St Leger Festival 2024 Betting Offers

Scarbrough Stakes (Listed)

The Scarbrough Stakes is open to 2-year-olds and over and is run over 5 furlongs and 3 yards. Winners of Group 1 and Group 2 races after the 31st of March are excluded, however. The following weight information applies to the race:

• 2-year-olds: 8 stone 3 pounds
• 3-year-olds: 9 stone 10 pounds
• 4-year-olds and over: 9 stone 11 pounds
• Fillies and mares get a 5 pound allowance
• Group 3 race winners since the 31st of March receive a 5 pound penalty
• Listed race winners since the 31st of March receive a 3 pound penalty

Between 1983 and today, three horses have won this Listed race twice but no horses have won it three times.

May Hill Stakes (Group 2)

Run over 1 mile on the straight, the May Hill Stakes is open to 2-year-old fillies. The weight is 9 stone, with Group 1 and Group 2 winners receiving a 3 pound penalty.

The race is named after a filly who won the Park Hill Stakes in 1975 and was established the following year. It was a Group 3 offering before being promoted to Group 2 in 2003. Horses that do well in this race are often also competitive in the Fillies’ Mile at Newmarket.

Frankie Dettori is the leading jockey in this race with 6 wins spread between 1998 and 2021.  Henry Cecil holds the trainer title with 12 wins, the last of which was in 2001.

Park Hill Stakes (Group 2)

Inaugurated in 1839, the race is named after a local estate called Park Hill that had previously been owned by Anthony St. Leger. St. Leger, of course, was the man who founded the St. Leger Stakes, which is considered to be Doncaster’s most prestigious event.

When the race was first run it was limited to 3-year-old fillies and when the current grading of races came about it was a Group 2 offering. It was opened to fillies and mares aged 4 and over in 1991, when it was relegated to become a Group 3 race, returning to Group 2 in 2004.

The race is currently for fillies and mares aged 3 and over. It is run left-handed over 1 mile, 6 furlongs and 115 yards, with the following weight information:

• 3-year-olds: 8 stone 9 pounds
• 4-year-olds and over: 9 stone 5 pounds
• Group 1 winners after the 31st of March receive a 5 pound penalty
• Group 2 winners after the 31st of Match receive a 3 pound penalty

In terms of interesting trivia surrounding the race, spectators rioted in 1857 when a horse named Blink Bonny won the race. They felt that she should have won the St. Leger the day before but had been stopped from doing so dishonestly.

Sceptre Stakes (Group 3)

Named after the only horse to win four British Classic races outright.  Sceptre won the 1000 & 2000 Guineas, Epsom Oaks and the St Leger in 1902.

The race was established in 1986 and was initially run over a single mile, at which time it was a listed race.  In 1993 the length was reduced by one furlong to 7 furlongs and in 2011 it was promoted to group 3.

Open to fillies and mares of three years of age or greater, it has the following weight restriction:

• 3-year-olds: 8 stone 12 pounds
• 4-year-olds and over: 9 stone 2 pounds
• Group 1 winners after the 31st of March receive a 7 pound penalty
• Group 2 winners after the 31st of Match receive a 5 pound penalty
• Group 2 winners after the 31st of Match receive a 3 pound penalty

The most successful trainer is Barry Hills with 5 wins and the most successful jockey is his son, Michael Hills, with 4 victories.

Flying Childers Stakes (Group 2)

This Group 2 flat race is run on the straight over 5 furlongs and 3 yards. It is limited to 2-year-olds with a weight of 9 stone and 1 pound, though fillies get a 3 pound allowance.

Named after an 18th century racehorse that had been bred at nearby Carr House, the race was established in 1967 as the Norfolk Stakes. It got its current moniker in 1973 and was a Group1 offering until it was downgraded to Group 2 in 1979.

Frankie Dettori has the most wins in this race as a jockey with 6 victories between 2003 and 2019.  Sir Michael Stoute is the leading trainer with 5 wins, the last in 2001.

Doncaster Cup (Group 2)

Established as the Doncaster Gold Cup in 1766, it was formed ten years earlier than the St. Leger Stakes, making it the oldest race that still takes place at the course. The first ten years worth of races took place at Cantley Common, moving to the current location in 1776.

It was a 4 mile race when it was first run, being shortened to 2 miles and 5 furlongs in 1825 then 2 miles and 2 furlongs in 1891. That wasn’t the end of the shifting length of the race, dropping another furlong in 1908 and then getting its former length restored in 1927.

The Doncaster Cup was a Group 3 race when the current gradings were introduced in 1971 but was promoted to Group 2 in 2003, which is has remained ever since. It is considered to be one of the most prestigious races in Britain for Stayers and is the last leg of the Stayers’ Triple Crown, coming after the Gold Cup at Ascot and the Goodwood Cup.

Run left-handed over 2 miles, 1 furlong and 197 yards, the race is for horses aged 3 and over. The following weight information is in play:

• 3-year-olds: 8 stone 7 pounds
• 4-year-olds and over: 9 stone 5 pounds
• Fillies and mares get a 3 pound allowance
• Group 1 winners receive a 5 pound allowance
• Group 2 winners receive a 3 pound allowance

Portland Handicap

There aren’t many handicaps run at Doncaster during the St. Leger Festival, but the Portland Handicap is one. It’s run on the straight over 5 furlongs and 143 yards and is open to horses aged 3 and over. As it’s a handicap race there’s no specific weight information to tell you about, with the handicapper deciding what each horse should carry according to their ability.

The race was first run in 1855 when it was known as the Portland Plate. In its more formative years the race was started at a place on the course that was opposite a coaching inn known as the Red House, with the positioning of the start meaning that there was a left-handed band halfway through the race.

Park Stakes (Group 2)

This Group 2 race is run over 7 furlongs and 6 yards on the straight. It’s for horses aged 3 and over, with the following weight information:

• 3-year-olds: 9 stone
• 4-year-olds and over: 9 stone 4 pounds
• Fillies and mares get a 3 pound allowance
• Group 1 race winners after the 31st of March receive a 5 pound penalty
• Group 2 race winners after the 31st of March receive a 3 pound penalty

The race inaugurated in 1978 and for a time was known as the Kiveton Park Stakes because of sponsorship by Kiveton Park Steel. It was Listed and run over 7 furlongs for a while, promoted to Group 3 in 1986 and then extended to a mile in length seven years later.

The race was given its current title in 1996 when the word ‘Kiverton’ was removed, reverting back to being 7 furlongs in length in 2003 and gaining Group 2 status the following year.

Champagne Stakes (Group 2)

Established in 1823, the race was originally open to both male and female horses. It was initially run over a mile, shortened to 6 furlongs in 1870 and then lengthened to 7 furlongs in 1962. The restriction to male horses came about in 1988.

Open to 2-year-old colts and geldings, the Group 2 race is run on the straight over 7 furlongs and 6 yards. The weight is 9 stone, with Group 1 and Group 2 winners receiving a penalty of 3 pounds.

Horses that do well in the Champagne Stakes often go on to compete in the Dewhurst Stakes, run at Newmarket the following month.