Horse racing terms explained
Just like with football, cricket, or golf, horse racing has a whole language of its own. Whether it’s when reading a tipping column or race preview or watching the action live on TV or streaming with a full race preview and live commentary, plenty of horse racing terms will be mentioned that you won’t often hear in everyday life.
So that’s why we’ve put together this LeoVegas horse racing glossary, packed with crucial horse racing terminology that should mean you won’t be left wondering ‘Now, what exactly does that mean?’ ever again.
So, jump into the saddle and we’ll talk you through it all.
Horse-related terminology
Black- Easy one to begin with. A horse that is black in colour all around, except for a white marking on its head or lower legs.
**Bleeder- A horse with a tendency to break blood vessels during a race.
**Colt- A male horse below the age of five that hasn’t been gelded (castrated).
**Chaser- A horse that competes in steeplechase races.
**Chestnut- A horse whose colour is either washy yellow, dark orange, or certain shades of red.
**Dam- A horse’s mother.
**Damsire- This is the father of the dam of the horse in question. Or to put it another way, the horse’s maternal grandfather.
**Entire horse- An ungelded/uncastrated horse.
**Foal- A horse from birth to January 1 of the following year. When it reaches that stage, it stops being a foal and becomes a yearling.
**Filly- A horse who is female and less than four years old.
**Gelding- A male horse that has been castrated. Almost all male horses that compete over jumps have been castrated, as have some flat horses, too.
**Green- Not in colour(!) but rather a horse who is inexperienced or immature and therefore hasn’t raced much up to that point.
**Half-brother/sister- This is only the case when two horses share the same mother (dam). Horses are not half-siblings when they only share the same father.
**Hurdler- A horse that races over hurdles. Hurdles are lighter and lower than fences so there’s less chance of the horse falling at them and/or being severely injured.
**Juvenile- A two-year-old horse.
**Juvenile Hurdler- A horse that runs over hurdles and will turn four during the season when they begin hurdling.
**Maiden- A horse who has yet to win a professional race of any description. There are specific races where only such horses are allowed to enter, unsurprisingly known as ‘maiden races’. In some cases, a horse has very recently won a race.
**Mare- A female horse aged five or older.
**Novice- A horse who has already won (and therefore isn’t a maiden) but who is still starting out its career.
**Pacemaker- Rather like in middle and long-distance running in athletics, a pacemaker’s goal as a horse isn’t to win the race, but rather to set a suitable pace for another more-fancied horse, with the same connections, to benefit from the pace.
**Stallion- A male breeding horse.
Did you know? One of the most famous flat racehorses in history was the Irish-bred and British-trained Shergar, who was famously kidnapped on February 8, 1983, with a big ransom demanded. At the time Shergar, who had won both the Irish and Epsom Derby in 1981 was the most sought-after stallion in the world. In 1982 at the Ballymany Stud in Ireland, he covered 44 mares, producing 17 colts and 19 fillies. Three of them went on to win Group Races and just before being kidnapped, Shergar was set to cover 55 mares for a total fee of around £1 million for the season. Shergar was never returned or found, with the Irish Republican Army (IRA) generally seen as responsible for the kidnapping.
**Sprinter- A horse that runs over the shortest distances- five and six furlongs- on the flat.
**Stayer- A horse suited to running longer distances on the flat, which generally means two miles and further.
**Staying Chaser- A horse who races over fences at distances of three miles or more.
**String- All the horses belonging to a particular stable.
**Sire- The father of a horse.
**Thoroughbred- A breed of horse used for the purposes of horse racing.
**Yearling- A foal from January 1 to December 31 of the year after its birth.
Jockeys & trainers-related terminology
So that’s the star of the show, the horse, covered in terms of the key horse racing terms relating to it. Let’s move on to horse racing terms explained that apply to the trainer who gets it in tip-top shape, and the jockey who attempts to guide it to glory.
Amateur- A jockey who isn’t professional, so doesn’t get paid a fee to ride. On a race card, amateur jockeys will have the prefix Mr, Mrs, or Miss. Some races only allow amateur jockeys to take part.
Did you know? Sam Waley-Cohen won both the Cheltenham Gold Cup and the Grand National in 2011) as an amateur jockey on Long Run (7/2) and Noble Yeats (50/1) respectively. He was the first amateur in 30 years to win the Gold Cup and the first amateur to win the Grand National since 1990. His win on Noble Yeats at Aintree was his last race as a jockey.
Apprentice-- A flat Jockey aged 16-25 who is connected to the stable of a licensed trainer before becoming a full professional. They’re given a weight allowance when competing against pro jockeys and can compete for the annual Apprentice title given to who wins the most races that season as an Apprentice.
**Colours- **Jockeys wear a silk jacket when racing and the colour of it is unique to a particular owner, which has to be registered at Weatherbys. The colours are to identify the jockey/horse on race cards and during the actual race.
Conditional jockey- A jump jockey under the age of 26 who is given a weight allowance until riding a specific number of winners.
Claimer- An apprentice Flat jockey.
Go through the card- When a trainer, jockey, or tipster picks the winner in every race at a race meeting.
Stick- The whip the jockey uses to make the horse go faster, is generally only used in the final stages of the race.
