Perth Horse Racing Tips
Perth is a right handed track of around ten furlongs with eight fences to be jumped on each circuit. It is a flat track with sweeping turns and there are no real excuses for beaten horses. The water jump is excluded from the final circuit which leaves quite a long run-in. The course can become quite testing in soft ground so you should consider stamina as a key factor when assessing your Perth horse racing tips.
Perth Racecourse
Perth is the most northerly racecourse in Britain, situated adjacent to Scone Place in Scotland. Road travellers approaching from Dundee and the north via the M90 should leave at Junction 11 and follow signs to Blairgowrie (A93). Take a left onto Stormontfield road and follow signs to the racecourse. If arriving from Carlisle and the south, take the Perth bypass before turning left immediately after crossing the Friarton Bridge. Perth Railway Station is about four miles from the course. There is a bus shuttle service from Perth Station to the track on race days.
Perth Horse Racing History
Horse racing in Perth can be traced back to 1613. The first recorded horse racing was on an area known as the South Inch beside the River Tay. Racing temporarily ceased in the region later that century but was revived under the rule of King Charles II.
Bonnie Prince Charlie took time off from waging war with the south to go racing in Perth in 1745. The current site within Scone Palace Parklands was officially opened in 1908. Lord Mansfield generously offered his land as a suitable venue for everyone to be able to enjoy National Hunt racing.
The Queen Mother attended Perth races in 1977 as part of the Queen’s Silver Jubilee celebrations. Perth hit the headlines once again the following year when Jonjo O’Neill rode his 125th winner of the season, surpassing Ron Barry’s previous record.
Hazel Peplinksi became the first Chief Executive ever to be appointed at the course in 2016. Grand National winner One For Arthur made a guest appearance at the Perth April Festival meeting in 2017 to raise money for the Injured Jockeys’ Fund. Lucinda Russell’s gelding became the first Scottish trained National winner since Rubstic (1979).
The racecourse reached maximum capacity of 10,000 spectators for the first time in history at the Saturday August meeting in 2017. The value of the racecourse to the local economy has been estimated at £11million per year.
Perth Races
Perth stages 15 days racing per year; a mixture of daytime, evening and twilight meetings. There are always plenty of Perth racing tips for the big three-day meeting in April which features the Highlands National. The meeting also includes the Future Champions Novices’ Hurdle and the Old Mout Cider Handicap Chase.
The Perth Gold Cup over three miles is the main event at the June fixture. The Silver Cup is over half a mile less and takes place the following month. The feature race of the August meeting is the Summer Handicap Hurdle. The huge success of the August Saturday card led to an additional Saturday June fixture in 2018.
There are two major highlights to the racing year at Perth. The Highlands National is the leading chase for stayers while the Class 2 Perth Gold Cup is the richest race at the track. Perth racing tips for the Highlands National should focus on stamina for this three and three-quarter mile marathon.
The Perth Gold Cup was originally known as the Caledonian Gold Cup and was first run in 1818. It was revived in 1999 and is now the feature race of the June meeting. Prize money of £40,000 made the 2018 running the most valuable race ever staged here. The total prize money for the seven-race card on Gold Cup day was £106,000, another new record for Perth.
Other notable races at Perth include The Future Champions Novices’ Hurdle, the Kilmany Challenge Cup, the Perth Silver Cup and the Summer Handicap Hurdle.
Famous Races and Racehorses at Perth
In 2014, Bertie Milan became the first Scottish-trained winner of the Highlands National. Trained by Nick Alexander and ridden by his daughter Lucy, the gelding beat Ulster National winner Hidden Horizons by three lengths. Bertie Milan lost his form after that victory but returned to Perth in 2015 to win a three-mile handicap chase at the September meeting. Popular among punters in Perth Racing Tips is jockey Lucy Alexander. She was Scotland’s first professional female jockey and became champion conditional jockey in 2012-13.
The 2017, several races were rebranded to promote Perth’s cultural roots in the year of Heritage, History and Archaeology. Scottish artist Gordon Muir was commissioned to design two new trophies for the Stone of Destiny Hurdle and the Gold Castle Novice Hurdle. The Stone of Destiny Hurdle was won by Donald McCain’s Dear Sire, with the new trophy being presented to the winning owners by Lady Mansfield. It was one of three winners on the day for the McCain stable.
In the 2017 Perth Gold Cup, Beeves got up in the final stride for Jennie Candlish and Sean Quinlan. He beat Aerlite Supreme by a neck with Nicky Henderson’s Volnay De Thaix three and a half lengths further back in third place.
Candlish prepared the gelding to attempt a repeat win in 2018 but he was headed at the second last. He eventually held on to finish runner-up to Henllan Harri, trained by Peter Bowen and ridden by Sean Bowen. The winner had been a shock 40-1 winner of the Bet365 Gold Cup (formerly the Whitbread Gold Cup) the previous year.
Perth Betting Tips
Trainer Gordon Elliott often features in Perth betting tips and does well here with his raiders from across the Irish Sea, maintaining a 20% strike rate over the past three seasons. Fergal O’Brien’s runners are also well worth noting. He has returned some impressive figures including a 50% strike rate in bumper races and 33% over hurdles. Donald McCain Jnr and Peter Bowen also make their presence felt when visiting Perth.
Champion jockey Richard Johnson and Brian Hughes are usually among the winners here. Our best horse racing tips for Perth today are jockeys Sean Quinlan and Will Kennedy. Both have returned a useful level stakes profit.