Chester Races Today – Get Chester Tips from the Roodee
It’s a verifiable fact that Chester races today are the oldest in England. Located on the Roodee close to the River Dee and a viaduct spanning over the traditional border with Wales, this track has its place in the history of this great sport.
Our complete guide to Chester Racecourse in the county town of Cheshire talks about all the big races held here. It has a major role in shaping the betting on Classics like The Derby and The Oaks in the spring. Punters should bear this in mind when looking at Chester tips for the May Festival.
History of Chester Racecourse
A quick flick through the Guinness Book of Records shows Chester as the oldest racetrack still in operation today. Officially verified as continuously hosting meetings since 1539, other sources suggest the Roodee did it before that dating back even earlier into the reign of King Henry VIII.
Up until the early 1600s, the big meeting at Chester took place on Shrove Tuesday. It was then that a fixture on St George’s Day took prominence. From 1745, this became a four-day meeting with the May Festival introduced 21 years later.
During the Regency Period but before the Victorian era began, the Dee Stakes and Chester Cup (run initially as the Tradesmen’s Cup) had their inaugural editions in 1813 and 1824 respectively. Other notable Chester races today developed over subsequent decades, but it has always had one standout fixture above all others.
The Chester Vase dates back to the Edwardian Age in 1907. As for the Ormonde Stakes, that was first run in its current guise in 1936 and the Cheshire Oaks in 1950 – either side of the Second World War. The Huxley Stakes looks very modern by comparison after its inauguration in 1999.
Is Chester Races Today Flat or Jumps?
It is Flat racing only at Chester Racecourse. This is because of the limited space and small size of the track. The course is incredibly tight and sharp with a full circuit of this racing venue little more than a mile round.
This means the track doesn’t suit galloping types as runners constantly find themselves on the turn. A short run-in on this flat, left-handed course makes for exciting horse racing action, though. The Roodee lies 20 miles to north of Bangor-on-Dee Racecourse, the nearest track and closer than Aintree or Haydock Park.
Those considering and giving Chester tips today must remember that frontrunners always have a good record at the track. It is difficult to make up ground from the back, even in testing conditions, because it plays to the strengths of nimbler horses who can slip the field turning for home, rather than those with long strides.
Key Chester Races Fixtures
With 15 race days at the track in total from May to September, the Roodee plays its part throughout the Flat season. One three-day fixture stands out above all others at Chester races today, though.
That is the May Festival held on the Wednesday, Thursday and Friday after the Guineas Weekend at Newmarket. Scheduled horse races during this meeting include a few trials for The Oaks and The Derby held at Epsom in early June.
These are middle-distance races restricted to three-year-olds like the fillies only Cheshire Oaks, Dee Stakes and Chester Vase. Events for older horses feature at the May Festival too like the Ormonde Stakes and Huxley Stakes. Both are pattern races with Group status.
Two-day fixtures in June and July at Chester Racecourse aren’t as significant, but the Autumn Festival on the Friday and Saturday in mid-September while the St Leger Festival happens at Doncaster is interesting. The Stand Cup with Listed status and Watergate Cup, second only among Chester handicaps to the Chester Cup itself, take place then.
The Biggest Races We Give Chester Tips On
Many of the most valuable races at Chester today are naturally during the May Festival. In 2024, some 17 events had first place prize money of over £25,000 on the Roodee. Some are brand new editions to the programme and others historical races. Let’s take a look at the biggest of those as these are contests that tipsters concentrate their Chester racing tips on.
Chester Cup
A Heritage Handicap dating back almost 200 years and worth over £86,500 to the winner. Chester Cup tips are one of the first things punters want from the May Festival. Held on the third and final day of the meeting, this extended two and a quarter mile handicap for four-year-olds and up is all about stamina. There is also a consolation race, the Chester Plate Handicap, for those who don’t make the cut.
Legendary Flat stayers like Leamington and Brown Jack appear on the roll of honour, alongside prolific hurdler Sea Pigeon. The Chester Cup produced an Ascot Gold Cup winner in the same year back in 2015 when Trip To Paris completed a famous Roodee and Royal meeting double. Any ante post tips for Chester races today will concentrate on the track’s centrepiece event.
