Ripon holds its most valuable race day of the season this afternoon, with the William Hill Great St Wilfrid Handicap taking centre stage.
The six furlong sprint, with total prize money of £75,000, has attracted a highly-competitive field of 20 runners.
Jonathan Mullin, marketing manager for Ripon Races, told the Stray Ferret:
“There’s £150,000 in prize money on offer across the card, which also includes the Great St Wilfrid Silver Trophy and the Hornblower Conditions Stakes – races also sponsored by William Hill.
He added:
“They have been sponsoring the St Wilfrid for 28 years and that gives us the added prize money to attract the entry of some of the best sprinters from the UK’s top stables.”
Advance sales bode well for a good-sized crowd.
Mr Mullin pointed out:
“Tickets for the club, paddock and course enclosures have gone well.”
Last year, with a covid lockdown in place, the feature race and all others on the card were run in front of empty stands.
With the easing of social distancing restrictions, racegoers have been steadily returning to Yorkshire’s ‘garden racecourse.’
The maximum attendance was 4,000 for Ripon’s meetings from late May, but since 19 July larger numbers have been able to attend.
In 2020 the big race was won by Staxton, trained by Tim Easterby and ridden by Duran Fentiman.
The shrewd North Yorkshire trainer, who is having a highly-successful season, has won the St Wilfrid on three occasions.
This year he has six runners, with Music Society, Lampang, Boardman, Golden Apollo and Manigordo, lining up alongside Staxton, in a bid to make it a fourth win for the Great Habton stable.
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As well as the action on the course, attendees will be entertained by the Ripon City Band.
Racing fans who are unable to attend, will be able to watch the Great St Wilfrid and Silver Trophy races on ITV.
Ripon’s racing history
Meetings have been held at the Boroughbridge Road racecourse since August 1900 and the city has a rich horseracing heritage.
The first recorded races were held on nearby Bondgate Green in 1664 and over the next 236 years other venues hosted meetings.
In 1723, history was made when the first-ever race exclusively for lady riders was held in Ripon.