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 Finale Handicap Preview
Established in 2015, this race is a Class 2 heritage handicap contested over a distance of one mile and six furlongs. The race is open to runners aged three years and above and is scheduled to take place in October of each year at the York Racecourse.
Finale Handicap Information:
Our dedicated York tips page will not only bring you predictions from the OLBG racing tipsters for the upcoming card that includes the Finale Handicap, but will also have predictions for each meeting at York throughout the season, so be sure to head over there. You may also be interested in other preview blogs that we have packed full of information. Head down to the Other Principal Races at York Racecourse section for links to these.
Best Horse Racing Betting Sites 2025
How competitive is the Finale Handicap market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 11 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2015 when the race had an over-round of 111%. The race in 2025 was a race that was most in the bookie's favour with an over-round of 136%, whilst on average over the last 11 renewals of the Finale Handicap, the over-round has been 121%, which means the bookie expects to pay out £100 for every £121 which is bet.
Below you will find the 2026 Finale 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 Finale Handicap Trend Analysis.
These are the top three quickest-run Finale Handicap races over the last 11 renewals:
- Lets Dream (2:11.12) in 2025
- Calvinist (2:58.08) in 2016
- Elegiac (3:00.02) in 2018
Looking at the future form, is the winner worth following next time out? Over the past 11 renewals, if you had followed the winner of the Finale Handicap next time out, then you would have backed a total of 0 winners. Backing all 10 runners who have been out since their win at SP next time out would have returned an LSP of -10.00. Whilst we wait for the 2026 Finale Handicap, remember you can get daily racing predictions from the expert tipsters on the racing predictions page.
The runner that holds the record over the past 11 renewals for the slowest time in the race was set in the 2024 renewal when Minstrel Knight from Edward Bethell under the guidance of Aidan Keeley, won in a time of 3:09.78, whilst at the other end of the spectrum, Lets Dream, trained by Michael Bell and ridden by Hector Crouch set the quickest time of 2:11.12 in the 2025 renewal.
Finale Handicap Past Winners
Here are the Finale 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 from which the horse came and the total number of runners in the race. The horse's trainer and the jockey at the time of winning the Finale Handicap are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.
| Year | Horse (Drawn) | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 2:11.12 | Lets Dream (GB) 4yo 9-10 (3 of 19) 14/1 | Hector Crouch Michael Bell (GB) |
| 2024 3:09.78 | Minstrel Knight (GB) 3yo 8-10 (6 of 7) 7/1 | Aidan Keeley Edward Bethell (GB) |
| 2023 3:09.66 | Lordship (GER) 3yo 9-3 (4 of 11) 13/2 | Adam Farragher (3lbs) William Haggas (GB) |
| 2022 3:04.52 | Post Impressionist (IRE) 3yo 8-9 (3 of 14) 6/1 | Adam Farragher (5lbs) William Haggas (GB) |
| 2021 3:07.90 | Surrey Gold (IRE) 3yo 8-10 (4 of 13) 9/2 | Sean Levey Hughie Morrison (GB) |
| 2020 3:06.57 | Prince Alex (GB) 3yo 8-4 (7 of 11) 5/1 | Harry Bentley Ralph Beckett (GB) |
| 2019 3:08.31 | Hamish (GB) 3yo 9-7 (9 of 17) 13/8F | Daniel Tudhope William Haggas (GB) |
| 2018 3:00.02 | Elegiac (GB) 3yo 8-12 (5 of 12) 6/1 | Silvestre De Sousa Mark Johnston (GB) |
| 2017 3:01.02 | Brimham Rocks (GB) 3yo 8-8 (6 of 13) 16/1 | Richard Kingscote Ralph Beckett (GB) |
| 2016 2:58.08 | Calvinist (GB) 3yo 8-2 (6 of 14) 16/1 | Kieren Fox Brian Meehan (GB) |
Where have the winning runners come from?
Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the Finale Handicap have been based:
- GB: 11 winners with an additional 22 placings from 135 runners
- AUS: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 1 runner
- IRE: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 1 runner
Finale Handicap Trainer Statistics
The leading trainer in the Finale Handicap over the last 11 renewals is William Haggas, who has won the race three times, with those three winners coming from Hamish (2019), Post Impressionist (2022) and Lordship (2023). The only other trainer to have recorded multiple wins in the Finale Handicap is Ralph Beckett (2 wins). There is one trainer who has not had the best of times in the Finale Handicap; Andrew Balding has sent a total of 10 runners to the race without recording any wins.
Here are some of the top Finale Handicap trainer statistics over the last 11 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| William Haggas | 12-3-5 | +5.13 | +1.60 |
| Ralph Beckett | 6-2-4 | +17.00 | +12.01 |
| Michael Bell | 4-1-1 | +11.00 | +5.75 |
| Hughie Morrison | 4-1-2 | +1.50 | +1.00 |
| Julie Camacho | 3-1-1 | +6.00 | +3.00 |
| Edward Bethell | 2-1-1 | +6.00 | +3.38 |
| Brian Meehan | 1-1-1 | +16.00 | +10.00 |
| Andrew Balding | 10-0-3 | -10.00 | -6.54 |
| John Gosden | 7-0-0 | -7.00 | -7.00 |
| Tim Easterby | 6-0-1 | -6.00 | -3.50 |
Finale Handicap Jockey Statistics
The leading jockey in the Finale Handicap over the last 11 renewals is Adam Farragher, who has won the race two times, with those two winners coming from Post Impressionist (2022) and Lordship (2023).
