The Cox Plate - A Rich History
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If you have any doubts about Australians love of horse racing, just look at the history of the Group 1 W.S. Cox Plate.
The “Race of the Century” in 1986 featured a titanic neck and neck battle between two chestnut geldings that raced into “equine immortality”. For the last 800 metres Bonecrusher and Our Waverley Star battled for the Cox Plate, with Bonecrusher prevailing by a neck. It is a story Australian punters retell over and over again, because it holds all of the elements which make horse racing so enthralling.
Bet more on the likely winners
The problem with level staking is that the importance of the winners you back depends largely on their price. That’s because in terms of your overall profitability, the result of shorter-priced horses isn’t nearly as significant to your betting bank as that of those horses less fancied in the market.
Are You Ready for The Caulfield Cup?
The Caulfield Cup is considered one of the toughest handicap races run anywhere in the world. First run in the autumn of 1879, it was moved to the spring of 1881 where it has been run since.
The Caulfield Cup is the major lead-up race for the Melbourne Cup and as a result the histories of each famous race are woven together. Many of the same trainers, jockeys and horse names can be found when you read the honours roll of both races. When a horse wins both the Caulfield Cup and the Melbourne Cup, it is said to have won the “Cups double”.
Standing Still with Racing Hearts
On the first Tuesday of every November, the “Race that Stops a Nation” doesn’t stop everything in Australia. While the Melbourne Cup stops legs from walking away from the television and eyes from straying from screen, it does not stop the pounding of the blood through the veins as Australians of all ages watch thoroughbreds race for the world’s richest handicap prize.
Phar Lap, Australia’s Wonder Horse
Phar Lap’s list of race victories reads like a roll-call of Australia’s greatest races: Melbourne Cup, Cox Plate (twice), Victoria Derby, AJC Derby, Futurity Stakes, Chipping Norton Stakes, Underwood Stakes, Memsie Stakes, Rosehill Guineas, Craven Plate, VRC St Leger, Chelmsford Stakes. Add to that the world’s richest race (Agua Caliente Handicap) and a sad demise and you soon realise why Phar Lap inspired a movie in his honour and was a household name in Australian and abroad.
Golden Slipper
Australia’s love of horse racing is proven by the fact that the Golden Slipper is the richest race for two-year-old thoroughbreds in the world. The race is run at the Rosehill Gardens track every April, with $3.5 million dollars at stake.
It’s a fast and furious race which attracts entries from all the Aussie states and other world class breeders and trainers. Every year the race has all the elements required to make racing blood boil and betting fly. The drama of horses coming from the extreme outside, wins by a nose, record breaking runs and coming from last to win are just some of the exciting events defining this glorious race.
Shorter prices can mean greater value - Part 2
Last week we discussed the favourite/longshot bias which shows that the rate of return decreases as price increases. That is, punters tend to under-rate the winning chances of favourites and over-rate the winning chances of longer priced horses.
To demonstrate this is more than just a theory, today we’ll take a look at the profitability of backing leading jockey’s, trainers and sires.
Shorter prices can mean greater value
Which do you think offers greater long-term value? Betting shorter-priced horses or longshots?
Many punters would be surprised to learn that they will do better by backing shorter-priced horses rather than those that are at bigger odds. This is because it has been proven over many years, both in Australia and overseas, that there is a favourite/longshot bias.
Interview with Two Way CEO Ben Reichel
DD: When was Two Way formed and what does your company do?
BR: Two Way was formed in 1991 and listed on the stock exchange in 2004. We develop advanced interactive media and gambling applications. These include Sky Racing Active, the interactive TV betting service now being offered by Tabcorp to Foxtel subscribers. We also operate the Way2Bet website, which provides a range of information (including odds comparisons) to help punters bet better. And we operate interactive TV games services on Foxtel, Austar and Sky New Zealand.
Bill Gates’ punting lessons
You mightn’t expect the quotes of the world’s biggest nerd Bill Gates to have much in common with successful punting, but reading some of his favourite sayings recently did make me stop and think of the similarities between the two.
Let’s look at Gates’ final thoughts before retirement and then relate them to the sport of kings, because you might be surprised at the punting parallels: