Kempton racecourse is situated a relative stone’s throw from Trafalgar Square, 16 miles southwest of the square and in fact is the closest racecourse to London.

Kempton not only has flat racing throughout the calendar on its Polytrack (laid in 2006), but also runs what is considered the second most important steeplechase of the National Hunt calendar with the three mile chase run on Boxing Day each year together with the Grade 1 Christmas Hurdle and the Feltham Novices Chase.

How to get there

The course is located on the A308 between Sunbury on Thames and Hampton Court, and just 1 mile from Junction 1 of the M3 via Junction 12 of the M25.

If visiting by train the racecourse has its own train station actually on site and which is located 200 yards from the north entrance of the course. The trains run every half hour through from London Waterloo on race days, however it is worth noting that the train doesn’t actually run on the biggest race day of the year, Boxing Day.

There are a number of bus routes which pass near the racecourse, but by train or car is the easiest option.

Track Configuration

The National Hunt track is a right handed track and generally flat, unlike the undulating Cheltenham course, and the fences are considered easier too, although the course can be demanding on stamina when the ground is soft/heavy in going. You can view the course here.

The All Weather course is a flat oval made up of two loops. The inner loop being used for the 5f, 9f and 10f races and is a sharp course, with a 2f finishing straight. The outer course is much more sweeping in the turns with an almost 3f straight. You can view the course here.

The Stats

Stats shown cover the period of 1^st January 2017 to the time of writing (15^th October 2022).

Once again, we are using www.horseracebase.com for the stats.

We’ll start with general meeting stats from the last five years. Beginning with the fate of the favourites both clear and joint.

The results below contain 3077 winners from a staggering 30217 runners.

And it will be no surprise that the greater part of those races have been run on the All Weather.

Favourites

Clear, joint and co-favourites have produced the following set of results:

1112 winners from 3246 runners a 34.26% strike rate giving a level stakes loss of 212.61 points

2055 of the runners placed. A 63.31% place strike rate.

Breaking those results down between the National Hunt and All Weather Courses.

It is interesting to see that had you blindly backed the favourites/joint favourites running in National Hunt races you would have actually made a profit.

National Hunt

185 winners from 474 runners, a 39.03% strike rate giving a level stakes profit of 2.50 points.

292 of the runner’s place. A 61.60% place strike rate.

If we break these results down into Handicap and Non-Handicap races gives us:

Non-Handicap – 110 winners from 230 runners, a strike rate of 47.83% giving a level stakes loss of –6.16. A/E 0.99.

159 placed a 69.13% place strike rate.

Handicap – 75 winners from 244 runners, a strike rate of 30.74% giving a level stakes profit of +8.66. A/E 1.06

133 placed a 54.51% place strike rate.

Digging a bit deeper let’s focus on favourites that won their last race.

Favourites that won their last race have produced – 70 winners from 172 runners, a strike rate of 40.70% for a level stakes profit of 3.84 points. A/E 1.01

106 placed a 61.63% place strike rate.

Those favourites who had finished outside the first four on their last start.

Favourites that had finished outside the top four on their last start produced – 48 winners from 117 runners 41.03% and a profit of +6.24 pts to level stakes. A/E 1.07

74 placed, a 63.25% strike rate.

All Weather

927 winners from 2772 runners, a 33.44% strike rate giving a level stakes loss of 215.11 points.

1763 of the runner’s place. A 63.60% place strike rate.

If we break these results down into Handicap and Non-Handicap races gives us:

Non-Handicap – 364 winners from 862 runners, a strike rate of 42.33% giving a level stakes loss of –-74.05 A/E 0.93.

634 placed, a 73.55% place strike rate.

Handicap – 563 winners from 1910 runners, a strike rate of 29.48% giving a level stakes loss of -141.06. A/E 0.94.

1129 placed a 59.11% place strike rate.

Focussing on the favourites that won their last race.

Favourites that won their last race have produced – 293 winners from 790 runners, a strike rate of 37.09% for a level stakes loss of -48.55 points. A/E 0.95

535 placed a 67.72% place strike rate.

Those favourites who had finished outside the first four on their last start.

Favourites that had finished outside the top four on their last start produced – 203 winners from 670 runners 30.30% and a loss of -58.68 pts to level stakes. A/E 0.95

403 placed, a 60.15% strike rate.

You can read the rest of this article in Issue 96 where we cover the success of trainers and favourites, jockeys and favourites and also highlight two systems which may offer potential profits on the All Weather.

Featured Image: Photo © John Light (cc-by-sa/2.0)