Here are some of the top Finale Handicap jockey statistics over the last 11 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adam Farragher | 2-2-2 | +12.50 | +7.65 |
| Daniel Tudhope | 5-1-1 | -2.37 | -2.98 |
| Richard Kingscote | 3-1-2 | +14.00 | +9.25 |
| Silvestre De Sousa | 3-1-2 | +4.00 | +3.31 |
| Hector Crouch | 2-1-2 | +13.00 | +9.38 |
| Harry Bentley | 2-1-1 | +4.00 | +2.00 |
| Sean Levey | 2-1-2 | +3.50 | +3.06 |
| Joe Doyle | 1-1-1 | +8.00 | +5.00 |
| Aidan Keeley | 1-1-1 | +7.00 | +4.38 |
| Andrew Mullen | 5-0-2 | -5.00 | -1.44 |
2026 Finale Handicap Trends
Favourites finishing positions (oldest to latest): 4, 2, 8, 7, 1, 8, 3, 4, 2, 4, 3
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.
- 11 / 11 (64%) - No bigger than 16/1
- 11 / 11 (64%) - In a field of 7 - 12 (LTO)
- 11 / 11 (74%) - Off a break of 14 - 49 days
- 11 / 11 (75%) - Furthest ran 1m2f - 1m6f
- 11 / 11 (77%) - Ran in 4 - 13 races (Career)
- 11 / 11 (77%) - Furthest Placed 1m2f - 1m6f
- 11 / 11 (77%) - Within the first 10 of the market
- 11 / 11 (77%) - Highest Run is not G1-3/Cl4-5
- 11 / 11 (80%) - Achieved an RPR of 87+ (Last 3)
- 11 / 11 (81%) - Achieved a TS of 38+ (LTO)
- 11 / 11 (81%) - Not on HY/GF/FM (Debut)
- 11 / 11 (82%) - Dam is not GER/USA bred
- 11 / 11 (84%) - Not on STD-SLW/STD (Last Win)
- 11 / 11 (85%) - No more than -19lbs (Vs Max Weight)
- 11 / 11 (85%) - Not on STD-SLW/STD (LTO)
Remember to use the trends listed above, along with the York racing predictions, to see if you can find the winner of the Finale 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 Finale Handicap by adding a tip on the race here.
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Finale Handicap Trend Analysis
✅ The trend factor, which has produced 6+ winners and shows the best LSP, an LSP of +31.50, is when runners had 7 season starts.
❌ The worst performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners had 2 places in the past 180 days, 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 3 (8,4,14) [19 Runners]
- 2024: Winner in 6 (4) [7 Runners]
- 2023: Winner in 4 (14,12) [11 Runners]
- 2022: Winner in 3 (2,11) [14 Runners]
- 2021: Winner in 4 (9,3) [13 Runners]
The course which has produced the most winners of the Finale Handicap is Haydock; there have been a total of 5 winners of this race who ran at Haydock last time out.
The race is open to both sexes, with the Male runners having produced a total of 11 winners from a total of 130 runners, whilst the Female runners have produced 0 winners from a total of 7 runners.
These are the stallions whose offspring have not produced a winner of the Finale Handicap despite multiple attempts:
- Nathaniel (0 Wins from 7 runners)
- Frankel (0 Wins from 6 runners)
- Lope De Vega (0 Wins from 5 runners)
- Mastercraftsman (0 Wins from 5 runners)
Looking at the winning odds over the last 11 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was Brimham Rocks in 2017, winning for Ralph Beckett at odds of 16/1 under the guidance of Richard Kingscote. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 11 renewals, there have been 1 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 Finale Handicap.
Route to the Finale Handicap
Many trainers will target races to use as prep races before coming to the Finale Handicap. These are the races which the recent winners ran in before coming here:
| Info | Last Race |
|---|---|
| 2025 - Lets Dream Chester - 8th of 10 (5/1) | LiveScore Bet Handicap |
| 2024 - Minstrel Knight Haydock - 1st of 7 (9/2) | Sky Bet Extra Place Races Daily Handicap |
| 2023 - Lordship Haydock - 5th of 7 (11/4) | Get Daily Rewards With Betfair Handicap |
| 2022 - Post Impressionist Haydock - 3rd of 10 (6/1) | Haldane Fisher Handicap |
| 2021 - Surrey Gold Newbury - 6th of 12 (3/1) | Dubai Duty Free Handicap |
| 2020 - Prince Alex Haydock - 1st of 8 (3/1) | Watch Racing Replays At racingtv.com Handicap |
| 2019 - Hamish York - 1st of 12 (7/1) | Melrose Heritage Handicap |
| 2018 - Elegiac Haydock - 2nd of 8 (5/2) | McCaffrey Mortgages Ten Year Anniversary Handicap |
| 2017 - Brimham Rocks Hamilton - 2nd of 11 (7/2) | Lanark Silver Bell |
| 2016 - Calvinist Sandown - 6th of 8 (12/1) | Molson Coors Handicap |
Article Contributor Information
We are fortunate to have an excellent team of specialists and experts at OLBG. Contributing to the creation and maintenance of this Finale 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
Expert Guide
Andy Powell
Expert Guide
