Warwick Racecourse, on Hampton Street, Warwick, less than a mile from the town centre, staged its first fixture in 1707. However, the racecourse and its facilities have changed out of all recognition in recent years, with a new six-furlong start, a new grandstand and a new weighing room among a raft of improvements. Warwick Racecourse plays hosts to 21 Flat and National Hunt fixtures throughout the year.
Course Characteristics
The round course at Warwick is a left-handed, sharp oval, a mile and threequarters in circumference with a two-furlong home straight. There is no straight course. The five furlong course has a left-handed elbow at its junction with the round course and races over six and seven furlongs start on the back straight. The five furlong course shows a pronounced bias towards horses draw low, but there appears to be no appreciable bias over six or seven furlongs. Overall, the emphasis is on speed rather than stamina and big, long-striding, galloping types are at a disadvantage.
The National Hunt course is similar in character to the round course. There are ten stiff fences, or six flights of hurdles, per circuit and a run-in of 250 yards. On the steeplechase course, the five fences that come in rapid succession along the back straight present a thorough test of jumping ability.
Track Facts
Jockey Daryll Holland rode his first winner, Sinclair Boy, at Warwick in May 1990.
Tony McCoy beat Sir Gordon Richards’ record of 269 winners in a single season when winning on Valfonic at Warwick in 2002.
The Eternal Stakes, run over 7 furlongs in June, was the first Listed race to be run at Warwick when it was inaugurated in 2003.
The most valuable race on the Warwick calendar is the Classic Chase, currently sponsored by Betfred and run over 3 miles 5 furlongs in January.