Betting on horse racing is one of the UK’s most celebrated pastimes and it’s hardto not get involved when the larger festivals are in full flow. The Cheltenham Gold Cup and The Grand National dominate in terms of British jump racing, but it’s the St Leger Stakes that stands as one of the most prestigious for flat racing, with enough popularity to compete alongside other legendary flat races such as the Epsom Derby and Ascot Gold Cup.
As St Leger is rated as one of the biggest and best racecourses in the UK, the featured race is something that a lot of punters look to bet on every year. While a lot of tipsters are missing a trick in focusing more on the Grand National and Cheltenham Festival, there are some that provide tips on every possible race that takes place throughout the country. The Winners Enclosure are a strong example, as they have a page devoted to St Leger Festival, with St Leger Derby tips and predictions, all backed with the strongest bookmaker odds.
Racecourses like Epsom, Ascot, Cheltenham, Newmarket, Sandown and Goodwood offer plenty of racing action for various parts of the country, but Doncaster Racecourse is somewhere that provides the same level of excitement to those in the north, with plenty of horse racing punters and fans travelling to South Yorkshire for the yearly St Leger Festival.
If you’re looking to bet on the next edition of the festival’s biggest race, we’ve offered some St Leger Derby tips below:
Favourites at the St Leger Derby
One of the main trends from the St Leger Derby is that one of the key favourites tends to finish first. This might sound like an obvious statement to make but it’s important to be aware of this, as a lot of other races feature unpredictable outcomes, and past results have proven that this isn’t the case in South Yorkshire.
It’s usually best to get behind one of the few favourites to win the St Leger Derby but it’s not saying that they’re guaranteed to win. We realised this in the 2016 edition of the race, where 22/1 priced Harbour Law finished first, 14/1 Ventura Storm finished second and 7/1 Housesofparliament finished third. Although it was uncharacteristic of the race, we’ve seen more likely winners in the years since, so we’d recommend backing the favourites if nothing else takes your fancy.
Big odds outsiders
While a lot of these highly-anticipated horse races can be difficult to predict, another trend that continues to feature in practically every edition of the St Leger Stakes is the number of outsiders that finish ahead of more favourable nags. This could mean that betting on one of the bigger odds horses to place could be a good way to go, as there’s been some shocks for placing.
If you do your research and look into the form of the horses with the bigger bookmaker odds, you could stand a chance of being awarded with returns from an each way bet. It also depends on how many places are offered from the bookie you’re betting with, as some offer more than others, so it’s worth shopping around before staking your bet.
