Super Sprint Stakes Tips, Offers and Preview

There is a quality afternoon of racing for punters and fans alike on Saturday at Newbury. The highlight of the day, at least in terms of prestige and prize money, is the Super Sprint Stakes.

This stage of the flat racing season includes many high class race for two-year-olds which can be highly informative for the years to come. The Weatherbys Super Sprint Stakes usually includes a handful of horses who go on to seriously compete at the Group level. With 25 runners and a whole lot of unknowns about these competitors and we’ve seen plenty of upsets in the betting over the years but what awaits us this time around?

Whatever you fancy, be sure to check out all of the best racing free bets before you get involved to grab some extra value! You can also take a look at our Irish Oaks tips too.

Weatherbys Super Sprint Stakes Tips and Betting Offers, 3:40 at Newbury, 20th July 2019

Victory in the Weatherbys Super Sprint Stakes can propel a horse onto some fairly big things. Certainly, any horse who shows they can compete against such a big field is one to keep an eye on in the coming years. Many punters already have their eyes on Ventura Rebel and Richard Fahey is confident his charge will help to improve on a record in this race that is already highly impressive.

Connections Confident About the Favourites’ Chances

After winning his first two starts, Ventura Rebel’s connections had seen enough to believe he was ready for Royal Ascot. The market gave him little chance of winning the Norfolk Stakes at 16/1 but he rose to the challenge of the Group 2 and ran very well to finish runner up to A’Ali. It was similar in the race that preceded it when he was sent off at 20/1 but upset a strong market leader to win.

In time, Ventura Rebel should be at his best over slightly longer trips than this. For now though, he has the pace to burst through the pack and the experience to suggest he will not be overwhelmed facing off against 24 opponents. It’s going to take a very big performance to get past this favourite.

Separate to Make the Most of the Pace Around Her

Like Ventura Rebel, Separate had done enough in her young career to warrant an outing in a big juvenile race at Royal Ascot. For one reason or another she was unable to have any sort of impact on the Albany Stakes which is run over 6 furlongs but was much better when reverted to 5 furlongs last time out at Windsor.

It’s likely that the plan for the rest of the season will involve sticking to the minimum distance. That looks wise given the amount of speed that this promising filly clearly has. She is at her best when close to other speedy horses that she can stick to before really being let loose over the final furlong. That’s a real possibility in this big field contest so an each way bet is in order on Separate at 25/1 with bet365.

Predictions

It’s fair to say that the Super Sprint Stakes has already been more than fair to Richard Fahey. He has trained the winner in three of the last six renewals and believes that Ventura Rebel can make it four from seven. He’s very much the worthy favourite and the 6/4 that RaceBet are quoting is more than fair.

Previous Winners

• 2019 – Bettys Hope – jockey Silvestre de Sousa, trainer Rod Millman
• 2018 – Ginger Nut – jockey Harry Bentley, trainer Richard Hannon Jr.
• 2017 – Bengali Boys – jockey Barry McHugh, trainer Richard Fahey
• 2016 – Mrs Danvers – jockey Luke Morris, trainer Jonathan Portman
• 2015 – Lathom – jockey Tony Hamilton, trainer Richard Fahey
• 2014 – Tiggy Wiggy – jockey Richard Hughes, trainer Richard Hannon Jnr.
• 2013 – Peniaphobia – jockey Paul Hanagan, trainer Richard Fahey
• 2012 – Body and Soul – jockey Duran Fentiman, trainer Tim Easterby
• 2011 – Charles the Great – jockey Jimmy Fortune, trainer Andrew Balding
• 2010 – Temple Meads – jockey Richard Mullen, trainer Ed McMahon

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Weatherbys Super Sprint History

A relatively new contest – at least in comparison to some of the truly historic events on the racing calendar – the Weatherbys Super Sprint first took place at Newbury in 1991. It has taken place at the Berkshire venue every year since, other than in 2007 when an unseasonably wet July put paid to the meeting.

A pretty modern contest then, and also one of the more unique races on the British racing programme in terms of the conditions of the event. A sprint event held over Newbury’s minimum distance of 5f 34y, the unusual aspect of the race comes in the manner in which the weights to be carried by the runners are determined.

Unlike in a standard handicap – where the weights are allocated according to an ability-based rating assigned to the runners by the official handicapper – here the burden to be shouldered is determined by the price raised by each horse at auction.

All About The Money

Restricted to two year olds sold at a specified sale for a maximum price of £60,000 prior to 1st July of the previous year, or £63,000 after 30th June of the previous year, the weight allocation then operates on a sliding scale according to the price of the horse.

A runner to have cost the maximum of £63,000 will carry top weight of 9st3lbs. 1lb is then deducted for every £5000 below this £63,000 top price.

£63,000 may sound like a lot of money, but it is in fact relatively cheap when it comes to buying a thoroughbred racehorse, and with participants often costing significantly less than this, the race has understandably become hugely popular with some of the smaller owners in the game.

Bargain Speedsters

It may be aimed at attracting a lower budget type of runner, but that hasn’t stopped the race throwing up a number of top-class winners over the years – headlined by three speedy fillies.

The event certainly flew out of the blocks in terms of quality of winner, with the jet-propelled Lyric Fantasy landing the second edition in 1992. Trained by Richard Hannon, Sr., this pocket rocket of a filly also landed the National Stakes, Queen Mary Stakes and Nunthorpe on her way to being crowned European Champion Two-Year-Old Filly.

As of 2019 no runner has ever completed this race in a quicker time than the stopwatch-busting 59.19s recorded by the William Haggas-trained Superstar Leo in the year 2000. With wins in the Norfolk Stakes and Flying Childers Stakes also on her CV she too was crowned European Champion Two-Year-Old Filly.

Another two year old sensation to come home in front here was Richard Hannon, Jr’s 2014 champ Tiggy Wiggy. Further successes in the National Stakes, Lowther Stakes and Cheveley Park Stakes made her the obvious choice to claim the 2014 Cartier Champion Two-Year-Old Filly accolade.

Top Jockeys and Trainers

There are a handful of trainers who seem adept at identifying and preparing a runner for success in this race, with the likes of William Haggas, Tim Easterby, Rod Millman and Richard Fahey having registered multiple successes. Overall though, no one as yet comes close to Richard Hannon, Sr., with the now retired handler racking up a seriously impressive seven wins in the race between 1992 and 2009.

No jockey has compiled a record to rival that of Richard Hannon, Snr. in the training ranks. As of 2019 the all-time lead in the race is shared by Michael Hills, Richard Hughes and Michael Roberts who sit on two wins apiece.

The Cheltenham Festival is a long way off but be sure to bookmark our Glorious Goodwood betting hub for the next big racing Festival.