was Murtagh’s 300-1 outsider Tangapour who led the field into the final quarter-mile, but when Zahrann’s jockey Ben Coen asked his mount to bravely squeeze up his stablemate’s inner to make his winning run, he found a willing ally who displayed a race-winning turn of foot close home.
He finished two-lengths clear of Tangapour who in turn tenaciously held off Joseph O’Brien’s Galen for second, with Los Angeles unable to land a telling blow in fourth.
And having passed this stern examination of his credentials, Murtagh is now excited to test Zahrann in Group One company, as he sets his sights on a run in the Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes on September 13.
Murtagh said: “We wanted to see where we stood today. Ben went the brave man’s route today, got the gap and he quickened up.
“I haven’t spoken to anybody yet, but hopefully we’ll be able to go for the Irish Champion. Today was the test.
“It looked in Ascot like he was a little bit slow, but I think a strong mile and a quarter should suit him around Leopardstown. He has to improve again, but he might.
“He’s a very relaxed horse that doesn’t show much at home and is learning on the job. He’s a typical Aga Khan horse and reminds me a bit of Sinndar that when he clicks into gear someday, he might realise how good he is.
“He’s still underdeveloped and I think he could be a really nice four-year-old.”
More Thunder continued his brilliant summer when powering home for an impressive victory in the Visit Malta Hungerford Stakes at Newbury.
Only an agonising Royal Ascot defeat in the Wokingham counts as a slight blot on the copybook of William Haggas’ four-year-old this season. He was scoring for the fourth time in a campaign which has seen him now successfully climb the ladder into Group company.
Sent off the 6-4 favourite after landing the spoils in the Bunbury Cup last month, Tom Marquand had More Thunder in his customary position away from the pace as Hackwood Stakes winner Rage Of Bamby and Lennox Stakes victor Witness Stand disputed the it and led the runners into the closing stages.
⚡ Marquand strikes twice!
More Thunder rolls home in the Visit Malta Hungerford Stakes#ITVRacing | @NewburyRacing pic.twitter.com/wxxQPJHZpf
— ITV Racing (@itvracing) August 16, 2025
However, the complexion of the race changed once Marquand eased his mount into top gear, weaving his way to the front with half a furlong to run before darting clear in tremendous fashion late on.
More Thunder finished two and a quarter lengths clear of Witness Stand who kept on gamely for second and Marvelman a head further back in third.
Haggas said: “He’s progressing well and I was very pleased with him today, he won well.
“I still don’t really know what his best trip is, but he seems to be getting better anyway and he was strong at the finish today, he wasn’t stopping.
“I think he’s quite effective if not at his best on slower ground and he’s been fun. He’s done very well and beat a horse who won a good race last time, so hopefully the form is strong and he’s won comfortably so I’m delighted.”
More Thunder holds a host of high-ranking entries at distances ranging from six furlongs to a mile later in the season and with Group Two honours secured, the Somerville Lodge handler raised the possibility of stepping up to the highest level before the year is out.
“I would say all options are open for him,” continued Haggas. “We’re in everything from six furlongs to a mile and he’s won a Group Two now so we’ve got to go for another Group Two or a Group One and it will just depend on how many more races we’re going to give him this season.
“He won at both the Craven and the Guineas meeting so he has been on the go for a while so we will have to see.
“We need to make plans, will he retire or race again as a five-year-old? So we’ve got lots to think about – but it’s nice thinking.”
