What is a Handicap Horse Race?

A handicap is the most popular type of horse race in the UK and indeed the world. Although the concept may seem complicated at first, it is actually quite simple and exists to ensure races are competitive, giving all horses a fair chance to win.

The main Classics and Championship races (such as The Derby and Cheltenham Gold Cup) are all run-off level weights and are not handicaps. The most famous handicap in the world is the Grand National, but other notable handicap races include the Lincoln Handicap and Melbourne Cup.

Find out more today about horse racing handicaps:

What is a Horse Racing Handicap

A horse racing handicap is a race where the runners carry different weights in their saddles to make the race more competitive. The amount of weight they carry is based on their ability, as assessed by their professional Horse Racing regulatory body (such as the British Horseracing Authority), to make these races closer and more competitive.

A horse handicap race aims to put every horse on a level playing field and, in theory, all horses in a handicap should dead-heat.

This obviously doesn’t happen due to the unpredictability of racing in general, as other factors, such as draw, jockey, ground conditions, horse racing trainer form, and “horses for courses” preferences, can all affect the outcome, but that is the aim.

Horses are allotted ratings by the”Handicapper”, this is based on previous racing performances. Essentially the higher this rating figure the better the horse is.

The Official Rating that a horse is awarded allows the Handicapper to distinguish between each horse’s ability.

For example, a horse rated 100 is better than a horse rated 95. If these two were to face each other in a non-handicap race, the 100-rated horses could win. However, if these two horses were to race in a handicap race, the horse rated 100 would carry more weight than the horse rated 95, making the race between them closer.

How Are Weights Calculated for a Handicap Race?

Every point difference in rating is equivalent to 1lb in weight in the saddle.

Therefore, in the example above, the horse rated 100 would carry 5lbs more than its opponent, who is rated 95 – this would, in theory, give them both an equal chance of winning the race and “on paper” they should dead-heat!

How is a horse’s Handicap Mark Decided?

All racehorses are given an Official Rating by their horse rating authority. This is awarded when a horse has either:

1. Won a race
2. Or raced at least three times

Observing these races enables the handicapper to obtain an accurate assessment of a horse’s ability. Based on this, they determine the horse’s rating, which serves as its handicap mark.

In some rare circumstances, the handicapper may request a horse to run for a fourth time to determine a rating. This is usually the case if a horse has been injured or beaten a considerable distance in a race (it is more common in jump racing). They will request this extra race because they feel they cannot get an accurate gauge of the horses’ abilities from the initial three runs.

Can Handicap Marks Change?

Handicap ratings are fluid and constantly changing. They are generally reviewed every week and published on Mondays.

Each time a horse races, the handicapper or racing authority assesses its performance and adjusts the rating accordingly, increasing or decreasing it based on the result.

Horses’ handicaps typically move because of the following:

• If a horse wins a race, a handicapper will increase the horse’s rating
• If a horse runs a good race, is usually placed, or is not beaten by a large margin, its rating will likely remain the same.
• If the horse runs a poor race and is beaten by a significant margin, it can decrease its rating.

Handicap marks change throughout a horse’s career; for example, a young and improving horse will often be on an “upward curve” where its rating is increasing, but an older horse may be declining, and so its official mark would fall.

If a horse is thought to be improving, it is often called being ‘ahead of the handicapper’. This is where a horse’s actual ability may not be represented by its current rating. The term is also used if a horse has won a race early in a week and races again that same week, before the weekly review can officially alter their mark. Sometimes this is also referred to as “handicap snip” or “handicap good thing”.

Levels of Horse Racing Handicap Races

One of the main benefits of handicap races is that they allow horses of similar ratings to compete against each other. In essence, these handicap races are divided into classes. In most races, the horses participating will have similar ratings and weights, ensuring fair competition.

The higher class of handicap race the better the prize money.

A trainer decides which handicap race to enter his horse in. They will often balance the prize money, quality of the opposition, and the weight their horse would carry in this race when making their decision.

Using the example of our 100-rated horses. The trainer could enter this horse in an 80-100 handicap (meaning horses rated between 80-100 could enter), or he could enter it in a 90-110 handicap. The reasons behind both would be:

• If the 100-rated horse ran in the 80-100 range, as it is rated the best horse in the race with the highest rating, it would be required to carry more weight than the other horses (which is obviously a negative). On a positive note, these horses are deemed to be naturally slower than he is.
• The other option is racing against better horses in a 90 -110 race. In this race, there would be horses rated higher than him, which means they are better than him; however, he would be carrying less weight than they are.

As you can see, both approaches have benefits.

What is a Handicap Penalty?

As mentioned above, handicap marks and ratings are assessed weekly; however, handicap weights are confirmed when a horse enters a race, typically 5 days prior. If a horse races after this 5-day declaration stage and wins, they is often given extra weight; this is known as a handicap or winner’s penalty.

The weight of the penalty differs, and some races may not even incur a penalty – that is, when a horse would be “ahead of the handicapper” as discussed above.

How is The Weight Carried in a Horse Race?

The extra weights are carried in a weight cloth, which goes under the saddle. The total weight figure includes:

• The jockey
• The saddle
• The weight-cloth

After every horse race, every jockey must ‘weigh-in’ and ‘weigh-out’ on official weight scales – these are in the weighing room. This ensures that the horse carries the correct allotted weight.

Summary of Horse Racing Handicaps

A horse racing handicap race is designed to give all horses an increased chance of winning.

As discussed, they are the most popular and common type of horse race in the world, where each horse will carry a weight determined by its ability and ratings. These ratings change regularly and are reviewed after each run to get an up-to-date opinion on a horse’s ability.

We hope you have found this guide to the handicap system helpful. Remember to check out our blog for more horse racing news and views.

Check out these top handicap betting sites. Listed on this page. All of the sites made the list of horse racing betting sites.