Saturday is not only the start of the flat turf season in Yorkshire, but also the first opportunity for horses to attempt to become the Yorkshire Wonder Horse.
The initiative created by Go Racing In Yorkshire and sponsored by leading agricultural and equine suppliers Wm McIvor & Son, will see £100,000 shared between the owner, trainer, jockey and yard of the first horse to win at all nine Yorkshire racecourses between Saturday 26 March 2022 and Sunday 31 December 2023.
The competition is open to all racehorse trainers across the country and both flat and jump races will be included, with the nine qualifying Yorkshire courses being; Beverley, Catterick, Doncaster, Pontefract, Redcar, Ripon, Thirsk, Wetherby and York.
Rachel Harwood, Chief Executive of Doncaster Racecourse said: “We are delighted to get the search underway and hope that some of our winners at the SBK Lincoln meeting this weekend can go onto score at the other Yorkshire courses.”
Jason McIvor, of www.mcivors.co.uk, added: "It’s great to see the Yorkshire Wonder Horse launch after months of exciting planning – we’re eager to see how the first meet of the flat season progresses and which horses will be first to be in the running!"
Charlotte Russell, General Manager of Go Racing In Yorkshire said: “The Yorkshire Wonder Horse initiative has been a long time in the planning and I’m really excited that it’s about to start. We’re looking forward to tracking the progress of horses throughout the season and following the narrative that this initiative will provide.”
Malton based trainer, Nigel Tinkler is keen to target the bonus: “Anything that encourages people to run their horses in Yorkshire and racegoers to attend meetings has got to be a good thing. I think this is a great initiative and we’ll definitely be targeting it. It will probably suit a middle-distance horse and we may have to alter our training methods a little to encourage our horses to stay a bit further.”
Picture shows Jason McIvor, partner at Wm McIvor & Son giving a bag of carrots to racehorse trainer Nigel Tinkler, at the launch of the Yorkshire Wonder Horse.
Go Racing In Yorkshire
Go Racing In Yorkshire is the central marketing organisation for Yorkshire’s nine racecourses. It is funded by the racecourses and the sale of the annual season ticket which allows admission to all of Yorkshire’s race meetings.
Wm McIvor & Son
Wm McIvor & Son is a family run company that has been serving the farming and equestrian community for over 50 years. Now in its third generation, there are three stores in Northallerton, Pickering and Durham as well as an ecommerce site, providing agricultural, equine and pet supplies at competitive prices.