After being delayed by a year due to the coronavirus pandemic, the inaugural Racing League is finally underway, and it certainly hasn’t disappointed so far! Formed to give the sport of horse racing a new lease of life, the Racing League, which lasts for six weeks, is made up of 12 teams, 36 races (spread across six meetings), and boasts over £2 million in prize money.
Race Day Two recently took place, and with the league table starting to take shape after the first two meetings, let’s dive straight into the action from Doncaster Racecourse. Read on to find out more!
Racing League R7 (Handicap) – 5f
Apprentice jockey Saffie Osborne gave Team Swish a victory in the saddle of Tenaya Canyon in the first race of the night. 9/2 in the horse race betting, the Ed Walker-trained horse took the lead in the final furlong and pushed on well to hold off Copper Knight by three quarters of a length. Legendary jockey Frankie Dettori, who was making his Racing League debut, was back in third on Autumn Night — just a length and a half behind the winner.
Racing League R8 (Handicap) – 6f
After a surprisingly disappointing meeting at Newcastle, Team Ireland landed a much-needed victory in the second race of the night at Doncaster. Trained by Joseph O’Brien, Night Of Romance was the 7/2 favourite heading into the six-furlong race, and the luck of the Irish was certainly on her side, as she duly delivered on her status of market leader. It wasn’t until the final 110 yards that the three-year-old filly edged into the lead, but better late than never, as she beat Mark’s Bear over the line by half a length. Akkeringa was narrowly behind in third.
Racing League R9 (Handicap) – 7f
After being denied by half a length in the previous race, Team BullionVault secured their first victory of the night in the third outing. Foxtrot Sizzler was the 3/1 favourite and heavily backed by the punters in the horse racing tips, and he didn’t disappoint — beating Global Acclaim and Osborne over the line by a length. Team Racehorse Lotto, who are currently at the top of the table, had to settle for third again, with Revolutionise coming home almost two lengths behind the leader.
Racing League R10 (Handicap) – 1m
There was an exciting finish to the fourth race of the night. With little to separate the front runners, Bake, who beat Tahitian Prince over the line by a shorthead, landed Team ODDSbible their first Racing League victory. The three-year-old, ridden by Martin Dwyer, took the lead inside the final furlong and did extremely well to hold off the challenge of Team Thoroughbred’s horse, whilst Dalanijujo also applied some late pressure, finishing just a neck behind the winner.
Racing League R11 (Handicap) – 1m2f
It turned out to be a night to remember for the ODDSbible team, as joint-favourite Corbulo landed a victory in the penultimate race of the meeting. Dwyer was again donning the unmistakeable yellow silks in the saddle of the three-year-old, and despite drifting left inside the final furlong, he was able to push Corbulo on for a half-a-length victory over HMS President of Remulate Racing, who are currently sitting second-last in the table. Fierospeed came home in third.
Racing League R12 (Handicap) – 1m4f
Team Ireland were back in the winner’s enclosure, as Moon Daisy proved why she was deemed the favourite in the last race of the night. This time trained by Donnacha O’Brien, the brother of fellow Team Ireland trainer Joseph, it wasn’t the best of runs from the bay filly, as she was pushed along by jockey Kieran O’Neill two furlongs out. However, she was quick to get back in the race, and there was enough track left to ensure that Moon Daisy got over the line by a head. Vindolanda was in second, whilst there were more points on the board for Team ODDSbible, as Amir Kabir stormed home in third.
Current standings
- Team Racehorse Lotto – 122
- Team BullionVault – 119
- Team ODDSbible – 115
- Team talkSPORT – 108
- Team ThoroughBid – 108
- Team Swish – 108
- Newmarket Red – 107
- Team Ireland – 106
- eToro Racing – 99
- Goat Racing – 89
- Remulate Racing – 60
- Team Arena – 59
