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The Weatherbys Hamilton Lonsdale Cup

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History

The Weatherbys Hamilton Insurance Lonsdale Cup, staged during the Welcome to Yorkshire Ebor Festival at York and the fourth long-distance event of the QIPCO British Champions Series, is clearly a race on the up.

It began as a relatively modest ‘listed race’ but was promoted to Group 3 status in 1998, then to its current classification of Group 2 in 2004. Today it is run over 2 miles and 88 yards (3,280 metres) and is open to three-year-olds and older horses.

Previous winners include Persian Punch, one of horseracing’s most popular stayers who was still racing aged 10, while Pat Eddery had a great record in the race, riding the winner on five victories. The last of those was on a horse called Celeric, one of three horses to win the race on two occasions (the horse was due to be named Celeriac but the name was mis-spelt on the registration papers).

The 2010 race was won by Frankie Dettori on Opinion Poll and the pair returned 12 months later for another success on the Knavesmire.

In the past two years, Dettori has clicked on the outstanding Stradivarius – each time sealing the Stayers Million offered by Weatherbys Hamilton.

Current leading jockey: Frankie Dettori, 6 wins (2006, 2010, 2011, 2015, 2018, 2019)
Current leading trainer: Mark Johnston, 3 wins (1995, 1997, 2000)

Previous winners

Year Horse Jockey Trainer Owner Prize money

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Enbihaar stretches away to win the Weatherbys Hamilton Lonsdale Cup

Enbihaar proved too classy for her Weatherbys Hamilton Lonsdale Cup rivals on the Knavesmire.
Stepping up to two miles for the first time, the Goodwood winner seemed to relish the extra distance on offer, out-battling the tough Nayef Road before holding off a fast-finishing Stratum.

The race was run at an even gallop with little change in the order as the field turned into the straight. Rounding the turn the protagonists emerged out of the pack as Nayef Road and Enbihaar swooped, with Dashing Willoughby making eye-catching progress on the inside under Oisin Murphy. It was Enbihaar and Nayef Road who set to it, going a couple of lengths ahead with two furlongs to travel.

Enbihaar began to assert close home, grinding down the Mark Johnston runner, her lengthy stride proving to much for that rival as the winning post drew near. The only threat would come from Stratum who found a new lease of life, closing impressively, but in truth Enbihaar had always done enough.

Results

Position Horse Jockey Trainer Owner
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The Course

The city of York and its racecourse have a long and colourful history, involving – among others - the Vikings, the Romans, Pope John Paul II, highwayman Dick Turpin, and the Princess Royal.

  • Course plan
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There’s no official record of the Vikings racing horses at York – they apparently preferred sacking and pillaging – but the Romans certainly did, during the reign of Emperor Severus 2,000 years ago. Severus, indeed, breathed his final breath in ‘Eboracum’ – that’s Roman for York. So did Turpin. He was hanged at the Knavesmire racecourse site in 1739. Pope John Paul II enjoyed a friendlier reception, lauded by 200,000 pilgrims at an open-air mass in 1982, while Princess Anne also enjoyed huge support when winning the Queen Mother’s Cup on Insular in 1988.

The North Yorkshire track, voted Racecourse of the Year in 2003, continues to attract the crowds today, with around 350,000 flocking through the gates each year. York comes into its own during the Welcome to Yorkshire Ebor Festival in August, the meeting boasting such races as the Juddmonte International Stakes, part of the QIPCO British Champions Series, and the totesport Ebor Handicap. Lester Piggott won the Ebor Handicap a record five times – the first in 1958 and the last 25 years later, in 1983.

Getting there

Tadcaster Rd York,
York
YO23 1EX

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