Bet On The Epsom Derby – The Epitome Of Flat Racing

It’s time to bet on the Epsom Derby again this weekend as the richest event on the UK racing calendar, dating back to a rather good party held by the 12th Early of Derby some two hundred and thirty six years ago, becomes the focus of everyone who likes to bet on horse racing in the UK, but who should you be backing?

Bet On The Epsom Derby

• Richest horse race in the UK
• 236 years old
• Betfair has all the odds

Run over one mile, four furlongs and ten yards this classic race is one of the showpieces of the racing calendar attracting massive crowds and a good sized field of three-year olds, But who should you be backing if you want to bet on the Epsom Derby this weekend? We take a look at the field and eschew the traditional forecasting staples such as the form of the horses, the experience of the rider or the conditions on the course and will instead focus on a more important factor; the horses’ names.

We’ll start from the back and that means looking at what Betfair has down as a 100/1 longshot, the rather unfortunately named Biodynamic, which sounds like a company that makes overly technical industrial sewage systems. A bet on the Epsom Derby has always lent itself to the speculative flutter of the occasional gambler, but whilst an each-way bet might be acceptable, anything on the nose would be flushing your money away.

Beacon Rock might not attract many punters at Betfair sharing 33/1 odds with the next horse Bravery which pretty much captions any image taken of someone placing a bet on the Epsom Derby in which they say it’ll win. Neither is likely to place frankly and nor is the other 33/1 shot Algometer, which is a machine for checking pressure, but sounds like it measures how much green scum has accumulated on the surface of the village pond.

Try A Long Shot Bet On The Epsom Derby

Betfair then give a gaggle of horses 25/1 odds making them perfect if you want to put an each-way bet on the Epsom Derby. The name Humphrey Bogart doesn’t really evoke images of speed, but you never know, and Red Verdon sounds like it should be flying a World War One fighter plane, and to round out this trio of horses there’s Across The Stars which, given what stars actually are, just sounds like a bizarre intergalactic barbeque at which the French are doing the cooking.

Idaho may be a fair bet on the Epsom Derby for the canny gambler and at 20/1 that would pay off, as would a wager on Shogun that might bring some eastern promise to proceedings although I’m gambling news of Harzand getting 20/1 from Betfair might just tempt a few of the less eager out of the woodwork. Those are good odds and there’s never a shortage of surprises when they’re running, and a famous victory could leave your bankroll substantially increased.

Now we’re moving into the tricky area of far shorter odds, with Port Douglas getting 12/1 at Betfair despite sounding like a fat man that lists to the left, and Massaat shares those odds despite its name being a manifestly obvious typo no one has been ballsy enough to correct. Rather surprisingly Moonlight Magic is also getting 12/1 which makes that perhaps the most attractive bet on the Epsom Derby so far, and possibly where my own stake will go.

Richest Race In The UK Run This Weekend

Deauville (a town of water?) garners a rather nice 10/1 and if you’re thinking about a bet on the Epsom Derby there could be worse ways to go, especially if you factor in an each-way will still get you 5/2 at Betfair, and if you’re going to take advantage of UK gambling laws this weekend to have a little flutter that you’d not otherwise bother with that could well be the best place for you to plonk your hard earned down before this grand old tradition gets underway.

At the head of the field Ulysses gets 7/1 from Betfair and we’ll have to see how that quest for victory pans out, whilst Cloth Of Stars is loitering around at 13/2 which is tempting to say the least, but there are two horses on which everyone has their eye just ahead of it, and there will be more than a few who bet on the Epsom Derby this weekend backing either Wings Of Desire or US Army Ranger the favorites in this year’s race at just 7/2 the pair.

Whichever takes your fancy (and I myself nudge you towards Moonlight Magic to win and Harzand to place) a bet on the Epsom Derby is a tradition going back hundreds of years and this weekend you too can be part of this mega event born out of an 18th Century party so head on over to Betfair and put your money where the horse’s mouth is.