Horse Racing stats man, Andy has contributed to OLBG for 18 years - An Ipswich fan and F1 fanatic, he also contributes EFL football and Motor Sport opinion.
2025 Sceptre Stakes Preview
Run during the St Leger Festival in September of each year at Doncaster, the Sceptre Stakes which is named after the filly Sceptre, a winner of four classics which includes the St Leger, is a Group 3 race for fillies and mares who are aged three or older and is run over a straight seven furlongs and six yards.
Sceptre Stakes Information:
To see which runners the OLBG racing tipsters are tipping throughout the card that includes this race, head over to the Doncaster tips on the day of the race, do they agree with the runners on the trend shortlist or are they predicting other runners? 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.
How competitive is the Sceptre Stakes market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 20 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2016 when the race had an over-round of 109%. The race in 2020 was a race that was most in the bookie's favour with an over-round of 127%, whilst on average over the last 20 renewals of the Sceptre Stakes, the over-round has been 118%, which means the bookie expects to pay out £100 for every £118 which is bet.
Sceptre Stakes Trends:
Looking at the future form, is the winner worth following next time out? From the past 20 if you had followed the winner of the Sceptre Stakes next time out then you would have backed a total of 3 winners. Backing all 18 runners who have been out since to win at SP next time out, would have returned an LSP of -9.45. Whilst we wait for the 2025 Sceptre Stakes remember you can get daily racing predictions from the expert tipsters on the racing predictions page.
When looking over the past 20 renewals, a time of 1:22.69 was set by Fantasia in 2009, which is the quickest time over that period, the runner was trained by Luca Cumani and ridden by Kieren Fallon. The slowest winning time was set in 2008 when Royal Confidence won in a time of 1:28.66, booked to ride was Michael Hills by the trainer B W Hills.
These are the top three quickest-run Sceptre Stakes over the last 20 renewals:
- Fantasia (1:22.69) in 2009
- Kiyoshi (1:22.74) in 2014
- Just Beautiful (1:22.75) in 2021
Sceptre Stakes Past Winners
Here are the Sceptre Stakes' 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 Sceptre Stakes are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.
| Year | Horse (Drawn) | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 1:26.22 | Great Generation (IRE) 3yo 9-3 (8 of 11) 8/1 | Marco Ghiani Marco Botti (GB) |
| 2023 1:23.48 | Matilda Picotte (IRE) 3yo 9-1 (5 of 10) 6/1 | Oisin Murphy Kieran P Cotter (IRE) |
| 2022 1:24.57 | Bounce The Blues (IRE) 5yo 9-4 (5 of 11) 5/1 | William Buick Andrew Balding (GB) |
| 2021 1:22.75 | Just Beautiful (GB) 3yo 8-12 (1 of 12) 11/4F | Silvestre De Sousa Ivan Furtado (GB) |
| 2020 1:24.47 | Foxtrot Lady (GB) 5yo 9-2 (13 of 15) 18/1 | Frankie Dettori Andrew Balding (GB) |
| 2019 1:23.40 | Breathtaking Look (GB) 4yo 9-2 (12 of 13) 20/1 | Jim Crowley Stuart Williams (GB) |
| 2018 1:25.26 | Dancing Star (GB) 5yo 9-2 (4 of 9) 7/2 | Oisin Murphy Andrew Balding (GB) |
| 2017 1:24.72 | Music Box (IRE) 3yo 8-12 (6 of 13) 8/1 | Ryan Moore A P O'Brien (IRE) |
| 2016 1:25.81 | Spangled (GB) 4yo 9-2 (6 of 7) 14/1 | Andrea Atzeni Roger Varian (GB) |
| 2015 1:22.86 | Realtra (IRE) 3yo 8-12 (4 of 20) 25/1 | Jack Mitchell Roger Varian (GB) |
Where have the winning runners come from?
Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the Sceptre Stakes have been based:
- GB: 17 winners with an additional 38 placings from 221 runners
- IRE: 3 winners with an additional 1 placing from 16 runners
- FR: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 2 runners
- GER: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 1 runner
- SPA: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 1 runner
Sceptre Stakes Trainer Statistics
The leading trainer in the Sceptre Stakes over the last 20 renewals is Andrew Balding who has won the race three times with those three winners coming from Dancing Star (2018), Foxtrot Lady (2020) and Bounce The Blues (2022). The only other trainer to have recorded multiple wins in the Sceptre Stakes is Roger Varian (2 wins).
