Sky Bet Sunday Series

The Sky Bet Sunday Series is returning for a sixth year and welcomes a new charity partner in Young Lives vs Cancer.

The ever-popular Series is a strategic collaboration between Flutter, RMG, ITV, HorsePWR and the host racecourses and has now delivered nearly £5m in additional prizemoney since its launch in 2021.

As always, there will be a host of prizes on offer, including £100,000 to the connections of the first horse to win three races across the Series.

The bonus was won last year by Spring Is Sprung, whose trainer Paul Midgley said: “It was a huge thrill for Spring Is Sprung to win the £100,000 Sky Bet Sunday Series bonus, and wonderful for owner John Blackburn. The series offers excellent prizemoney and bonuses across and is pitched at a certain grade of horse, who otherwise wouldn’t be in a position to win their owners this level of prizemoney.

“There are very generous incentives for the participants, especially stable staff and jockeys, and we’ll definitely be considering another crack at it this year. Huge thanks to Sky Bet, Racecourse Media Group and ITV for supporting the series.”

The Series is being run in association with HorsePWR, British racing’s hub dedicated to the Thoroughbred racehorse, and will be supporting Young Lives vs Cancer – the only charity in the UK with specialist social workers who provide tailored support to children and young people with cancer, and their families. 

Rachel Kirby-Rider, Chief Executive at Young Lives vs Cancer, said: “We are so pleased Young Lives vs Cancer has been chosen as part of this year’s Sky Bet Sunday Series. We rely on generous donations to support children and young people with cancer and their families. The money raised will help fund our specialist social workers who provide day to day support and our Homes from Home across the UK, which offer a free place to stay nearby the hospital.”

Gabi Whitfield, Head of Welfare Communications, Great British Racing said: “It’s so important for British racing to be sharing the work it does to ensure world-class welfare standards for its horses both on and off the racecourse. The Sky Bet Sunday Series partnership gives the sport’s HorsePWR campaign a national TV platform, and access to a fantastic broadcast team, to help bring these stories and facts to life.” 

Jockeys and their agents will no doubt again be targeting the Series, and the inaugural Jockeys’ Cup and a £25,000 first prize for the jockey who picks up most points across the Series, with £5,000 on offer for second, and £3,000 for third.

Stable Staff will have the opportunity to win cash prizes, with a total of £15,000 (£10k, £3k, £2k) to be paid out to the stable staff of the first three trainers in the Series. In addition, Sky Bet will once again kindly sponsor and offer £250 for the Best Turned Out in each race.

Michael Shinners, Sky Bet Head of Sports PR, said: “We’re delighted to be once again sponsoring the Sunday Series. It’s a great opportunity for some of the smaller yards to be racing on terrestrial TV, for excellent prize money. We’re keen to recognise the stable staff and the work they put in and hopefully that is reflected in the Best Turned Out awards. Finally, it’s great that we can donate one of our races to Young Lives vs Cancer who are Sky Bet’s chosen charity this year”.

OPENED: 1816, East Lothian, 5m east of Edinburgh.

LAYOUT: 1m2f right-handed oval with tight top bend, 4f run-in, 5f straight course.

BIGGEST FLAT RACE: Goliath Cup (Listed), 1m6f, first running in 2026.

DID YOU KNOW? The centre of the track houses a nine-hole golf course. Legend has it that Mary, Queen of Scots, played a round there in 1567, as did King James VI of Scotland, later James I of England.

TRAINER/JOCKEY TO FOLLOW: Iain Jardine (+41.12) and Karl Burke (+22.48) have been the £1 punters’ friend since 2021, along with Andrew Mullen (+13.08) and Callum Rodriguez (+10.96).

OPENED: 1907, 3m south of Prestwick, 48m south-west of Glasgow.

LAYOUT: 1m4f right-handed, galloping oval, 4f run-in, wide 6f straight course.

BIGGEST FLAT RACE: Ayr Gold Cup, 6f, first run in 1804 at Bellisle.

DID YOU KNOW? Roman Warrior was the last Scottish-trained Ayr Gold Cup winner, carrying a record 10st to victory in 1975. A restaurant at the track is named in his honour.

TRAINER/JOCKEY TO FOLLOW: Adrian Keatley (+17.83) and Katie Scott (+68.20) have put their supporters in the black over the last five years, as have Billy Garritty (+17.83) and Lauren Young (+16.85).

OPENED: 1926, 13m south-east of Glasgow.

LAYOUT: Right-handed undulating loop with stiff uphill finish, 6f straight course.

BIGGEST RACE: Lanark Silver Bell Handicap, 1m4f, first run c.1628 at Lanark.

DID YOU KNOW? Britain’s first evening meeting took place at Hamilton Park on Friday 18th July 1947 and was attended by King George VI and Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret.

TRAINER/JOCKEY TO FOLLOW: It has paid to back Kevin Ryan (+50.41) and Karl Burke (+33.50), Shane Gray (+ 192.75) has knocked it out of the park and Kaiya Fraser (+17.67) has also turned a profit.

OPENED: 1855, 24m north-west of York.

LAYOUT: 1m2f left-handed, predominantly flat oval, 4f run-in, 6f straight course.

BIGGEST RACE: Thirsk Hunt Cup, 1m, first run in 1859.

DID YOU KNOW? Vet Alf Wright, who wrote the novels If Only They Could Talk, It Shouldn’t Happen To A Vet and All Creatures Great And Small under the nom de plume James Herriot, practised in Thirsk and occasionally worked at the racecourse.

TRAINER/JOCKEY TO FOLLOW: Archie Watson (+26.22) and Julie Camacho (+11.25) have yielded health dividends, in company with Paul Mulrennan (+41.40) and Pierre-Louis Jamin (+24.83).

OPENED: 1801, 1m north-west of Pontefract, 11m south-east of Leeds

LAYOUT: 2m½f left-handed undulating oval, with an uphill climb from 3f out, 2f run-in

BIGGEST RACE: Flying Fillies’ Stakes (Listed), 6f, first run in 1998

DID YOU KNOW? The first race at Pontefract’s afternoon fixtures began at 2.45pm - the delayed start allowed miners to attend the meeting after their shifts – until the closure of the Prince Of Wales Colliery in 2002.

TRAINER/JOCKEY TO FOLLOW: It pays to stick with trainers Paul Midgley (+40.00) and George Boughey (+26.54), and followers of Callum Rodriguez (+11.99) and Connor Beasley (+20.33) are also in front.