Sandown Racecourse Guide
Sandown Park in Esher is a Grade 1 track and one of the top dual-purpose racecourses in the UK, staging 24 race days a year.
There are 15 flat meetings of which 5 are summer evening cards featuring some of the best quality night racing in the UK calendar, whilst National Hunt enthusiasts are treated to 9 days of quality jump racing.
Highlights: Over Jumps the major race of the year is the Grade 1 Tingle Creek Chase in December. Often seen as a good guide for the Queen Mother Champion Chase at the Cheltenham Festival, past winners include Master Minded and Sprinter Sacre.
Also staged on this card is the Henry VIII Novices Chase, another valuable early season race for prospective 'Arkle' contenders at the Cheltenham festival.
Other notable national hunt days include the Tolworth Hurdle and the Veterans Chase Series Final (January), Scilly Isles Novice Chase (February), and bet365 Jumps Finale day towards the end of April sees the champion national hunt jockey crowned and features the Celebration Chase (two miles), Oaksey Chase and the Select Hurdle.
The Sandown Gold Cup Chase, a 3-mile 5-furlong handicap chase quite often a final outing of the season for chasers after taking in the Grand National and their own national race with the London National which takes place in December.
Imperial Cup day in March, traditionally the weekend before the Cheltenham Festival is an excellent day racing before the annual 'pilgrimage' to Gloucestershire for national hunt fans. The ultra-competitive Imperial Cup Handicap Hurdle run over two miles has an added £££ bonus incentive for the winner (Martin Pipe's Blowing Wind a past example) if they decide to take in and win a race at the festival the following week.
Run on the same day as the Imperial Cup is the Paddy Power Novices Handicap Chase, this is a race that used to feature at the Cheltenham Festival, however, in 2021 it was dropped and replaced by a new mares chase and was moved to Sandown to be run a week prior to the festival.
In total there are 10 graded races over jumps.
On the flat, the Coral Eclipse run in July is the highlight. Derby winners from the previous month often attempt the Derby/Eclipse double. Recent Derby winners who achieved the double were Sea The Stars in 2009 and Golden Horn in 2015. This race is quite often the first opportunity in the flat season where the best of the current crop of 3 year old's tackle their elders and top middle-distance horses.
In April the course hosts the 'Classic Trial Day' which can give you a lot of pointers to races coming up later in the season, this day features the Esher Cup, Gordon Richard Stakes, Sandown Mile and the Classic Trial.
Sandown stages five quality evening flat meetings during the summer, the National Stakes (listed race for 2 year old's) and the Brigadier Gerard Stakes (Group 3) in May are the highlights whilst in July the Coral Charge is one not to miss, a race previously won by the likes of Battaash.
There are nine Group races on the flat, a Group 1, a Group 2 and seven Group 3’s.
TV Channel: Racing TV
* All statistics below are based on the previous five years at Sandown
Sandown Outright Favourite Statistics
- Flat Handicaps: 91-291 (31%) -17.03
- Flat Non-Handicaps: 40-86 (47%) -0.87
- Handicap Chases: 26-81 (32%) +1.30
- Handicap Hurdles: 25-75 (33%) +14.73
- Non-Handicap Chases: 19-34 (56%) +5.51
- Non-Handicap Hurdles: 30-55 (55%) +5.66
Sandown Racecourse Map
The course is oval-shaped and around one and a half miles in length, the home straight is a steady uphill climb to the winning post.
On the flat, races run over 5 furlongs take place on the straight course with a similar steady climb to the main oval course.
Sandown Racecourse Address: Portsmouth Rd, Esher KT10 9AJ
Sandown Racecourse Telephone: 01372 464348
To buy tickets for a race day at Sandown, head over to their official ticket booking webpage.
Sandown Racecourse Tips
Sandown is a fair track and true test for a flat or national hunt horse. The final three fences in the back straight known as the 'railway fences' are tricky especially for a novice as they come in quick succession with little ground between to regain momentum if meeting and making an error at the first of those.
The first of the two fences in the home straight comes fairly quickly after the final turn and can catch a tiring horse out along with the uphill finish particularly on soft going. The likely race outcome can change after the final fence, horses quite often can be distracted by the noise from the grandstand and wander across to say 'hello'.
