The turf
Top owners are quitting horse racing because bookmakers nervous of a government and a Gambling Commission that know remarkably little…
The turf
Racing at Cartmel probably began in the 15th century when Brother John wagered a mug of ale with Brother Cain…
The turf
When the nine equine athletes involved in the seven-furlong contest for Newbury’s Saturday highlight, the Group Two BetVictor Hungerford Stakes,…
The turf
On no course in Britain does jockeyship count for more than at undulating, tricksy Goodwood and although Frankie Dettori was…
The turf
‘God it’s hot,’ said a Newbury waitress escaping into the lift from rain-soaked crowds jostling in the bars last Saturday.…
The turf
I should have listened to George Duffield. Sandown Park’s Eclipse Stakes, the first time the Classic generation of three-year-olds take…
The turf
We all wanted Frankie to have a last Royal Ascot hurrah. In the end he got four, including a ninth…
The science of horse racing
Everybody in racing is looking for an edge. With 7-4 the field, the punter is looking for a 2-1. The…
The turf
Usually in May I am still casting an enviously nostalgic eye backwards to Aintree and Cheltenham, reluctant yet to pack…
The turf
John Trotwood Moore, one-time State Librarian of Tennessee, was a racist and defender of the Ku Klux Klan. But in…
The turf
When jockey Derek Fox came over from Ireland to join the Scottish stable run by Lucinda Russell and her partner,…
The Turf
Mrs Oakley not being a turfista, she rarely joins me on a racecourse expedition. But before we had a dog…
The magic of Veterans’ Chase Day
Like most people in racing I began 2023 down in the dumps, moaning about insufficient prize money, small fields and…
