Winning Distances
A ‘Winning Distance’ bet is a horse racing spread betting market which offers a prediction on the aggregate total on the winning margins of each race at a meeting.
A flat race has a maximum winning distance of 12 lengths, whereas a National Hunt race has a winning distance of 30 lengths. This rule also applies if only one of the horses were to finish the race.
The distances under a length are recorded as follows:
Short Head = 0.1 of a length
Head = 0.2 of a length
Neck = 0.3 of a length
½ a length = 0.5 of a length
¾ of a length = 0.75 of a length
Let’s say, for example, there’s a Jumps meeting at Epsom, SportsSpread might offer a spread on the total winning distances of 60 - 65. You decide to BUY the spread because you believe it will be higher than 65. You opt to BUY the spread at £10 per length.
At the end of the race, the winning distance is confirmed at 72 lengths, so your bet return will work out like this:
(Settled price - BUY Price) x Stake
(72 - 65) x £10
7 x £10 = £70 Profit
Now, while this is great and you’ve won yourself a nice profit, here’s how it could’ve worked out if the winning distance was 62 lengths, 10 less than predicted:
(Settled price - BUY Price) x Stake
(62 - 65) x £10
3 x £10 = £30 Loss
Be mindful that whilst you can win an amazing profit from your hunch, you do also run the risk of losing more than the original stake.
View Horse Racing MarketsRace Index Bets
A ‘Race Index’ spread bet is one of the most popular horse racing spread betting markets. In a ‘Race Index’ market, points are awarded to horses depending on where they finish in a race.
The points structure will vary depending on how many runners are in the race. For example, if there are 11 or fewer horses, the points would be awarded like this:
1st = 50 points
2nd = 25 points
3rd = 10 points
Any other places outside the top three will be awarded 0 points.
In a race where there are 12 or more horses participating, the points work out like this:
1st = 50 points
2nd = 30 points
3rd = 20 points
4th = 10 points
Any other places outside of the top four would be awarded 0 points.
The race index market gives bettors the opportunity to either back or go against a horse.
For this example, SportsSpread has priced up Red Rum at 12-15 on the Race 50 Index. You have a good feeling Red Rum is going to do well in this one and you decide to BUY the spread with a £10 stake. Red Rum has a blinder and wins the race. Your bet would work out like this:
(Settled Price - BUY Price) x Stake
(50 - 15) x £10
35 x £10 = £350 Profit
That’s a great return for your bet. Now, let's look to see how it would work out if your bet is wrong. If Red Rum pulls up or finishes outside the frame, they are not awarded any points, your bet would look like this:
(Settled Price - BUY Price) x Stake
(0 - 15) x £10
-15 x £10 = £150 Loss
Remember to gamble responsibly.
View Horse Racing Markets