If you are going racing at Sandown today then be sure to download the OLBG app to get all the latest Sandown tips from OLBG horse racing tipsters.
Sandown Draw Bias
The most profitable stall at Sandown in the win market when breaking it down to race trips is stall 3 over a trip of 5f, backing all runners in this stall over that trip over the past five years would have returned a profit of +53.57. The stall with the worst loss at Sandown in the win market when breaking it down to race trips is stall 2 over a trip of 1m, backing all runners in this stall over that trip over the past five years would have returned a loss of -69.72.
Here we have the draw bias for Sandown taken into consideration races with ten or more runners, we will break down the figures by race distance, draws can be much more important over the shorter trips in which runners do not have time to find their position during the race meaning the draw is probably more important than the races over longer distances.
- Sprints (5f to 7½f)
- Mile (1m to 1m1½f)
- Middle Distance (1m2f to 1m5½f)
The following table shows a breakdown over a group of trips and shows how each position of the draw does, for example in a twelve-runner race would be Low (Stalls 1-4), Mid (Stalls 5-8) and High (Stalls 9-12), the positions will always be lowest stall number to highest.
Sandown Jockey & Trainer Statistics (Flat)
Who are the best flat jockeys and trainers to bet on at Sandown?
When looking at profitable trainers only, then it is W J Haggas who leads the way with a total of twenty-one winners producing an LSP of +23.48 whilst J H M Gosden leads the overall list with thirty-seven winners but shows a loss overall. When looking at trainers and looking for some eachway value at Sandown then the trainer who shows the best eachway profit is Mrs H S Main, that LSP is +27.66 which has been accumulated by a total of nine placings which includes five winners. C G Cox does not have a great record at Sandown, their LSP of -59.56 has them stone dead bottom of the trainers' list, which has come from twelve winners from one hundred eight runners which is an 11% strike rate.
Backing all of the Oisin Murphy rides would have produced backing the most winners for a jockey here at Sandown with thirty-six but you would have returned a loss by doing so, William Buick leads the way for profitable jockey with an LSP of +4.98 from their thirty-six winners. If you are looking for a jockey to follow in the eachway market then it is Dane O'Neill who leads the way at Sandown, they have had a total of eighteen placings which includes five winners over the previous five years for an eachway LSP of +24.91. With an LSP of -63.50 at Sandown, David Probert heads the list for worst jockeys at this course, which is a result of three winners from eighty-six rides which is a strike rate of 3%.
Sandown Picks & Hints
Here are some factors at Sandown for certain trainers or jockeys which have been profitable:
- 5-10 (50%) +33.00 - Backing H Candy runners when over a trip of 5f
- 5-12 (42%) +17.75 - Backing Rob Hornby rides when on horses aged 4yo
- 5-12 (42%) +11.08 - Backing W J Haggas runners when horses are aged 4yo
Sandown Top Jockey and Trainer Combinations
Here are the best trainer and jockey combinations here at Sandown based on the number of winners:
- 20 Wins: J H M Gosden & L Dettori
- 18 Wins: Charlie Appleby & William Buick
- 14 Wins: Sir Michael Stoute & Ryan Moore
- 12 Wins: A M Balding & Oisin Murphy
- 9 Wins: W J Haggas & Tom Marquand
Sandown Top Trainers By Most Winners and a Level Stakes Profit
| Trainer | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| W J Haggas | 90-21-37 | +23.48 | +7.54 |
| Sir Michael Stoute | 91-20-41 | +8.19 | +2.32 |
| David Menuisier | 60-13-22 | +19.00 | +2.98 |
| B R Millman | 48-9-18 | +19.75 | +7.53 |
| A King | 56-8-14 | +7.03 | -4.04 |
| W R Muir | 42-7-13 | +40.50 | +22.98 |
| Charles Hills | 53-6-17 | +14.83 | +5.22 |
| H Candy | 44-6-17 | +4.00 | +10.34 |
| Saeed Bin Suroor | 40-6-17 | +5.88 | +2.16 |
| W Jarvis | 28-6-9 | +32.50 | +15.93 |
Sandown Top Jockeys By Most Winners and a Level Stakes Profit
| Jockey | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| William Buick | 161-36-73 | +4.98 | -4.49 |
| L Dettori | 73-24-36 | +0.68 | -7.93 |
| Tom Marquand | 142-23-45 | +29.49 | +12.80 |
| Silvestre De Sousa | 103-23-38 | +38.85 | +9.33 |
| Jim Crowley | 134-21-44 | +1.55 | -5.90 |
| Jason Watson | 97-14-34 | +29.20 | +12.75 |
| Richard Kingscote | 71-13-27 | +38.00 | +24.73 |
| Cieren Fallon | 53-9-19 | +43.25 | +23.16 |
| Marco Ghiani | 37-7-13 | +15.25 | +6.31 |
| Martin Dwyer | 47-6-15 | +8.08 | +1.85 |
Sandown Jockey & Trainers Statistics (NH)
Who are the best national hunt jockeys and trainers to bet on at Sandown?
