Which race used to be called the Massey Ferguson Gold Cup?

Which race used to be called the Massey Ferguson Gold Cup? The race formerly known as the Massey Ferguson Gold Cup is a Grade Three handicap steeplechase run over 2 miles 4½ furlongs on the New Course at Cheltenham. Established in 1963, the race has had various sponsors, and various titles, since the agricultural machinery manufacturer relinquished sponsorship in 1980, but its positioning in the National Hunt calendar has led to it becoming known, commonly, as the December Gold Cup. The most recent sponsor is gourmet food supplier Caspian Caviar, such that, since 2014, the race has been run as the Caspian Caviar Gold Cup.

In the initial sponsorship period, notable winners of the Massey Ferguson Gold Cup included Flyingbolt, in 1965, and Pendil, in 1973. More recently, in 2006, Exotic Dancer won the Boylesports.com Gold Cup, as the race was known at the time, en route to finishing second to his ‘nemesis’ Kauto Star in the King George VI Chase at Kempton on Boxing Day.

When was off-course betting tax abolished?

As part of his Budget speech in March, 2001, then Chancellor of the Exchequor, Gordon Brown, announced that, from January 1, 2002, the betting levy would be abolished. Previously, the government had collected a betting duty of 6.75% from bookmakers, which was passed on to off-course punters as a 9% tax, payable on stake money or winnings. Instead, bookmakers would be taxed, at 15%, on their gross profits, allowing off-course punters to bet tax-free for the first time since 1968.

Beforehand, Her Majesty’s Customs and Excise had predicted betting duty would plummet as off-course punters sought to avoid paying tax by betting offshore or online. A spokesperson for bookmaker Victor Chandler, whose move offshore was believed to have spurred the Chancellor into action, described the proposed 15% tax on gross profits as ‘simply another stealth tax’.

Nevertheless, as announced by the National Audit Office in January, 2005, the move proved highly successful. The so-called ‘Big Three’ bookmakers, William Hill, Ladbrokes and Coral, all repatriated their offshore operations and the value of bets placed off-course increased by nearly 100%, from £27 billion to £53 billion, in the period since the law was changed.

What is an exotic bet?

What is an exotic bet? In Britain, what qualifies as an ‘exotic’ bet varies slightly from bookmaker to bookmaker but, generally speaking, the term typically applies to a range of Tote bets, above and beyond standard win, place and each-way bets. In short, an exotic bet is a bet on multiple horses in one or more races. In common with all Tote bets, all the money staked on a particular ‘exotic’ market is pooled together and, after deductions, the remaining pool is divided by the number of winning tickets to arrive at a winning dividend.

Thus, after an unlikely result, or series of results, exotic bets can produce huge dividends for a small initial outlay, which increases their attraction. Of course, exotic bets are more difficult to win than standard win, place and each-way, but it is possible to perm multiple horses in a single race, or multiple races, where applicable, to increase the chances of doing so. Another type of bet worthy in mention is in-running, or live bets. Also known as in-play bets, those looking for live betting opportunities want to take advantage of bet odds during a live sporting events.

Single-race exotic bets include the Exacta and Trifecta, which are akin to traditional forecast and tricast bets, and the Swinger, in which the idea is to select two horses to be placed in the first three, in any order, in a race. Multiple-race exotic bets include the Scoop6, Jackpot, Placepot and Quadpot.

The Scoop6 operates only on Friday and Saturday and requires punters to pick the winners of six designated races, with a consolation fund for six placed horses and an additional bonus fund for winners to play for. The Jackpot operates on similar principles, but is a daily pool, with no consolation or bonus funds. The Placepot, too, is a daily pool, which can be won by picking six placed horses in the first six races of a British meeting, while the Quadpot is a consolation pool for punters who are eliminated from the Placepot after the first two legs.

What is the Mongol Derby?

Officially the longest horse race in the world, according to Guinness World Records, the Mongol Derby is an endurance race staged annually over a 621-mile, or 1,000-kilometre, stretch of the Mongolian Steppe in Inner Mongolia. The Mongol Derby recreates the ancient message delivery system created by Genghis Khan, founder of the Mongol Empire, which was called ‘Yam’. Riders must collect fresh horses – locally supplied, semi-wild, Mongolian horses owned by nomadic tribespeople – from a series of relay, or support, stations set up at 25-mile intervals along the route, and the race lasts ten days.

Serious injuries, including broken bones, and debilitating conditions, such as heat exhaustion or heatstroke, are commonplace, yet year after year dozens of intrepid riders pay thousands of pounds for the privilege of riding in the Mongol Derby. Participants travel from all over the world to ride in the Mongol Derby and, following a compulsory, three-day training course, in the classroom and on horseback, are ready to embark on what is billed as the ‘toughest equestrian event on the planet’.

Of course, the Mongolian Steppe is an immense expanse of grassland, but the route of the Mongolian Derby changes from year to year, such that riders may need to negotiate a variety of terrain. They are restricted to a ‘corridor’, less than two miles wide, to discourage fording rivers but, otherwise, must navigate themselves over, around or through any geographical features they come across using Global Positioning System (GPS) equipment.

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