Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic premise – to identify which of two or more horses is the fastest over a set course or distance – has been mostly unchanged since at least classical antiquity.
Horse racing is the second largest spectator sport in Great Britain, and one of the longest established, with a history dating back many centuries. According to a report by the British Horseracing Authority it generates £3.39 billion total direct and indirect expenditure in the British economy, of which £1.05 billion is from core racing industry expenditure, and the major horse racing events such as Royal Ascot and Cheltenham Festival are important dates in the British and international sporting and society calendar.
Conditions races are horse races in which the weights carried by the runners are laid down by the conditions attached to the race. Weights are allocated according to the sex of the runners, with female runners carrying less weight than males; the age of the runners, with younger horses receiving weight from older runners to allow for relative maturity, referred to as weight for age; and the quality of the runners, with horses that have won certain values of races giving weight to less successful entrants.
The Coronation Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 6 yards, or about 1½ miles, and it is scheduled to take place each year in late May or early June.
The 1000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile, and it is scheduled to take place each year in late April or early May on the Sunday following the 2000 Guineas Stakes.
The Sussex Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 1 mile, and it is scheduled to take place each year in late July or early August.
The Sprint Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Haydock Park over a distance of 6 furlongs, and it is scheduled to take place each year in early September.
The Champion Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile 1 furlong and 212 yards, and it is scheduled to take place as part of British Champions Day each year in October.
National Hunt racing is a form of horse racing particular to France, Great Britain, and Ireland, that requires horses to jump fences and ditches. In the UK it is divided into two major distinct branches, hurdling and steeplechase, as well as flat races called "bumpers". Hurdling involved the horses jumping over obstacles called hurdles, whereas in a steeplechase the horses jump over a variety of obstacles that can include plain fences, water jump or an open ditch. In the UK, the biggest National Hunt events of the year are generally considered to be the Grand National and the Cheltenham Gold Cup.
Group races, also known as Pattern races, or Graded races in some jurisdictions, are the highest level of races in Thoroughbred horse racing. They include most of the world's iconic races, such as the Derby, Irish Derby and Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in Europe, the Melbourne Cup in Australia, and the Kentucky Derby and Breeders' Cup races in the United States. Victory in these races marks a horse as being particularly talented, if not exceptional, and they are extremely important in determining stud values. They are also sometimes referred to as Black type races, since any horse that has won one of these races is printed in bold type in sales catalogues.
Doncaster Racecourse is a racecourse in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. It hosts two of Great Britain's 36 annual Group 1 flat races, the St Leger Stakes and the Racing Post Trophy.
National Hunt flat races, informally known as bumper races, are a type of flat racing but run under National Hunt racing rules in Britain and Ireland.
The Great St. Wilfrid Stakes is a flat handicap horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Ripon over a distance of 6 furlongs, and it is scheduled to take place each year in August.
Ripon Racecourse is a thoroughbred horse racing venue located in Ripon, North Yorkshire, England and is nicknamed the Garden Racecourse.
Provideo was an Irish-bred, English-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In 1984 he set a 20th-century record for a British-trained two-year-old when he won sixteen of his twenty-four races. His most important successes were in two Listed races, the Star Stakes at Sandown Park and the Champion Two-Year-Old Trophy at Ripon Racecourse. Despite being rated twenty pounds below the best horses of the year, he was named Horse of the Year by the Timeform organisation and topped the official British Horse of the Year poll conducted by the Racegoers Club.
The Scarbrough Stakes was a Listed flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged two years or older. It was run at Doncaster Racecourse over a distance of 5 furlongs and 3 yards, and was scheduled to take place each year in September. It was removed from the pattern race programme by the British Horseracing Authority in 2024.
The Commonwealth Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to colts and fillies aged three years. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 6 furlongs, and it is scheduled to take place each year in June.
The Sandy Lane Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years only. It is run at Haydock Park over a distance of 6 furlongs, and it is scheduled to take place each year in late May or early June.
The Two-Year-Old Trophy is a Listed flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged two years only. It is run at Redcar over a distance of 5 furlongs and 217 yards, and it is scheduled to take place each year in early October.
William Nevett was an English flat racing jockey, who won three wartime Derbies and formed a famous partnership with Dante, one of the horses of the century.