When looking at profitable trainers only, then it is P F Nicholls who leads the way with a total of twenty-nine winners producing an LSP of +21.10 whilst N J Henderson leads the overall list with thirty winners but shows a loss overall. Tim Vaughan is the trainer to follow at Sandown if you are backing eachway as they show the best LSP of all the trainers in the eachway markets, that is +27.15 which is courtesy of their seven placings (four winners). With an LSP of -83.96 at Sandown, G L Moore heads the list for worst trainers at this course, which is a result of twenty-three winners from one hundred sixty-one runners which is a strike rate of 14%.
Harry Cobden has produced a total of twenty-three winners at Sandown racecourse and with an LSP of +1.79, they top the winner's list for jockeys who also show a profit. With an eachway LSP of +25.25 at Sandown, Alan Johns leads the jockeys in profit for backing eachway which has been helped by their six placings which include a total of four winners. At the other end of the spectrum is Sam Twiston-Davies who has a terrible record at Sandown, of all the jockeys their LSP of -57.50 is the worse, they have a 5% strike rate with four winners from seventy-six rides.
Sandown Top Jockey and Trainer Combinations
Here are the best trainer and jockey combinations here at Sandown based on the number of winners:
- 22 Wins: N J Henderson & Nico Boinville
- 19 Wins: P F Nicholls & Harry Cobden
- 15 Wins: G L Moore & Jamie Moore
- 9 Wins: Miss Venetia Williams & Charlie Deutsch
- 5 Wins: Daniel Skelton & Harry Skelton
Sandown Top Trainers By Most Winners and a Level Stakes Profit
| Trainer | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| P F Nicholls | 152-29-62 | +21.10 | +0.68 |
| P J Hobbs | 90-17-31 | +12.64 | -8.09 |
| N A Twiston-Davies | 57-9-18 | +22.30 | +2.46 |
| Evan Williams | 44-5-12 | +12.25 | +0.01 |
| Dr R D P Newland | 40-5-11 | +1.88 | -7.17 |
| N J Gifford | 24-4-7 | +2.50 | -4.62 |
| K C Bailey | 22-4-7 | +0.75 | -4.96 |
| Tim Vaughan | 18-4-7 | +46.00 | +27.15 |
| J W Mullins | 33-3-12 | +4.00 | +14.13 |
| P Henderson | 13-3-4 | +15.50 | +8.15 |
Sandown Top Jockeys By Most Winners and a Level Stakes Profit
| Jockey | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harry Cobden | 120-23-48 | +1.79 | -7.45 |
| T J O'Brien | 51-9-16 | +8.21 | +2.17 |
| Charlie Deutsch | 42-9-16 | +1.00 | -0.42 |
| David Bass | 19-5-7 | +11.25 | +2.37 |
| Adam Wedge | 28-4-7 | +28.00 | +12.29 |
| Sean M Houlihan | 21-4-8 | +20.25 | +11.83 |
| Alan Johns | 18-4-6 | +46.00 | +25.25 |
| David Maxwell | 10-3-3 | +24.00 | +11.60 |
| Ben R Jones | 9-3-6 | +15.70 | +9.95 |
| Fergus Gillard | 9-3-5 | +4.33 | +2.54 |
