JOHN SHINES ON FOR LONG AFTER MIDNIGHT: Nick Townsend talks to irrepressible saddle legend John Francome

By any estimation, John Francombe boasts an extraordinary body of work: a seven-times champion national hunt jockey; for 27 years a...

FLY IN THE OINTMENT: Graham Buddry recalls how brilliant Solwhit beat the odds to shine bright

In the presence of legendary supremacy other brilliance can be easily overlooked until a change of course allows the lesser of...

GREAT SPOT BUT HALDON TO HATS: Simon Nott brings us the bookmaking gossip from a damp day at Exeter

It must have been a day like today and not when there’s freezing horizonal rain that some forward thinking soul back...

IF SHERLOCK HAD BEEN A TIPSTER: Rolf Johnson blasts ‘after thinkers’ – but sees the logic in Daryz Arc glory

Sherlock Holmes didn’t do ‘after timing’: the world’s most famous detective was always ahead of the game; the police plodded on....

READERS’ LETTERS

Please keep your letters coming -write to: Readers’ Letters, Racing Ahead, Tuition House, St George’s Road, Wimbledon, SW19 4EU, or email...

LIFE OUT OF THE SADDLE

Richard Eagle asks where have yesterday’s saddle heroes gone Philip Hide, the clerk of the course, in the Stewards Box at...

SERIOUSLY ALL FOR THE CRAIC: Xander Brett gets taste of Listowel’s fierce passion for fun – and winners

I had no lead-up at Listowel. Stepping off the bus, which had slowly filled with racegoers as it trundled south, I...

LOW DRAW FOR SHOES TO SHINE: Andy Newton on raiders’ best chances in Race That Stops a Nation

As we hot-foot into November, as we all know the Flat action starts to wind down in the UK and the...

MOR MERRIER FOR MULLINS: Karl Hedley jumps in with eyecatchers as Ireland’s new season gets going

The nights are drawing in now and the Flat season across Ireland is in its concluding stages. Attention is now switching...

RACE FOR A BIG RETURN: Andy Newton weighs up the chances of Chasing a comeback at Haydock

As we head into November, despite the Breeders’ Cup in the US and a sprinkling of domestic Flat meetings left –...

JOSH MADE HIS POINT!

Mike Drowne finds top pointer Josh Newman battling for more success Picture: Charlie Giles Josh Newman has been in command of...

JAG-GED EDGE LOOKS SHARP

Paul Ferguson checks out this month’s early-season eye-catchers JAGWAR (FR) ridden by Jonjo O’Neill Jr UNBEATEN in two starts at Cheltenham...

PAUL’S JOY IS A DARK STAR: Paul Nicholls names ten to follow from his top Ditcheat jumping prospects

Paul Nicholls eagerly anticipates big seasons ahead for his stable stars. The top trainer highlights the progress of established aces, including...

RAIN’S A JOY FOR MACHIN: Ben Morgan offers his ‘ten to follow’ across the November track action

Joyeux Machin Given the dry Summer/Autumn that we have had, you would expect there to be an absolute deluge of rain...

Advertise with Racing Ahead in November!

The November 2025 edition of Racing Ahead Magazine is on sale on the 30th of October!

BRED AND BLOODIED: Graham Buddry finds Felix Francis’ latest racing thriller sets pulse racing

Our sport is blessed in a way like no other sport. You would be hard pressed to find an exciting thriller...

EYES FIXED FOR THE LATE SHOW: Robert Cooper focuses on track action with help from his optician

One Monday a month I dedicate a fair chunk of the day to composing this column; you will already be aware...

SAFETY FIRST: Richard Eagle clocks spills as well as thrills as he tours tracks and yards

Rushing down to Windsor for one of their last evening meetings I knew I might miss the first race …. I...

ABLE AND WINNING: Graham Buddry on the career of Arc-conquering superhorse Enable

The Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe is justly considered the premier race in all of Europe and since its inception in...

IT’S ISE UP FOR HAGGAS FILLY: Andy Ayres picks up the pieces when track action is cooling down

KEMPTON August 20 (standard to slow) 1m3f219y novice (Class 4) Impressive winner FINALISE (William Haggas) must be the tallest filly in...

STREETWISE TO TRACK SAVVY: Alan Hurndall recalls dark days and joy in the 1960s betting world

Author and journalist Alan Hurndall grew up in a shadowy world of wheeling, dealing and street punting, loving his trips to...

CLASS AND A LUCKY DRAW: Andy Newton looks for the key factors in winning Europe’s richest race

Europe’s richest Flat race on the turf also takes place this month – as it’s off to France for the Prix...

TRAPPING A WINNER: Francis Fitzgerald offers a basic guide to picking out a top dog at the track

A night at the dogs is fast, loud, exciting and full of adrenaline. Greyhound racing is simple on the face of...

SOFT WEATHER NO DAMPENER: Ben Morgan’s selections for the closing Flat action

Racing Ahead tipster Ben Morgan has ten for the punting notebooks in the closing Flat action. Silvestre De Sousa riding Art...

LOOKING TO THE FUTURE: Young racegoers thriving at Sunderland Stadium

Joanne Wilson, Regional General Manager at Arena Racing Company, discusses how Sunderland Stadium is engaging the next generation via a positive...

ROD BEATS THE ODDS: Nick Townsend meets the west country trainer with a golden touch

In a Flat racing world dominated by the behemoths of Newmarket and Lambourn, almost production lines of black-type talent, it is...

‘LIGHT BRIGADE IN BLACK OUT’: Rolf Johnson fears tax protest has merely added to muddle in funding fight

RACING’S Light Brigade – but is anybody in charge? Unity against tax rises on betting is all very well. But the...

DIAMOND SPARKLES: Ian Heitman sees starlets shining bright in Ireland and at St Leger Festival

Irish Champions Weekend at Leopardstown and the Curragh on September 13/14 once again featured some top-class racing with six Group 1...

WEIGHT FOR THE CHANCE: Andy Newton picks out key stats ahead of Newmarket’s autumn treat

Wow – it’s October folks, which means the new jumps season proper is almost here and it also won’t be long...

NELSON SAILS TO FIRST WIN: Karl Hedley is ready to leap into the Irish jumps season

Summer is now fading fast, and the focus rightly begins to shine on the national hunt season proper in Ireland. I...