Chester Vase
One of the Classic Trials over an extended mile-and-a-half and only open to three-year-old male horses since 1959. The Chester Vase dates back half-a-century earlier than that, though, and had first place prize money of almost £78,500 in 2024. Its roll of honour includes Hyperion, Windsor Lad, Supreme Court, Indiana, Shergar and Old Vic.
In time, many of its legendary winners also went on to staying successes in the St Leger later that same season, so don’t just think about The Derby in relation to this race. The Chester Vase has Group 3 status today. When Chester horse racing tips come out for this race, the hope is to find a Classic winner, but it might not be at Epsom with the French and Irish Derbies also providing subsequent victories.
Ormonde Stakes
Named after the 1886 Triple Crown winner, the Ormonde Stakes as we know it today is quite different from a forerunner over five furlongs for two-year-olds. Inaugurated in the mid-1930s at a mile and five furlongs, it was initially open to three-year-olds and up.
After briefly becoming a Classic Trial and cut in distance to an extended mile and a quarter in the mid-1950s, the Ormonde Stakes then reverted to its traditional trip and became restricted to older horses only. It has Group 3 status.
Worth almost £78,500 to the winner in 2024, the roll of honour includes Tulyar, Indiana, Saddlers’ Hall, Daliapour, Ask, Harbinger and St Nicholas Abbey. Those providing Chester races today tips on the Ormonde may have one eye on Group 1 races down the line like the Coronation Cup at Epsom and King George at Ascot.
Huxley Stakes
Initially a Listed race, the Huxley Stakes open to older horses over an extended mile and a quarter became a Group 3 in 2005. Upgraded again in 2018 to Group 2 status, Noble Mission is its most notable winner. First place came with almost £73,000 in prize money in 2024, while those providing Chester tips should consider horses trained by Richard Fahey, John Gosden or Aidan O’Brien.
Cheshire Oaks
Another of the Classic Trials, but restricted to three-year-old fillies. The Cheshire Oaks became a Group 3 some 20 years after its inauguration. but in the mid-1980s dropped to Listed level. Now run over an extended one mile and three furlongs after a previous mile and a half distance, the winner received over £67,000 in 2024.
Wonder-mare Enable is by far the most famous horse to land this, going on to 11 Group 1 victories for the John Gosden stable. Before following any Chester races tips on the Cheshire Oaks, punters should remember O’Brien has eight wins in the race including five since 2015.
Dee Stakes
Dating back even further than the Chester Cup, the Dee Stakes was first run during the Napoleonic Wars and initially open to both colts and fillies. It became a male horses only Classic Trial later and had its distance cut to an extended mile and a quarter from a mile and a half in 1958.
Throughout its modern history, the Dee Stakes has flittered between Group 3 and Listed status with Sir Harry Lewis, Oath, Kris Kin and Circus Maximus all notables on the roll of honour in recent decades. First prize for winning this in 2024 came with £56,000 in prize money. As with many other Chester races today, O’Brien has farmed the Dee Stakes with 11 victories in total and nine since 2012.
Watergate Cup
The other really valuable Chester handicap for stayers on the Roodee is the Watergate Cup. Held in September over about two miles during the track’s Autumn Festival, it came with almost £51,000 in prize money for winning it in 2024. When it comes to Chester tips on the Watergate Cup, which used to be over the Chester Cup course and distance, stamina is essential in any recommended bets.
Other Listed Events at Chester Races Today
There are four more Listed races on the Roodee outside of the May Festival each season. While these lack the prize money attached to contests at that meeting, each are worthy of Chester races tips today from experts. These are the remaining Listed events at the track:
- City Plate Stakes (July)
- Queensferry Stakes (July / August)
- Chester Stakes (August / September)
- Stand Cup (September)
FAQs
Is Chester races on today?
Chester hosts race meetings on the Roodee from early May until the end of September. There are 15 individual Chester Racecourse fixtures across those five months.
Where is Chester Racecourse?
Also called the Roodee, the racetrack at Chester is within the actual city close to the River Dee. Its postal address is The Racecourse, Chester, CH1 2LY.
What time is the last race at Chester races today?
This depends on the time of the year and whether the meeting is an evening one. The last race during the May Festival at Chester each day is usually around 4:45pm.
Where can I find tips and Chester races results today?
We have Chester race tips right here on this very site. AI and computer algorithms with all relevant data fed into them creates them. You can also view Chester races today results in full, as well as fast horse racing results, elsewhere on RacingTipster.com.
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