Newmarket Racecourse, often referred to simply as “Headquarters”, is situated in Suffolk, East Anglia on the border with Cambridgeshire. The racecourse complex is actually home to two of the premier courses in the country, the Rowley Mile Course – named after its early patron, Charles II, popularly known as “Old Rowley” – and the July Course. Between them, the Newmarket racecourses play host to 36 Flat fixtures between April and early November, including the Guineas Festival in early May.
Course Characteristics
The Rowley Mile Course is a right-handed, galloping L-shape, two and a half miles long with a mile and a quarter home straight. From the two and a quarter mile start, the course falls until just before the turn in the home straight, where it rises sharply. The final two furlongs run downhill and then uphill, forming the Dip, which requires balance and stamina.
The July Course is similar in characteristics to the Rowley Mile and, in fact, shares it first mile and a furlong with the Rowley Mile Course. The final mile, known as the Bunbury Mile, also features an uphill final furlong, so the emphasis is, once again, on stamina.
Track Facts
Newmarket stages a quarter of the Group 1 races on the British Flat racing calendar.
The Guineas Festival, featuring the first two Classics of the season, the 2,000 Guineas and the 1,000 Guineas, takes place on the Rowley Mile on the first weekend in May each year.
The longest priced winner of the 2,000 Guineas was Rockavon (66/1) in 1961. The longest priced winner of the 1,000 Guineas was Billesdon Brook (66/1), although Jacqueline Quest (66/1) passed the post first in 2010 before being disqualified.
The Derby, the Oaks and the St. Leger were run at Newmarket during World War I and World War II.