Here are some of the top Sceptre Stakes trainer statistics over the last 20 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Andrew Balding | 7-3-5 | +22.50 | +15.35 |
| Roger Varian | 8-2-4 | +33.00 | +17.60 |
| William Haggas | 12-1-2 | -7.00 | -7.45 |
| Marco Botti | 11-1-5 | -2.00 | +2.90 |
| Sir Michael Stoute | 5-1-2 | -3.17 | -2.81 |
| Peter Chapple-Hyam | 3-1-1 | +20.00 | +9.00 |
| A P O'Brien | 3-1-1 | +6.00 | +2.80 |
| Charles Hills | 2-1-1 | +10.00 | +5.60 |
| Stuart Williams | 1-1-1 | +20.00 | +12.00 |
| Kieran P Cotter | 1-1-1 | +6.00 | +3.60 |
Sceptre Stakes Jockey Statistics
The leading jockey in the Sceptre Stakes over the last 20 renewals is Ryan Moore who has won the race three times with those three winners coming from Silver Touch (2006), Medley (2007) and Music Box (2017). Other jockeys who have recorded multiple wins in the Sceptre Stakes are Jamie Spencer (2 wins), Andrea Atzeni (2 wins) and Oisin Murphy (2 wins).
Here are some of the top Sceptre Stakes jockey statistics over the last 20 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ryan Moore | 14-3-3 | +13.75 | +3.85 |
| Jamie Spencer | 9-2-3 | +26.00 | +12.70 |
| Andrea Atzeni | 7-2-4 | +17.00 | +10.90 |
| Oisin Murphy | 5-2-2 | +6.50 | +2.70 |
| William Buick | 13-1-4 | -7.00 | -4.00 |
| Frankie Dettori | 11-1-3 | +8.00 | +3.80 |
| Silvestre De Sousa | 5-1-1 | -1.25 | -2.35 |
| Jack Mitchell | 4-1-2 | +22.00 | +10.33 |
| Jim Crowley | 4-1-2 | +17.00 | +9.50 |
| Marco Ghiani | 1-1-1 | +8.00 | +4.80 |
2025 Sceptre Stakes Trends
Favourites finishing positions (oldest to latest): 1, 2, 4, 4, 1, 1, 3, 5, 5, 2, 4, 7, 4, 5, 10, 2, 1, 9, 4, 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.
- 20 / 20 (78%) - No bigger than 25/1
- 20 / 20 (85%) - No bigger than 22/1 (LTO)
- 20 / 20 (86%) - Not on HY/FM/STD-SLW/STD (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (86%) - Held an OR of 92+
- 20 / 20 (87%) - Achieved a TS of 74+ (Last 5)
- 20 / 20 (87%) - Not in a G2/Cl3-6 (LTO)
- 20 / 20 (88%) - Achieved an RPR of 96+ (Career)
- 20 / 20 (88%) - In a field of 8 - 20 (Debut)
- 20 / 20 (89%) - Achieved a TS of 67+ (Last 3)
- 18 / 20 (62%) - No bigger than 8/1 (Career Win)
- 18 / 20 (66%) - Achieved a TS of 79+ (Season)
- 18 / 20 (69%) - Achieved a TS of 84+ (Career)
- 18 / 20 (75%) - No bigger than 40/1 (Career)
- 18 / 20 (78%) - No bigger than 8/1 (Last Win)
- 16 / 20 (52%) - Within the first 6 of the market
Remember to use the trends listed above along with the Doncaster racing predictions to see if you can find the winner of the Sceptre Stakes. If you are looking to place a bet on this race well in advance of the actual running, then there may be an ante-post market available for you to place your bet. If you are unfamiliar with this type of betting then head over to the OLBG Betting School and read our Ante-Post Horse Racing article which explains how ante-post betting works.
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 Sceptre Stakes by adding a tip on the race here.
Sceptre Stakes Trend Analysis
The trend factor which had produced 10+ winners and shows the best LSP, an LSP of +33.83 is when runners ran in a race restricted to 3yo+ when last winning. The worst performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners carried 126lbs, when backing these the trend shows a record of 0-38.
