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.
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
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Distance Horse (Going) Date Winning time 5f Judicial (Good to Firm) 24 Apr 2017 1m 0.49s 6f Stormy Girl (Good to Firm) 14 Aug 2020 1m 13.87s 1m 6y Hidden Sky (Good to Firm) 14 Aug 2020 1m 41.33s 1m 2f 6y Mysterial (Good to Firm) 15 Sep 2016 2m 10.59s 1m 4f 5y Frankel's Storm (Good to Firm) 14 Aug 2020 2m 34.45s 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 -
Trainer Runners Wins Prize Money Strike-Rate P/L R A Fahey 181 26 £176,652 14.36% £11.91 M Johnston 119 19 £191,271 15.97% -£40.42 T D Easterby 156 18 £112,724 11.54% -£56.01 D O'Meara 92 13 £115,076 14.13% -£20.50 P T Midgley 76 13 £67,240 17.11% £5.58 K A Ryan 70 12 £71,243 17.14% -£7.35 R M Beckett 23 10 £100,471 43.48% -£2.34 M Appleby 52 9 £81,960 17.31% -£7.67 R M Whitaker 50 9 £35,254 18% £9.75 M R Channon 40 9 £39,750 22.5% £4.95 -
Jockey Runners Wins Prize Money Strike-Rate P/L B A Curtis 100 25 £148,133 25% £29.50 D Tudhope 120 21 £132,444 17.5% -£57.70 S De Sousa 59 18 £171,359 30.51% £2.44 G Lee 124 17 £119,346 13.71% £10.33 D Allan 108 14 £93,479 12.96% -£29.34 P Hanagan 88 14 £117,141 15.91% £23.13 F Norton 61 12 £107,884 19.67% -£25.31 J Fanning 87 10 £59,564 11.49% £3.75 T Hamilton 53 9 £43,535 16.98% £8.28 A Mullen 69 8 £41,212 11.59% £110.33
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Address & Contact
Pontefract Park Race Co. Ltd
Administration Offices
Pontefract Park
Park Road
Pontefract
West Yorkshire
WF8 4QD
01977 781307
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