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2026 St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap Preview
Introduced in 2009, this class two handicap is run during the St Leger Festival at Doncaster in September of each year. The race is run over six and a half furlongs and is open to runners aged three or older.
St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap Information:
- St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap Past Winners
- St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap Trainer Statistics
- St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap Jockey Statistics
We also have a dedicated Doncaster tips page that will cover this race as well as all of the other races on the day of the race. See which runners the OLBG racing tipsters are predicting to win this race and the others on the cards. You may also be interested in other preview blogs that we have packed full of information. Head down to the Other Principal races during the Doncaster St Leger Festival section for links to these.
Best Horse Racing Betting Sites 2025
How competitive is the St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 15 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2017 when the race had an over-round of 112%. The race in 2012 was a race that was most in the bookie's favour with an over-round of 135%, whilst on average over the last 15 renewals of the St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap, the over-round has been 120%, which means the bookie expects to pay out £100 for every £120 which is bet.
Below you will find the 2026 St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap Trends. See which patterns have occurred over the recent renewals that you may be able to use for the next renewal. We also have a section that looks at the St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap Trend Analysis.
These are the top three quickest-run St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap races over the last 15 renewals:
- Badr Al Badoor (1:16.62) in 2014
- Hoof It (1:16.72) in 2015
- Desert Falcon (1:17.58) in 2025
Looking at the future form, is the winner worth following next time out? Over the past 15 renewals, if you had followed the winner of the St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap next time out, then you would have backed a total of 2 winners. Backing all 14 runners who have been out since their win at SP next time out would have returned an LSP of -5.75. Remember to use the racing predictions along with the information on this page to find a bet on the 2026 St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap.
The runner that holds the record over the past 15 renewals for the slowest time in the race was set in the 2013 renewal when Sir Reginald from Richard Fahey under the guidance of Paul Hanagan, won in a time of 1:20.73, whilst at the other end of the spectrum, Badr Al Badoor, trained by James Fanshawe and ridden by Tom Queally set the quickest time of 1:16.62 in the 2014 renewal.
St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap Past Winners
Here are the St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap past winners for the last 10 renewals. Each row details the year of the race, the horse which won, along with the age & weight of the horse. Also detailed is the stall where the horse came from and the total number of runners in the race. The horse's trainer and the jockey at the time of winning the St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.
| Year | Horse (Drawn) | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 1:17.58 | Desert Falcon (IRE) 5yo 8-9 (8 of 13) 9/1 | Rowan Scott Julie Camacho (GB) |
| 2024 1:19.92 | Baldomero (IRE) 6yo 8-6 (9 of 9) 10/1 | Silvestre De Sousa Michael Appleby (GB) |
| 2023 1:19.15 | Baradar (IRE) 5yo 9-9 (12 of 12) 100/30F | William Buick George Boughey (GB) |
| 2022 1:18.73 | Asjad (GB) 4yo 9-5 (8 of 13) 7/1 | P J McDonald James Horton (GB) |
| 2021 1:19.60 | Able Kane (GB) 4yo 8-11 (4 of 12) 9/2 | Oisin Murphy Rod Millman (GB) |
| 2020 1:18.52 | Tranchee (IRE) 4yo 8-8 (4 of 11) 7/2 | Ray Dawson (5lbs) David Loughnane (GB) |
| 2019 1:18.09 | Enjazaat (GB) 4yo 9-8 (7 of 8) 6/1 | Jim Crowley Owen Burrows (GB) |
| 2018 1:18.91 | Von Blucher (IRE) 5yo 8-8 (10 of 9) 25/1 | Cam Hardie Rebecca Menzies (GB) |
| 2017 1:18.23 | Amazour (IRE) 5yo 9-7 (4 of 7) 9/2 | James Doyle Ismail Mohammed (GB) |
| 2016 1:17.68 | Normandy Barriere (IRE) 4yo 8-13 (5 of 10) 11/4F | Andrea Atzeni Nigel Tinkler (GB) |
St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap Trainer Statistics
Here are some of the top St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap trainer statistics over the last 15 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):
| Trainer | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Julie Camacho | 8-1-4 | +2.00 | +12.76 |
| Richard Fahey | 7-1-1 | +4.00 | +3.25 |
| George Boughey | 5-1-1 | -0.67 | -1.92 |
| Michael Appleby | 4-1-2 | +7.00 | +3.72 |
| Nigel Tinkler | 4-1-3 | -0.25 | +1.35 |
| William Haggas | 3-1-1 | +7.00 | +4.63 |
| Rod Millman | 3-1-1 | +2.50 | +0.81 |
| Dean Ivory | 2-1-1 | +11.00 | +7.50 |
| James Horton | 2-1-1 | +6.00 | +3.38 |
| Owen Burrows | 2-1-1 | +5.00 | +2.60 |
St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap Jockey Statistics
The leading jockey in the St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap over the last 15 renewals is Jim Crowley, who has won the race two times, with those two winners coming from Sirius Prospect (2011) and Enjazaat (2019).
