Race type - Jump
Huntingdon
Course details
Set in the heart of the Cambridgeshire countryside, race-goers have been coming to the present site since 1920 and in more recent times they have enjoyed some superb facilities, establishing Huntingdon as one of the finest countryside courses in the country.
The course itself is as flat as a pancake and due to it's free-draining nature rarely gets too testing.
GUIDE - For Racecourse
Right-handed, flat, oval circuit of 1m4f
Set in the heart of the Cambridgeshire countryside, race-goers have been coming to the present site since 1920 and in more recent times they have enjoyed some superb facilities, establishing Huntingdon as one of the finest countryside courses in the country. They flock here for the Boxing Day meeting, when it's a case of 10 deep at the bar, and the Mascot Grand National (contested by football club mascots in full costume), staged here in September, has been another crown pleaser. Sadly for Huntingdon, the 'race' has been switched to Kempton for 2011.
Principal Races
The Peterborough Chase, run over 2m 41/2 f in early December, has been won by some top class horses down the years, including One Man, Best Mate and Edredon Bleu, who made the race his own between 1998 and 2001, winning it four times, That one's trainer Henrietta Knight was also responsible for 2002 winner Best Mate, as well as Impek (2005) and dual winner Racing Demon (2006&07), so it's clearly a race she likes to win. The course also stages a couple of valuable hurdle races: the Chatteris Fen Juvenile Hurdle and the recently upgraded Sidney Banks Memorial Novices' Hurdle, run at consecutive meetings in February.
Course Characteristics
The course itself is as flat as a pancake and due to it's free-draining nature rarely gets too testing. As a result, the emphasis is very much on speed and those horses who have shown a liking for galloping tracks and soft ground can generally be opposed. In this respect, it has many similarities to Kempton and horses that have shown good form at the latter track can be backed with some confidence here, and vice versa of course. The fences are not particularly big but horses tend to jump them at speed and that increases the chance of casualties. The open ditch in front of the grandstand, in particular, provides a thrilling spectacle.
Top Trainers
Anything Nicky Henderson runs here has to be given maximum respect with his runners obliging at a strike rate of 36% (38 winners / 107 runners). Alan King is not far behind with 31 winners at a strike rate of 18%, but he's not a trainer to follow blind as his winners tend to be short-priced, which is also the case with Jonjo O'Neil (17 winners / 12%). Brendan Powell and Neil King do really well here with their limited strings, turning out 16 and 15 runners respectively in the last five seasons, and their runners are always worth a second look.
Top Jockeys
Champion jockey Tony McCoy is a frequent visitor here and rarely leaves empty-handed, having won 31 races in the last five seasons at a strike rate of 23%. Richard Johnson and Choc Thornton can also be relied upon to get the job done when on the right horse, and both have strike rates of around 18%. Noel Fehily's 16 winners were achieved from just 69 rides, giving him a strike rate of 23%, while backers of all his runners would have enjoyed a level stakes profit of over £20. The much under-rated Wayne Hutchinson is another jockey regularly amongst the winners here.