Pontefract Course Guide

The West Yorkshire course hosts racing throughout the summer including four Listed contests of which the Pontefract Castle Stakes is arguably the seasonal highlight.

Run over a mile and a half, the race has been won by some useful horses since its inception in 2005, most notably Brown Panther, who scored in 2012 and 2013 before going on to prove himself a very smart horse with wins in the Goodwood Cup, Irish St Leger and Dubai Gold Cup.

Other important races run at the Yorkshire track include the Pipalong Stakes, a one-mile event for fillies and mares, the Pomfret Stakes, run over a mile for three-year-olds and older and the Silver Tankard Stakes, a one-mile race for two-year-olds in October.

Flat Racing

Left handed, with considerable gradients and a stiff, uphill finish. The emphasis is more on stamina than speed courtesy of the final three furlongs; as such, in-running punters should be wary of those who go for home a long way out. On very testing going, the jockeys occasionally race wide in search of better ground, swinging across to the stand side in the straight.

You have to be aware when you’re on a keen horse at Pontefract that, whether you go to post to the left or right, it’s downhill all the way to the start. Wise local punters often go down to the 1f marker to watch their fancy for that very reason. The track itself is incredibly stiff, a proper test, and being on the inside is a massive advantage. There’s a temptation to come wide, which can be a good move in soft ground, but, when it’s quick, you’re best to sit and suffer. Stamina there is always at a premium.

View from the saddle: Jason Weaver

Pontefract Top Times
Last 5 years

Flat

Distance	Horse (Going)	Date	Winning time
5f	Judicial (Good to Firm)	24 Apr 2017	1m 0.49s
6f	Mehronissa (Good)	14 Aug 2016	1m 14.04s
1m 4y	Red Tea (Good to Firm)	24 Apr 2017	1m 41.39s
1m 2f 6y	Ennistown (Good to Firm)	25 Sep 2014	2m 10.04s
1m 4f 8y	Rocket Ship (Good to Firm)	06 Aug 2014	2m 34.54s
2m 1f 27y	Becky The Thatcher (Good to Firm)	11 Jun 2018	3m 44.87s
2m 2f 2y	Akavit (Good to Firm)	25 Jun 2017	3m 58.33s
2m 5f 122y	Tuscan Gold (Good to Firm)	24 Apr 2017	4m 53.25s

Pontefract Top Trainers
Last 3 years (ordered by number of winners)

Flat

Trainer	Runners	Wins	Places	Prize Money	Strike-Rate	P/L
R A Fahey	215	29	90	£245,859	13.49%	-£9.24
M Johnston	128	23	52	£195,585	17.97%	-£60.39
T D Easterby	145	16	41	£130,850	11.03%	-£64.67
D O'Meara	110	15	37	£116,599	13.64%	-£51.75
K A Ryan	69	12	19	£71,350	17.39%	£4.33
R M Whitaker	46	11	12	£55,546	23.91%	£13.58
Micky Hammond	89	10	29	£43,848	11.24%	-£32.75
Sir Michael Stoute	32	10	16	£104,706	31.25%	-£6.87
M R Channon	43	9	19	£54,252	20.93%	£11.75
Mrs R Carr	71	8	26	£42,005	11.27%	-£4.25

Pontefract Top Jockeys
Last 3 years (ordered by number of winners)

Flat

Jockey	Runners	Wins	Places	Prize Money	Strike-Rate	P/L
D Tudhope	129	25	50	£153,262	19.38%	-£27.78
S De Sousa	80	19	33	£128,303	23.75%	-£15.01
P Hanagan	95	17	41	£120,740	17.89%	£31.05
F Norton	75	17	29	£133,011	22.67%	-£13.01
D Allan	101	15	36	£125,352	14.85%	-£7.00
Ben Curtis	73	15	19	£100,295	20.55%	£10.75
G Lee	126	14	47	£112,080	11.11%	-£26.25
P J McDonald	92	14	36	£109,832	15.22%	-£36.57
J Fanning	72	13	26	£86,658	18.06%	£25.53
T Hamilton	94	9	35	£66,197	9.57%	-£38.00