Northumberland Plate

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The Northumberland Plate is a valuable staying handicap run on the all-weather at Newcastle racecourse.

The Northumberland Plate is a flat handicap horse event hosted in the UK for horses aged three and above. It is contested every year in June at Newcastle with a distance of 2 miles and 56 yards.

Check out our guides to all the other UK Premier Handicap horse races.

The “Pitmen’s Derby” is another term for the Northumberland Plate horse race and has been won by some famous stayers in the past.

Celeric (1996) won the Ascot Gold Cup the following season while Sergeant Cecil (2005), Overturn (2010) and Quest For More (2015) all went on to win big races.

Northumberland Plate

The Race Overview – Northumberland Plate 2024

The Northumberland Plate takes place in late June or early July over two miles.

The race was switched from turf to the all-weather surface in 2016.

The race regularly attracts dual-purpose horses with an emphasis on stamina.

Famous Northumberland Plate Winners & Northumberland Plate History

The Northumberland Plate was first run in 1833 with victory going to Tomboy.

Underhand won the race for three successive seasons from 1857 to 1859 and remains the only three-time winner.

The Plate was originally staged at Town Moor and did not take place at Newcastle until 1882. It was held on a Wednesday and became a holiday for local miners, hence the name “Pitmen’s Derby”. The holiday was ended in 1949 with the big race moving to a regular Saturday slot three years’ later.

The race has always attracted high-class handicappers. 1994 winner Quick Ransom had won the Ebor Handicap at York in 1992. Bold Gait defied 9st 10lbs in 1995 with 1996 winner Celeric going on to win the Ascot Gold Cup the following season. He also won the Yorkshire Cup and the Lonsdale Stakes twice.

2005 winner Sergeant Cecil completed a unique treble by winning the Plate, the Ebor Handicap and the Cesarewitch in the same season. He successfully stepped up to Group races the following season to take the Lonsdale Cup, Doncaster Cup and Prix du Cadran. His final big race win came in the Yorkshire Cup in 2007 and he became extremely popular with the racing public.

2014 winner Overturn was trained by Donald McCain, son of the legendary Ginger McCain of Red Rum fame. Overturn proved a tough and versatile gelding, winning high profile races on the flat and over jumps. He also won the Chester Cup at the Chester May Festival in 2011 while his hurdles wins include the Scottish Champion Hurdle, Galway Hurdle and Fighting Fifth Hurdle. He finished runner-up to Rock On Ruby in the Champion Hurdle at the 2012 Cheltenham Festival.

Tominator provided a 25-1 shock when winning for veteran trainer Reg Hollinshead in 2011. The horse returned to add a second victory in the race in the care of Jonjo O’Neill in 2013. Roger Charlton’s winning duo of Quest For More (2015) and Withhold (2018) both proved to be high class stayers.

Quest For More ran with credit in the 2015 Melbourne Cup and won the Group 1 Prix du Cadran the following year. He won the Lonsdale Cup and finished runner-up in the Doncaster Cup and British Champions Long Distance Cup. Withhold won this race despite a 259-day absence. His career was interrupted by wind surgery in 2018 but he returned to win the valuable Marsh Cup at Newbury and two listed races at Newmarket.

Some of the horses participating in the Northumberland Plate will be spotted in other races throughout the year. Make sure to keep an eye on the horses to see how they perform or place your bets on ante-post betting.

Check out our guide for additional tips on races at Newcastle Racecourse.

Our best racing tippers provide free race betting predictions for all Newcastle racing events!

Northumberland Plate Previous Winners

YearWinnerAgeJockeyTrainer
2013Tominator6Graham LeeJonjo O’Neill
2014Angel Gabrial5George ChalonerRichard Fahey
2015Quest For More5George BakerRoger Charlton
2016Antiquarium4James McDonaldCharlie Appleby
2017Higher Power5Tom QueallyJames Fanshawe
2018Withhold5Robert WinstonRoger Charlton
2019Who Dares Wins7Tom MarquandAlan King
2020Caravan Of Hope4Harry BentleyHugo Palmer
2021Nicholas T9Ben RobinsonJim Goldie
2022Trueshan6Hollie DoyleAlan King
2023Calling The Wind7Neil CallanRichard Hughes

Northumberland Plate 2024 Result

Check out this result from the Newcastle Racecourse:

Key Northumberland Plate Trials

The Ascot Stakes at the Royal meeting and the Chester Cup often feature horses that run in the Plate.

Who Dares Wins had finished runner-up at Chester prior to winning at Newcastle. Angel Gabrial had also finished second at Chester to Suegioo before reversing the form in the Northumberland Plate.

Favourites have a mixed record in the Northumberland Plate (Heritage Handicap) with only five winners in the past eighteen years. However three of those have come in the last seven years; Angel Gabrial (2014), Withhold (2018) and Caravan Of Hope (2020). With Quest For More (2015) and Higher Power (2017) also being well supported, the recent trend has been towards the market leaders.

Things were a lot more difficult for punters between 2002 and 2011 when winners included Mirjan (2004) and Toldo (2006), both returned at 33-1, and Tominator (2011) at 25-1. The average SP of the winner during that period was over 17-1. By contrast, the average for the last eight years has been around 8-1.

Northumberland Plate Stats

  • All but one of the last eighteen winners had won over a mile and a half or further.
  • Almost half of them had raced at least twice during the current flat season.
  • Only one of the last eighteen winners had finished outside the first five on their most recent outing.
  • Almost half of those winners had been trained in a predominately National Hunt yard. That trend has not been so evident since the race switched to the all-weather. Alan King won with Who Dares Wins in 2019 but the other winners came from flat yards.
  • Ages four to six have fared best, accounting for all bar two of the last fifteen winners.
  • The £150,000 prize money makes it the richest two-mile race in Europe.

Top Trainers and Jockeys at The Northumberland Plate Festival

Paul Cole is the leading trainer in the history of the Plate with three winners; Windsor Castle (1997), Cyrian (1998) and Archduke Ferdinand (2001).

Donald McCain won the race with Overturn (2010) and Ile de Re (2012) while Roger Charlton was successful with Quest For More (2015) and Withhold (2018).

The last jockey to win the Northumberland Plate twice was Kevin Darley (1999 and 2000), matching the record of Willie Carson (1990 and 1996).

Betting on the Betfair Northumberland Plate 2024

There is an ante-post market for the Northumberland Plate which is published as soon as the weights are announced.

The race, held at Newcastle racecourse, always attracts a large field of experienced handicappers and is very popular with each-way punters.

Bookmakers will usually offer extra place terms on the Plate, down to fifth or sixth place. A very high draw is considered a disadvantage, although Caravan Of Hope overcame stall 17 to win decisively in 2020.

Summary – Northumberland Plate Festival

The Northumberland Plate is one of the top staying handicaps of the season. It is right up there with the likes of the Chester Cup, Ascot Stakes and Cesarewitch.

The switch to the all-weather was received with caution by traditionalists but the “Pitmen’s Derby” has retained its status as one of the highlights of the summer racing season.

Popular Questions

Where is the Northumberland Plate held?

The Northumberland Plate is held at Newcastle Racecourse.