Here are some of the top St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap jockey statistics over the last 15 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):
| Jockey | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jim Crowley | 7-2-3 | +13.00 | +9.90 |
| William Buick | 10-1-3 | -5.67 | -2.32 |
| Silvestre De Sousa | 6-1-1 | +5.00 | +3.00 |
| P J McDonald | 6-1-2 | +2.00 | +2.16 |
| Andrea Atzeni | 4-1-2 | -0.25 | -0.60 |
| Oisin Murphy | 3-1-1 | +2.50 | +1.81 |
| Rowan Scott | 2-1-1 | +8.00 | +4.63 |
| James Doyle | 2-1-1 | +3.50 | +2.81 |
| Cam Hardie | 1-1-1 | +25.00 | +15.00 |
| Adam Beschizza | 1-1-1 | +9.00 | +5.63 |
2026 St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap Trends
Favourites finishing positions (oldest to latest): 6, 6, 2, 2, 2, (1, 4), 2, (5, 9), 6, 3, 11, 11, (1, 9), 7, 2
The percentage shown is the percentage of the total number of runners who fell under that factor. High percentages are less appealing than lower ones, as you would expect them to do well.
- 15 / 15 (57%) - In a field of 10 - 16 (Debut)
- 15 / 15 (64%) - Had 2 - 5 wins (Further)
- 15 / 15 (74%) - Within the first 8 of the market
- 15 / 15 (75%) - Beaten no more -8¾l (LTO)
- 15 / 15 (80%) - Achieved a TS of 45+ (LTO)
- 15 / 15 (81%) - Achieved an RPR of 76+ (LTO)
- 15 / 15 (86%) - Not in BHR/FRA/IRL/QAT/SCO/UAE/WAL (Last Win)
- 15 / 15 (86%) - Ran in 7 - 48 races (Career)
- 15 / 15 (86%) - Carried 124 - 140lbs (Last Win)
- 15 / 15 (87%) - Highest Run is not G3
- 15 / 15 (87%) - Had 4 - 22 placings (Career)
- 15 / 15 (88%) - Not BR/GR/RO in colour
- 15 / 15 (88%) - No bigger than 25/1
- 15 / 15 (89%) - Had 2 - 8 wins (Career)
- 15 / 15 (89%) - Ran in 2 - 42 races (Hcps)
Remember to use the trends listed above, along with the Doncaster racing predictions, to see if you can find the winner of the St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap. Did you know that we have an OLBG Betting School section on OLBG? It is a place to help you improve your betting experience with articles covering numerous topics.
Are you already a member? If not, then why not? With over £6,000 given away each month in the tipster competition, why not get involved? Remember, it is completely FREE! So, head over to the registration page to sign up today! If you are already a member, then share your thoughts on the St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap by adding a tip on the race here.
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St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap Trend Analysis
✅ The trend factor, which has produced 8+ winners and shows the best LSP, an LSP of +18.08, is when runners had 0 career starts over the trip.
❌ The worst performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners ran in a field of 8 on debut, when backing these, the trend shows a record of 0-28.
Here are the most recent winning draws, along with the further placings in brackets:
- 2025: Winner in 8 (5,1) [13 Runners]
- 2024: Winner in 9 (6,8) [9 Runners]
- 2023: Winner in 12 (11,10) [12 Runners]
- 2022: Winner in 8 (1,7) [13 Runners]
- 2021: Winner in 4 (8,11) [12 Runners]
The course which has produced the most winners of the St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap is Ascot; there have been a total of 3 winners of this race who ran at Ascot last time out.
The race is open to both sexes, with the Male runners having produced a total of 14 winners from a total of 162 runners, whilst the Female runners have produced 1 winner from a total of 8 runners.
Looking over the past renewals, there is only one stallion whose offspring have produced multiple winners of the St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap; that stallion, Acclamation, has produced 2 winners (2019,2014).
These are the stallions whose offspring have not produced a winner of the St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap despite multiple attempts:
- Invincible Spirit (0 Wins from 7 runners)
- Shamardal (0 Wins from 7 runners)
- Lethal Force (0 Wins from 6 runners)
- Pivotal (0 Wins from 5 runners)
Looking at the winning odds over the last 15 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was Von Blucher in 2018, winning for Rebecca Menzies at odds of 25/1 under the guidance of Cam Hardie. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 15 renewals, there have been 2 winning favourites in the race. Whilst we wait for the 2026 St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap, remember you can get daily racing predictions from the top racing tipsters on the best racing tipsters page.
