Betfred have added the 1000 and 2000 Guineas to their portfolio of sponsorships, so the leading UK bookmaker now sponsors all British Classic races from 2025 onwards. The firm also offer a £2,000,000 bonus to any horse that completes the Triple Crown.
As one of the biggest High Street bookies and betting sites in the country, Betfred succeeded Cazoo as sponsors of The Oaks, The Derby and St Leger in 2023. In an industry first, they now partner the entire set of British Classic races.
This is a shot in the arm for UK horse racing at a time when many high-profile positions in the sport need filling with new management and leadership. QIPCO recently announced an end to their 14-year sponsorship of the Guineas, but retain their partnership with Ascot Racecourse for events including British Champions Day.
“Nobody has ever sponsored all five British Classics and I’m so proud to be the first,” said Betfred founder Fred Done. “I’m honoured as a bookmaker to be supporting the sport that I love. I want to put the British Classics back where they belong, at the forefront of global horseracing.
When asked about new the Triple Crown races bonus, he added: “As The Bonus King, it only seems right that I should offer a bonus. Therefore, I am offering £2 million to any horse who wins the Betfred Triple Crown.
“It hasn’t been done since Nijinsky back in 1970. Although Camelot came very close in 2012, it seems about time we were celebrating another Triple Crown winner.”
What are the British Classic Races?
Open only to three-year-old colts and/or fillies, the Classics are historic thoroughbred horse races which virtually guarantee their winners a post-racing career at stud. Held in May, June and September across three different tracks, they wee first held in the latter part of the eighteenth century,
Each of the British Classic races has a different distance. The 1000 and 2000 Guineas are on the Rowley Mile course at Newmarket over a mile distance. Following those are The Oaks and The Derby on Epsom Downs contest over a mile-and-a-half.
The fifth and final of the British Classic races is the St Leger, run at Doncaster over an extended mile-and-three-quarters. Racehorses can undergo a remarkable amount of strengthening and development throughout their three-year-old season.
Having the speed to win at a mile in the spring, but sufficient stamina to last nearly twice the distance in the autumn is so rarely attempted these days. Colts cannot run in the 1000 Guineas or The Oaks, yet fillies can contest the 2000 Guineas or The Derby if their connections wish.
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What is the Triple Crown?
Triple Crown races are those British Classic races that three-year-old colts take part in. Few, if any, thoroughbreds even attempt to win them all these days. This is because of the different distances and demands placed upon thoroughbreds by each.
The tracks where they take place have similarities and differences. Each course, Newmarket, Epsom and Doncaster, suit galloping types but have undulations in different places. There is a notable dip on the Rowley Mile in the penultimate furlong, which can unbalance some horses.
Epsom Downs has a camber which punishes runners for hanging off the far side rail in the home straight, which is largely downhill but then rises in the final furlong like at Newmarket. Horses must climb Rose Hill in the back straight at Doncaster, then drop down from it on the turn towards the lengthy home straight.
All of the best horse racing betting sites provide specials every year about certain named horses becoming Triple Crown winners. This has never been accomplished in the age of online gambling.
All Triple Crown Races
To recap, these are the three Triple Crown races which, from 2025, come with a £2,000,000 bonus for winning all of them:
- 2000 Guineas, Newmarket (May)
- The Derby, Epsom Downs (June)
- St Leger, Doncaster (September)
Who Was The Last Race Horse to Win the Triple Crown?
Equine legend Nijinsky was the last of the Triple Crown winners. Betfred’s sponsorship of all British Classic races from 2025 coincides with the 55-year anniversary of accomplishing this feat back in 1970.
Nijisnky is the latest of 15 Triple Crown winners and the only horse to do it after the Second World War. All but one of the 14 other successful horses achieved this prior to the end of the First World War.
A filly has subsequently won the 1000 Guineas, The Oaks and St Leger. That was Oh So Sharp in 1985. This is referred to as the Fillies’ Triple Crown. Only nine females managed to landed all three of those races with Meld the only other postwar winner.
