New to betting?
Want to choose a horse but no clue where to start?
Confused by all the letters and numbers?
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Don’t worry. WW are here to help!
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We appreciate all the numbers and abbreviations can seem daunting at first, so much so that people can be put off becoming involved and placing bets, so WW have created a table below to help you understand form, facts, figures and terms used in horse racing which we hope will guide you and help you decide whether to back a horse. We have prioritised the text below in the order WW recommend you consider them. Below is a sample of a race extracted from the Racing Post website. The Racing Post provides free, extensive, useful information on every racehorse, trainer, jockey, etc.
Horse Racing Terminology/Acronyms Explained
Form Numbers
Underneath the number of the horse, you will see a series of numbers. This is the horse's form (where the horse has finished in its previous races). The number furthest right is its last run. For example, number 1, My Mirage’s form is 2-469. This indicates that the horse finished ninth in its last race, sixth in its penultimate race and so on. The 2 before the – refers to where the horse finished in its race last season. If you see a 0, this means the horse was unplaced.
Form Letters
Sometimes you may see R, D, U, B, P, F, - or / in a horse’s form.
R = refused to race
D = disqualified
U = unseated rider
B = brought down by another horse
P = pulled up by the jockey
F = the horse fell ☹
- separates the racing seasons. Numbers before the dash indicate how the horse did in the previous season and numbers after indicate how it has done this season.
/ indicates a longer gap, for example, if the horse missed an entire racing season.
Draw
The number in brackets next to the horse’s number indicates the stall number the horse will be racing out of. The draw can play an important part as sometimes draw bias can massively influence the outcome of a race, especially in larger fields. For example, sometimes the ground can be softer on one side of a racetrack than the other, so jockeys may choose to steer their horse’s over to the side with the firmer ground. This isn’t always possible when you have large fields. On shorter circular courses like some all-weather tracks, if a horse is drawn high, the horse may have to run much wider than the other horses, thus exerting more energy as they are galloping over a longer distance.
Ratings
OR is an ‘official rating’ given to a horse, which some websites will display.
In the Racing Post example above, the horse’s rating (55) is stated underneath its weight. Once horses have taken part in a sufficient number of races, the British Horseracing Society Handicappers will determine their rating based on the horse’s ability. The OR will then increase or decrease after every handicap race in accordance with how well the horse has performed.
Trainer / jockey
To the right of the horse’s name, you will see the jockey that will be riding the horse for the race and underneath is their trainer. This is particularly useful information as higher-class racehorses trained by well-known trainers are often more likely to have shorter odds and be backed than trainers with smaller yards that train lower-class horses. Trainers can often go through periods of having in-form horses, so it can be useful to click on the trainer’s name to see how all his horses have been performing recently.
Weight
To the right of the horse’s name you will see its age and then weight the horse has to carry. For example, My Mirage has 9-9 (9 stone 9 pounds). In handicap races, horses will carry various weights and these are determined by the official handicapper according to the horse’s past performance. Sometimes you will see brackets after the jockey's name which means they are an apprentice jockey and have a weight allowance - 7lbs allowance is for the first 20 winners ridden, 5lb allowance is for 21 to 40 and 3lb allowance is for 41 to 75 winners.
Ground
Under the race meeting it states the ‘Going’ which will confirm whether the ground at a ‘turf’ racetrack is heavy, soft, good to soft, good, good to firm or firm. This particular race is an AW track (all-weather), a tapeta track. On turf tracks, some horses run better in soft ground than firm ground. If you click on the horse’s name in the Racing Post website you will be able to see its previous runs and whether it has won on soft or firm ground previously.
Distance
Under the name of the race, the distance of the race will be stated.
In flat races, horses will run over distances of 4 furlongs up to 2 miles 4 furlongs. Trainers will often try running horses over various distances before finding their most suitable trip. WW recommend sticking with horses that have proven form over a specific distance. Sometimes you will see a D underneath the horse’s name. This indicates the horse has run and won at this distance before. You may also see a C or C&D. This indicates the horse has won at the course before or over the course and distance (double bonus!). BF (beaten favourite) means the horse was favourite last time it ran but got beat.
Last Run
The number below the horse’s name indicates the number of days since the horse last ran.
Age
The age of the horse is stated to the left of the horse’s weight.
If any of our instructions above have been updated, please let us know by clicking on the 'Contact Us' link in the footer below and we will update them accordingly. Many thanks!