Route to the St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap
Many trainers will target races to use as prep races before coming to the St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap. These are the races which the recent winners ran in before coming here:
| Info | Last Race |
|---|---|
| 2025 - Desert Falcon Thirsk - 3rd of 13 (5/2) | William Hill Price Boosts Handicap |
| 2024 - Baldomero Goodwood - 4th of 7 (15/2) | William Hill First Race Special Today Handicap |
| 2023 - Baradar Ascot - 1st of 25 (16/1) | International Stakes Heritage Handicap |
| 2022 - Asjad Ascot - 16th of 21 (41/1) | International Stakes Heritage Handicap |
| 2021 - Able Kane Goodwood - 2nd of 9 (2/1) | tote.co.uk Handicap |
| 2020 - Tranchee Haydock - 2nd of 10 (10/3) | Betfair Exchange Setting Odds Racing TV Handicap |
| 2019 - Enjazaat Newmarket (July) - 7th of 10 (12/1) | Price Bailey Chartered Accountants Hopeful Stakes |
| 2018 - Von Blucher Redcar - 5th of 9 (7/1) | Racing UK Straight Mile Series Handicap |
| 2017 - Amazour Newcastle (AW) - 7th of 13 (9/2) | Betfred "Celebrating 50 Years Of Success" Handicap |
| 2016 - Normandy Barriere Ascot - 4th of 18 (7/1) | Bibendum Wine Ltd Handicap |
Other Principal races during the Doncaster St Leger Festival
Here is the schedule for the four-day St Leger Festival for races, which we cover with blogs. Each race will be linked to the race blog and detail last year's winner in the table below.
Thursday at St Leger Festival
There are a couple of Group 2s which take centre-stage on the opening day of the St Leger Festival, the £120k May Hill Stakes, where the two-year-olds feature and then the £150k Park Hill Fillies Stakes, where the older fillies compete. We also have the £300k 2-y-o Stakes, a valuable class two race.
| Race | Last Winner | Info |
|---|---|---|
| Carrie Red Fillies Nursery | Half Sovereign (FR) 2yo - 9/4 | K R Burke Clifford Lee |
| Doncaster 2yo Stakes | Calendar Girl (GB) 2yo - 7/2 | Owen Burrows Saffie Osborne |
| May Hill Stakes | Aylin (IRE) 2yo - 5/1 | K R Burke David Egan |
| Park Hill Stakes | Santorini Star (IRE) 4yo - 7/2 | William Haggas Tom Marquand |
| St Leger Festival Middle Distance Handicap | Munsif (IRE) 3yo - 5/2 | Roger Varian Ray Dawson |
Friday at St Leger Festival
On Friday, the feature race of the day is the Group 2 Doncaster Cup, which is part of the British Champion Series and carries a £150k purse. The Flying Childers Stakes is another race on Friday, which carries a decent purse, £130k on offer for the two-year-olds.
| Race | Last Winner | Info |
|---|---|---|
| Mallard Handicap | Subsequent (IRE) 4yo - 12/1 | Andrew Balding Oisin Murphy |
| Flying Scotsman Stakes | Avicenna (IRE) 2yo - 11/2 | Roger Varian William Buick |
| Flying Childers Stakes | Revival Power (IRE) 2yo - 17/2 | Tim Easterby Oisin Murphy |
| Doncaster Cup | Sweet William (IRE) 6yo - 10/11 | John & Thady Gosden Robert Havlin |
Saturday at St Leger Festival
The feature race of the festival, the St Leger, takes place on Saturday, another race which is part of the British Champion Series, this Group 1 carries a purse of £700k. The three races before the St Leger all carry decent purses too, the Champagne Stakes (£150k), the Portland (£100k) and the Park Stakes (£140k).
| Race | Last Winner | Info |
|---|---|---|
| St Leger Festival Mile Handicap | Treble Tee (IRE) 3yo - 11/5 | Simon & Ed Crisford Oisin Murphy |
| Champagne Stakes | Puerto Rico (IRE) 2yo - 15/2 | A P O'Brien Sean Levey |
| Portland Heritage Handicap | Eternal Sunshine (GB) 5yo - 12/1 | Jim Goldie Lauren Young |
| Park Stakes | Marvelman (IRE) 3yo - 13/2 | Andrew Balding Oisin Murphy |
| St Leger | Scandinavia (USA) 3yo - 2/1 | A P O'Brien Tom Marquand |
| St Leger Festival Ten Furlong Handicap | Fantasy Believer (IRE) 8yo - 9/1 | Ed Walker Oisin Murphy |
Sunday at St Leger Festival
Sunday is a bit more low-key, only one class one race, which is the £85k Sceptre Stakes for the fillies over 7f, and there are also a couple of decent handicaps carrying good purses of £70k and £65k.
| Race | Last Winner | Info |
|---|---|---|
| City of Doncaster Handicap | Rogue Diplomat (IRE) 3yo - 14/1 | James Owen Harry Davies |
| St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap | Desert Falcon (IRE) 5yo - 9/1 | Julie Camacho Rowan Scott |
| Sceptre Stakes | Fair Angellica (GB) 4yo - 11/1 | Richard Hughes Finley Marsh |
Article Contributor Information
We are blessed with an excellent team of specialists and experts at OLBG. Contributing to creating and maintaining this St Leger Festival Sprint Handicap Preview are Andy and James. They both work on the Horse racing tips team, looking after the tipsters and managing the tips settlement, whilst also creating and managing all of the horse racing event previews for Flat Racing.
James Banting
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Andy Powell
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