Gimcrack Stakes: A jewel of British horseracing
Winning 27 of 36 starts was indeed a mega achievement that is still keeping the 18th century horse, Gimcrack, alive in the Irish Thoroughbred Marketing Gimcrack Stakes that is open to two-year-old thoroughbred geldings and colts, held in August
every year.
The high-profile Group 2 race is run over the distance of 6 furlongs at York racecourse. The event was initiated in 1846. In the beginning, every gender was allowed to participate, but it was confined to just males later in 1987.
Gimcrack Stakes poses to be a glamorous event that draws a big bankroll along with attracting a huge crowd every time. The English sport fans wait for this race the whole year.
There have been made and broken many records in the event so far. If you take a look on the history, we find John Osborne, Jr as the leading jockey while William I'Anson, Jr. as the top trainer.
John Osborne, Jr. has nine wins to his credit. During his career, the star rider successfully drove to victories Exact, Coastguard, Wild Agnes, Lord of the Vale, Bothwell, Thorn, Holy Friar, Constantine and Simnel from 1852 to 1880.
On the other hand, William I'Anson, Jr. bagged seven triumphs with Pursebearer, Lady Muncaster, Derwentwater, Lockhart, Royal Stag and Barbette from 1881 to 1903.
In the 2011 edition of the Gimcrack Stakes, Caspar Netscher was the runner who walked away with the ace title. The A. McCabe trained bay colt, convincingly beat the hot favourite candidate, Lilbourne Lad, to cross the finish line by the margin of 2 ¼ lengths.
Burwaaz was the runner who finished third on the podium. The fourth spot went to Justineo while B Fifty Two grabbed the fifth spot.
That victory proved to be a big morale booster for Caspar Netscher who moved on to win Dubai Duty Free Mill Reef Stakes (Group 2) in the very next month at Newbury.
Now, the Gimcrack Stakes 2012 is scheduled to take place on August 24. So far, the race card shows 67 entries. This event is likely to be greatly thrilling and interesting this time. Let us see who dares to become the champion.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are the writer's own and do not reflect Bettor.Com’s editorial policy.
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