You know how punters get lost in too much data or bet blindly? I break down the stats and trends so you can feel confident youâre betting with more than just gut instinct.
2026 St Leger Preview
Britain's oldest 'classic', the St Leger, was first run in 1776 and is recognised as the last leg of the 'Triple Crown' comprising the 2000 Guineas and Epsom Derby. Camelot in 2012 nearly became the first horse since Nijinsky in 1970 to complete the set, having won the 2000 Guineas and Derby, but had to settle with the runners-up finish here behind Encke.
Although Camelot nearly accomplished the Triple Crown in 2012, it is now generally very seldom a target for the season's early classic winners. From a breeder's point of view, St Leger winners going on to stallion duties may not have too much influence when it comes to breeding 'speed' and tend to become more prominent sires on the National Hunt scene. Recent examples would be Aidan O'Brien's Milan in 2001 and Brian Boru in 2003, both of which have sired numerous National Hunt winners.
The St Leger is not only the oldest classic but also the longest in distance, running over one mile and six and a half furlongs and is open to three-year-old colts and fillies. It has been won by some true legends of the turf down the years. Never Say Die completed the Epsom Derby and St Leger double in 1954 and, in the process, recorded the still-standing longest-winning St Leger margin of 12 lengths.
St Paddy in 1960 was the first of Lester Piggott's eight St Leger victories, which also included the last triple-crown winner Nijinsky in 1970. Lester recorded his final St Leger victory on Commanche Run for Luca Cumani, 24 years after his first success.
Other equine greats to grace the St Leger winners' enclosure include Bustino (1974), Her Majesty's Dunfermline under Willie Carson in 1977, the brilliant filly Oh So Sharp for Steve Cauthen and Sir Henry Cecil in 1984, Henry's Reference Point, the last Epsom Derby winner to complete the double in 1987 and another top female, User Friendly in 1992.
St Leger 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.
Best Horse Racing Betting Sites 2025
How competitive is the St Leger market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 20 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2024 when the race had an over-round of 111%. The race in 2012 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 St Leger, the over-round has been 117%, which means the bookie expects to pay out £100 for every £117 which is bet.
Below you will find the 2026 St Leger 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 Trend Analysis.
These are the top three quickest-run St Leger races over the last 20 renewals:
- Sixties Icon (2:57.29) in 2006
- Logician (3:00.27) in 2019
- Masked Marvel (3:00.44) in 2011
Looking at the future form, is the winner worth following next time out? Over the past 20 renewals, if you had followed the winner of the St Leger next time out, then you would have backed a total of 3 winners. Backing all 18 runners who have been out since their win at SP next time out would have returned an LSP of -6.42. Whilst we wait for the 2026 St Leger, remember you can get daily racing predictions from the expert tipsters on the racing predictions page.
Over the last 20 renewals, it was Sixties Icon, trained by Jeremy Noseda and ridden by Frankie Dettori, who set the fastest winning time in the St Leger. That runner won the race in a time of 2:57.29 in 2006. At the other end of the scale, it was the combination of trainer A P O'Brien and jockey Joseph O'Brien with Leading Light who set the slowest winning time; the race-winning time was 3:09.20 in the 2013 renewal.
What the expert says...
Andy Powell - Horse Racing Betting Expert - OLBG.com
St Leger Past Winners
Here are the St Leger 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 are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.
