Haydock Park

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Bet 365 Old Newton Cup

Old by name … old by nature.  Oldmap

The Old Newton Cup is Haydock Park's longest standing race, though its history goes back beyond even the development of the track itself.  In 1898 Lord Newton leased 127 acres of land to build the racecourse as it stands now, but it had a forerunner in the nearby Old Golborne Heath course, home of the Newton Races that had thrived in the 18th century by staging some of the country's finest racing, often attended by the Royal Family.  The course was famous for its feature race, run over a mile and a half and this eventually became "The Old Newton Cup".

bet365logThis event is now among the elite band of 'Heritage Handicaps', an initiative in which around 50 of the best handicaps in Britain, all worth at least £50,000, have been re-branded, many with 48-hour declarations to promote media coverage and ante-post betting.  This year's Old Newton Cup has a total prize fund of £85,000 and its value along with its prestige has been steadily built up over the years.

In the '80s the roll of honour comprise of popular names such as Valentinian, Rakaposhi King and Pipstead – the first two going on to success at pattern level and the reputation for the race as a precursor to better things has been revived in recent times through successes from Collier Hill and Alkaased – who is trained by Luca Cumani and won the race in both 1997 and 2005.

The weight range for the race increased again in 2005, with no upper limit on the ability of the runners, a move that can only help to increase the standard and competition of what is already one of the best handicaps on the season.