Here are the most recent winning draws along with the further placings in brackets:
- 2024: Winner in 8 (9,2) [11 Runners]
- 2023: Winner in 5 (10,4) [10 Runners]
- 2022: Winner in 5 (11,3) [11 Runners]
- 2021: Winner in 1 (7,4) [12 Runners]
- 2020: Winner in 13 (10,12) [15 Runners]
The courses that have produced the most winners of the Sceptre Stakes are Deauville, Goodwood and Tipperary, there has been a total number of 3 winners from each of those courses.
Looking over the past renewals, there is only one stallion whose offspring have produced multiple winners of the Sceptre Stakes, that stallion Holy Roman Emperor has produced 2 winners (2024,2012).
These are the stallions whose offspring have not produced a winner of the Sceptre Stakes despite multiple attempts:
- Pivotal (0 Wins from 8 runners)
- Shamardal (0 Wins from 8 runners)
- Kodiac (0 Wins from 7 runners)
- Cape Cross (0 Wins from 5 runners)
- Oasis Dream (0 Wins from 5 runners)
Looking at the winning odds over the last 20 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was Realtra in 2015, winning for Roger Varian at odds of 25/1 under the guidance of Jack Mitchell. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 20 renewals there have been 4 winning favourites in the race. Remember to bookmark the best racing tipsters page so you can get easy access to the best OLBG racing tipsters.
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 2's 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.
| Race | Last Winner | Info |
|---|---|---|
| Carrie Red Fillies Nursery | Ghost Run (GB) 2yo - 5/1 | Andrew Balding Oisin Murphy |
| Doncaster 2yo Stakes | Hallasan (GB) 2yo - 15/2 | Charlie Appleby William Buick |
| May Hill Stakes | Desert Flower (IRE) 2yo - 1/1 | Charlie Appleby William Buick |
| Park Hill Stakes | Nakheel (FR) 3yo - 10/1 | Owen Burrows Jim Crowley |
| St Leger Festival Class 3 1m4f Handicap | Kildare Legend (IRE) 3yo - 100/30 | James Ferguson Daniel Muscutt |
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 £140k 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 | Faylaq (GB) 8yo - 18/1 | Jim Goldie Amie Waugh |
| Flying Scotsman Stakes | Benevento (IRE) 2yo - 7/1 | Raphael E Freire David Egan |
| Flying Childers Stakes | Aesterius (IRE) 2yo - 7/2 | Archie Watson James Doyle |
| Doncaster Cup | Sweet William (IRE) 5yo - 7/4 | 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Champagne Stakes | Bay City Roller (IRE) 2yo - 9/2 | George Scott Callum Shepherd |
| Portland Heritage Handicap | American Affair (GB) 4yo - 4/1 | Jim Goldie Paul Mulrennan |
| Park Stakes | Kinross (GB) 7yo - 11/4 | Ralph Beckett Rossa Ryan |
| St Leger | Jan Brueghel (IRE) 3yo - 11/4 | A P O'Brien Sean Levey |
| PJ Towey Construction Handicap | Daysofourlives (IRE) 4yo - 100/30 | Marco Botti Jack Mitchell |
| St Leger Festival Class 2 Mile Handicap | Johan (GB) 7yo - 18/1 | Jack Channon Rossa Ryan |
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 | Telemark (IRE) 3yo - 12/1 | Simon & Ed Crisford Harry Davies |
| Sceptre Stakes | Great Generation (IRE) 3yo - 8/1 | Marco Botti Marco Ghiani |
| St Leger Festival Class 2 Sprint Handicap | Baldomero (IRE) 6yo - 10/1 | Michael Appleby Silvestre De Sousa |
Article Contributor Information
We are blessed with an excellent team of specialists and experts at OLBG. Contributing to creating and maintaining this Sceptre Stakes Preview are at hand, Andy and Darren. They both work on the Horse racing tips team 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.
Darren Brett
Tipster Competition Manager
Andy Powell
Content Editor
Other Principal Races at Doncaster Racecourse
Here are some other notable races at the Doncaster racecourse throughout the racing season that you may be interested in.