| Year | Horse (Drawn) | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 3:04.63 | Scandinavia (USA) 3yo 9-3 (7 of 7) 2/1F | Tom Marquand A P O'Brien (IRE) |
| 2024 3:04.52 | Jan Brueghel (IRE) 3yo 9-3 (4 of 7) 11/4F | Sean Levey A P O'Brien (IRE) |
| 2023 3:06.95 | Continuous (JPN) 3yo 9-3 (2 of 9) 3/1 | Ryan Moore A P O'Brien (IRE) |
| 2022 3:08.39 | Eldar Eldarov (GB) 3yo 9-3 (5 of 9) 9/2 | David Egan Roger Varian (GB) |
| 2021 3:04.28 | Hurricane Lane (IRE) 3yo 9-1 (4 of 10) 8/11F | William Buick Charlie Appleby (GB) |
| 2020 3:01.94 | Galileo Chrome (IRE) 3yo 9-1 (12 of 11) 4/1 | Tom Marquand Joseph Patrick O'Brien (IRE) |
| 2019 3:00.27 | Logician (GB) 3yo 9-1 (4 of 8) 5/6F | Frankie Dettori John Gosden (GB) |
| 2018 3:03.34 | Kew Gardens (IRE) 3yo 9-1 (8 of 12) 3/1 | Ryan Moore A P O'Brien (IRE) |
| 2017 3:04.04 | Capri (IRE) 3yo 9-1 (9 of 11) 3/1F | Ryan Moore A P O'Brien (IRE) |
| 2016 3:05.48 | Harbour Law (GB) 3yo 9-1 (9 of 9) 22/1 | George Baker Laura Mongan (GB) |
Where have the winning runners come from?
Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the St Leger have been based:
- GB: 13 winners with an additional 26 placings from 124 runners
- IRE: 7 winners with an additional 11 placings from 69 runners
- FR: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 1 runner
2025 St Leger Replay
St Leger Trainer Statistics
The leading trainer in the St Leger over the last 20 renewals is A P O'Brien, who has won the race six times, with those six winners coming from Leading Light (2013), Capri (2017), Kew Gardens (2018), Continuous (2023), Jan Brueghel (2024) and Scandinavia (2025). Other trainers who have recorded multiple wins in the St Leger are John Gosden (4 wins) and Roger Varian (2 wins). There is one trainer who has not had the best of times in the St Leger; Andrew Balding has sent a total of 12 runners to the race without recording any wins.
Here are some of the top St Leger 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| A P O'Brien | 56-6-15 | -32.75 | -27.44 |
| John Gosden | 17-4-8 | +10.83 | +5.57 |
| Roger Varian | 4-2-3 | +4.75 | +4.30 |
| Sir Michael Stoute | 10-1-4 | -1.00 | -1.45 |
| Ralph Beckett | 6-1-3 | +3.00 | +2.17 |
| Charlie Appleby | 6-1-2 | -4.27 | -3.92 |
| Saeed bin Suroor | 4-1-2 | +11.00 | +6.12 |
| Joseph Patrick O'Brien | 2-1-1 | +3.00 | +1.40 |
| Laura Mongan | 1-1-1 | +22.00 | +13.20 |
| Andrew Balding | 12-0-1 | -12.00 | -9.90 |
St Leger Jockey Statistics
There are multiple leading jockeys in the St Leger over the last 20 renewals, with Frankie Dettori, William Buick, and Ryan Moore having all won the race three times. Frankie Dettori winners have been with Sixties Icon (2006), Conduit (2008) and Logician (2019). William Buick winners have been with Arctic Cosmos (2010), Masked Marvel (2011) and Hurricane Lane (2021). Ryan Moore winners have been with Capri (2017), Kew Gardens (2018) and Continuous (2023). Other jockeys who have recorded multiple wins in the St Leger are Andrea Atzeni (2 wins) and Tom Marquand (2 wins).