Trainer- The person who looks after a horse, prepares it for racing, and deals with its diet and general health. All trainers must apply and hold a license or permit to work in the industry in that capacity.
Weights- Lead put in a weight cloth; the total weight should equal the weight allotted to the jockey’s horse in a race.
Race-related terminology
Next on our list of horse racing terminology are the terms relating to the race itself, or particular aspects of it.
All-weather- An artificial surface used for flat racing that is either fibres and Polytrack or Tapeta and allows for racing on it all year round, because it’s not sensitive to rain.
**Bumper-**Also known as the National Hunt Flat race, it’s exactly that- a flat race – but run under Jump Rules, to prepare young horses for hurdles or fences.
Conditions Race-8 A race in which horses are given extra weight; this is dependent on age, sex, and success in previous races. The level of these races is just below Group or Listed level.
Claimer- Each horse’s weight is determined by how valued they are by its owners; the less they’re valued, the less weight they carry. Any horse can be ‘claimed’ (bought) at the established price at the end of the race.
Draw- Used in flat races only, it’s the stall the horse will come out of when the race begins. In most cases, the stall a horse is put in is drawn at random.
Flat racing- Racing without any jumping. The minimum distance is five furlongs and the maximum is 2 miles six furlongs. Either run on turf or all-weather.
**Field-**The number of horses taking part in that race. When talking about betting, the field is every horse bar the favourite.
Group/Graded races- Group races are run on the flat and graded races over jumps. They’re the top level of racing in each case with Group/Grade 1 being the highest of all.
Going- The condition of the surface itself. Among others, it can be: heavy, firm, soft, good, or good to soft.
Handicap- Every horse is given a handicap rating by the BHA Handicappers (e.g., A rating of 95). In handicap races, horses are then allotted weight according to their rating, the idea being that they all have an equal chance of winning as a result of the weights.
Hurdles- The obstacles that horses need to hump over are smaller than fences. Most horses who go on to jump over fences have a couple of seasons of hurdling before moving on to the tougher fences.
**Home straight- The straight track at the end of the race to the finish line, just after the final bend.
Left-handed track/right-handed track- At left-handed tracks, horses run anti-clockwise.
Maiden handicap- A race open to maidens, aged three or older, who have run at least four times before and have a rating of 70 or less.
Minimum trip- The shortest distance a race can be: five furlongs on the flat, two miles over jumps.
Novice stakes- A race open to two types of horse: any two-year-olds, or alternatively, three-year-olds who have not won more than twice.
National Hunt- Another name for jump racing, raced over hurdles or fences.
Staying races- Flat races run over two miles or more.
Trip- The distance of the race.
Best of the rest
So that covers a lot of the key horse racing terminology you’re likely to come across in those three categories but there are a few more, including a couple of horse racing terms for betting.
Antepost- Ahead of the biggest races such as the Grand National or The Derby, bookmakers accept bets on these races as much as a year in advance. This leads to punters getting far bigger odds on most horses than on the day of the race. But the flip side is that if the horse doesn’t take part in the race for whatever reason, your bet will lose rather than be refunded. Antepost bets can be placed until the final declaration of the race.
Bumping- When a horse collides with another in a situation that affects the result of the race. When this happens, it can result in a…
**Steward’s Inquiry-**When the track’s stewards (officials) look back at video footage, generally of the closing stages of the race, which can lead to the horse at fault being disqualified.
Blinkers/Blinds- A form of headgear made up of a hood with cups around the horse’s eyes; it’s used to limit how much a horse can see around it, which can help with its concentration.
Boxed in- A horse that cannot accelerate and overtake others because it’s blocked by other horses in its path.
Backed in When a lot of punters are betting on that horse, resulting in the bookmaker shortening the odds on it through sheer weight of money.
Banker/Nap- A banker is a horse who is expected to win and is generally a short odds-on favourite; also the strongest selection in a multiple. A nap is somewhat similar but refers to a tipster’s top bet for that particular day.
Connections- The people associated with a particular horse, starting with the owner and trainer, but also their associates.
Tic-Tac- The sign language used by bookmakers at racetracks to communicate the latest odds and any changes to them.
**Betting Ring-**The area of the track where bookmakers operate.
Clerk of the Course- The most important member of staff at a track, responsible for the clerks and Judge, as well as for preparing the racing surface.
Drifter- The opposite of a horse being ‘backed in’. In this case, there’s no money coming in for it, so its odds have drifted.
**Dead heat-**Two horses finishing together, resulting in both being winners and bets being paid out on both of them at half the odds.
Deductions- If a horse withdraws from the race after the betting on the race has opened, deductions are taken out of the win and place markets, proportional to the odds of the removed horse.
Form- How well the horse has performed throughout its career based on its results.
Going down- When horses make their way to the stalls in preparation for the start.
Handicapper- The expert official employed by the BHA (British Horseracing Authority) to give a rating to any horse who has qualified for a handicap race, as well as allotting the weight a horse should carry ahead of a handicap race.
Out of the money- A bit like with poker, fishing outside the positions that pay money.
**Pulled up- A horse who the jockey stops during the race, either through injury, or because it’s too far off the pace.
Unfancied- A horse available at big odds who isn’t getting any market support.