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This is printed next to the horse’s name on the race card and gives an overview of its performance over its last five or six races
Racecards will show the time of the race, the name of the race. After the name
of the race, the grade of the race, and any stipulations relevant to that race
i.e. age range of runners, or minimum and maximum handicap ratings for runners.
Further to the right, the distance the race is to be run over, the prize money available, and the Going, which is the ground conditions.
There are seven grades of Natural Grass Turf in the UK & Ireland:
Hard (HD)
Firm (FM)
Good To Firm (GD-FM)
Good (GD)
Good To Soft (GD-SFT) or Yielding
Soft (SFT)
Heavy (HVY)
The grades for Synthetic surfaces (or All Weather or AW) in the UK are:
Fast (FST)
Standard To Fast (STD-FST)
Standard (STD)
Standard To Slow (STD-SLW)
Slow (SLW)
British racecourses are required to report the GoingStick readings on the day of the race. Tracks
deemed Hard (HD) are not raced, because they are unsafe for horses and jockeys.
Different horses perform better on various surfaces, so odds can move quite a lot when the weather changes
Racecards will also show silks design, age and odds,
Number & Draw – The first number is the saddlecloth number, while the second number is the draw
that the horse got in the stalls, this is only used in Flat Racing only. The lower the number, the closer the horse is to the rails at the start of the race. Inside positions can provide some advantage on certain tracks and distances.
Form – the form code of six numbers shows where the horse finished in it’s previous six races, with the most recent races to the right.
Numbers from 1 to 9 show the places where the horse finished the races, whereas 0 is a finish
outside the top 9.
The dash (-) separates years, and the slash (/) separates seasons.
R means that the horse refused to start or refused a jump
P or PU means the jockey pulled the horse up and didn’t finish
F shows that the horse fell
U or UR tells you the jockey has fallen off the horse
B or BD means the horse was brought down by another participant
Equipment & Extras – The number next to a horse’s name shows the number of days since the horse last raced,
letters that appear are abbreviations for
b the horse is wearing blinkers
v the horse is wearing a visor
e/s the horse is wearing an eyeshield
c/c the horse is wearing an eye cover
h the horse is wearing a hood
t the horse is wearing a tongue strap
p the horse is wearing a cheekpiece
BF beaten favourite, the horse failed to win previously despite being the favourite
C the horse has previously won at that course
D the horse has previously won over the distance of that race
CD the horse has won over the course and distance in the past
WS the horse is making its first run after having undergone a wind surgery.
Jockey (Allowance) The number after a rider’s name shows how many pounds they are claiming.
Trainer (RTF) – The number after the trainers name shows the estimated percentage of a
trainer’s horses who have ‘run to form’ over the previous 14 days, calculated by the Racing Post.
Weight (WGT) – The weight that the horse will carry (including the jockey and saddle) shown in stones
and pounds (i. e. 9-5). But, if the jockey has an allowance, that number must be deducted from the WGT to show the actual weight that the horse will be carrying.
Official Rating (OR) Compiled by the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) –
the higher the OR, the better the horse is, but, in handicap races it will be carrying more weight than lower-rated opponents. This score is known as BHA Rating or BHA handicap mark.
Top Speed Rating (TS) – The speed rating is calculated by the Racing Post and incorporates the horse’s
preferred conditions.
Some racecards may feature additional information
S – the horse slipped up
HR – the horse hit the rails
L – the horse was left at the start and did not compete meaningfully in the race
O – the horse ran outside of the designated race course
C – the horse was carried out, i.e. forced off the designated course by another horse
D – the horse was disqualified
V – the race was voided for any reason so the race produced no result
Breeding – The name and birthplace of the horse, show the father (Sire), mother (Dam),
and the maternal grandfather (Damsire).
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