Here are some of the top St Leger 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frankie Dettori | 14-3-7 | -0.79 | -1.21 |
| William Buick | 9-3-5 | +14.23 | +7.93 |
| Ryan Moore | 8-3-3 | +4.00 | +0.40 |
| Andrea Atzeni | 6-2-4 | +6.25 | +8.95 |
| Tom Marquand | 4-2-3 | +4.00 | +2.75 |
| Sean Levey | 4-1-1 | -0.25 | -1.28 |
| Mickael Barzalona | 3-1-1 | +23.00 | +13.00 |
| David Egan | 1-1-1 | +4.50 | +2.70 |
| Jim Crowley | 6-0-2 | -6.00 | -3.60 |
| James Doyle | 6-0-2 | -6.00 | -4.00 |
2026 St Leger Trends
Favourites finishing positions (oldest to latest): 1, 3, 7, 2, 6, 3, 2, 1, 1, (2, 4), UR, 1, 2, 1, 4, 1, 2, 2, (1, 2), 1
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 (74%) - Had 3 - 6 placings (1 Year)
- 20 / 20 (74%) - Had 2 - 5 wins (Career)
- 20 / 20 (76%) - Beaten no more -5¼l (LTO)
- 20 / 20 (77%) - No bigger than 25/1
- 20 / 20 (79%) - Highest Won is not Cl2/Cl5-6
- 20 / 20 (79%) - Achieved an RPR of 103+ (LTO)
- 20 / 20 (79%) - Not in a Cl2/Cl5-6 (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (80%) - Achieved an RPR of 93+ (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (82%) - Break of 14 - 98 days (Last Place)
- 20 / 20 (83%) - Within the first 8 of the market
- 20 / 20 (83%) - No bigger than 12/1 (LTO)
- 20 / 20 (84%) - Won within last 4 starts
- 20 / 20 (85%) - Highest Placed is not Cl2-5
- 20 / 20 (85%) - Furthest Placed 1m4f - 2m
- 20 / 20 (86%) - Had 3 - 8 placings (Career)
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. 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 by adding a tip on the race here.
101 Ways to find Winners in Horse Racing
St Leger Trend Analysis
✅ The trend factor, which has produced 10+ winners and shows the best LSP, an LSP of +31.96, is when runners had 3 career places in Non-Handicap.
❌ The worst performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners had 1 win in the past year, when backing these, the trend shows a record of 0-59.
Here are the most recent winning draws, along with the further placings in brackets:
- 2025: Winner in 7 (2) [7 Runners]
- 2024: Winner in 4 (7) [7 Runners]
- 2023: Winner in 2 (6,1) [9 Runners]
- 2022: Winner in 5 (4,2) [9 Runners]
- 2021: Winner in 4 (3,1) [10 Runners]
The courses that have produced the most winners of the St Leger are Goodwood and York; there have been a total of 6 winners from each of those courses.
The race is open to both sexes, with the Male runners having produced a total of 19 winners from a total of 179 runners, whilst the Female runners have produced 1 winner from a total of 15 runners.
Looking over the past renewals, these are the stallions whose offspring have produced multiple winners of the St Leger:
- Galileo (4 Wins)
- Frankel (2 Wins)
- Montjeu (2 Wins)
These are the stallions whose offspring have not produced a winner of the St Leger despite multiple attempts:
- Camelot (0 Wins from 7 runners)
- Sea The Stars (0 Wins from 7 runners)
- Sadlers Wells (0 Wins from 5 runners)
Looking at the winning odds over the last 20 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was Encke in 2012, winning for Mahmood Al Zarooni at odds of 25/1 under the guidance of Mickael Barzalona. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 20 renewals, there have been 8 winning favourites in the race. Remember to use the best racing tipsters along with the information on this page to find a bet on the 2026 St Leger.
Route to the St Leger
Many trainers will target races to use as prep races before coming to the St Leger. These are the races which the recent winners ran in before coming here:
| Info | Last Race |
|---|---|
| 2025 - Scandinavia Goodwood - 1st of 8 (4/1) | Goodwood Cup |
| 2024 - Jan Brueghel Goodwood - 1st of 4 (4/5) | Gordon Stakes |
| 2023 - Continuous York - 1st of 5 (4/1) | Great Voltigeur Stakes |
| 2022 - Eldar Eldarov Longchamp - 4th of 6 (39/10) | Grand Prix de Paris |
| 2021 - Hurricane Lane Longchamp - 1st of 11 (27/10) | Grand Prix de Paris |
| 2020 - Galileo Chrome Navan - 1st of 7 (2/1) | Irish Stallion Farms EBF Yeats Stakes |
| 2019 - Logician York - 1st of 5 (10/11) | Great Voltigeur Stakes |
| 2018 - Kew Gardens York - 3rd of 9 (7/2) | Great Voltigeur Stakes |
| 2017 - Capri Curragh - 1st of 9 (6/1) | Irish Derby |
| 2016 - Harbour Law Newmarket (July) - 4th of 9 (10/1) | Bahrain Trophy Stakes |
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 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
Expert Guide
Andy Powell
Expert Guide
