It was a long wait for horse racing fans, but the sport finally got back underway on Monday afternoon. Horse racing became the first professional sport to return in the United Kingdom. Action on the track had been suspended since the 17th March, with the last newsworthy meeting coming at the Cheltenham Festival. The outbreak of the coronavirus meant that the Grand National was cancelled, and the jumps season was over.
However, racing returned with a bang on Monday afternoon on the all weather track at Newcastle. Of course, it was slightly different from the typical meeting, with no fans in attendance for the days racing. That will be a trend that will be staying in racing for the next couple of months, with all meetings taking place behind closed doors.
Biggest Winners As Horse Racing In The United Kingdom Returned
While fans would have been disappointed that they were unable to attend the meeting, they could have still watched all the action on the leading horse racing betting sites. There were a number of big winners throughout the day, with the first winner being the biggest at Newcastle. Zodiakos won the Betway Welcome Back British Racing Handicap with James Sullivan onboard. The Roger Fell trained horse won from a huge price of 22/1, while Al Ozzdi and The Big House finishing second and third respectively.
Little Jo won the second race of the day, as the six-year-old managed to hold off Saisons D’Or and Defence Treaty. The shortest price winner of the day came in the Betway Novice Stakes, as Art Power won convincingly at 5/4. He managed to finish a huge distance ahead of Electric Mistress and Twist of Hay. Frankly Darling was another short priced winner on the day, as he came in at 10/11. Thibaan and Rocket Rod finished second and third respectively in the Betway Maiden Stakes.
Racing Action Continues Today
The racing action in the United Kingdom continues today with two meetings on all-weather tracks. There is another blockbuster day of racing at Newcastle, with ten more races for gamblers to look forward to. The Betway Casino Handicap could be the most exciting of the races today, with very little separating Custodian and Jean Baptiste. The preference could instead be for Canagat, who was extremely exciting to watch last year.
There will also be a lot of attention on the Betway/ British Stallion Studs EBF Maiden Stakes. Lockdown runs in that race, with many gamblers likely to be sticking a bit of money on the Hugo Palmer trained horse given the current climate. As well as racing from Newcastle, there are also nine live races coming from Kempton on Tuesday afternoon. The Unibet Handicap at 14:10 could be one of the most popular races, with a lot of gamblers looking at Grandfather Tom. However, the preference could instead be for Amplify, who has won harder races against better competition in the past.
