Chelmsford City racecourse can be found five miles to the north of Chelmsford in Essex. Situated in Great Leighs, it has good signage from the M11, A131 and A120. Car parking at Chelmsford City racecourse is plentiful and free for drivers. Alternatively, there are good train services from Central London to Braintree station and Chelmsford station, which are 10 minutes and 15 minutes away respectively and have a consistent supply of taxis to ferry racegoers.

Chelmsford City racecourse was previously known as Great Leighs racecourse, which had been named for its location. In 2015, Great Leighs racecourse underwent a major redevelopment costing £25m and reopened under the new name of Chelmsford City racecourse which now offers over 50 fixtures each year on its all-weather polytrack. Its renaming and redevelopment give Chelmsford City the kudos of being the UK’s newest racetrack. Alongside its racing events, Chelmsford City racecourse also hosts a number of other big events including an exciting schedule of concerts featuring major stars such as UB40, Rick Astley, Simply Red, Madness, Boyzone and others.

Chelmsford City Racing Tips

Chelmsford City offers a left-handed polytrack surface of an oval of just over a mile with sweeping turns and a home straight of two furlongs. Races here are a straight seven furlongs or a mile and tend to be regarded as unbiased, but there is an advantage for front runners with just two furlongs on the home straight. When choosing your horse, take note of whether the race is being run on the round or straight and consider a potential advantage in the sprint. With Chelmsford being only a short distance from the top yards at Newmarket, this is a popular course for some big names including Mutakayyef and Jack Hobbs.

Chelmsford City Racing History

Racing at Chelmsford has a long history, with the racecourse at Galleywood having stood since 1759 for 176 years. Galleywood hosted National Hunt racing from 1892 until 1935, with the famous highlight of Golden Miller winning twice before moving on to taking the record at the Cheltenham Gold Cup by winning a phenomenal five times in a row. The racecourse at Galleywood finally closed in 1935 with a long break before Great Leighs opened in April 2008.

Great Leighs was much heralded as it was the only brand new track to be opened in the United Kingdom in more than eight decades, having been preceded by the opening of Taunton racecourse in 1927. Great Leighs’ inaugural winner was Temple Of Thebes, who won the maiden Fillies’ Stakes Race with Stevie Donohoe in the saddle in front of an invited audience on the first day of racing on Sunday 20th April, 2008. Later in 2008, Great Leighs saw Audemar win for footballers Owen Hargreaves, Claudio Pizarro and Roque Santa Cruz later that year in October 2008. But Great Leighs did not enjoy a long tenure and was redeveloped at great cost, reopening in 2015 as Chelmsford City racecourse.

Queen Charlotte Stakes

The Queen Charlotte Stakes is Chelmsford City’s highlight and is a prestigious Listed event known for its prize money of close to a quarter of a million pounds. Run over ten furlongs, five furlongs and a mile and six furlongs, the Queen Charlotte Stakes offers sought-after handicaps.

The Queen Charlotte Stakes are named for the Queen Charlotte Plate that was run at the Galleywood racecourse, forming part of local racing history. The naming of the Queen Charlotte Stakes has the permission of the monarch, being named for Queen Charlotte whose granddaughter was Queen Victoria.

Chelmsford City Races

Chelmsford City’s primary Listed race is the Queen Charlotte Fillies’ Stakes which is for fillies and mares aged four years and upwards, which meets in June. It is run over 7 furlongs and is a highly regarded addition to the Listed meetings, having been listed in 2018. This particular race celebrates and memorialises the Queen Charlotte Plate from the Galleywood racecourse.

Chelmsford City Famous Races and Racehorses

Great Leighs remembers its inaugural winner, Temple of Thebes, who took the win for Ed Dunlop in 2008 ridden by Stevie Donohoe.

The first running of the newly Listed Queen Charlotte Stakes took place in 2018 and was won by Charlie Fellowes’ mare, Carolinae. Carolinae, again with Stevie Donohoe in the saddle, won by a neck ahead of Belle Boyd and Marie of Lyon.

Chelmsford City’s new track has also been a winner for Sheikh Mohammed, with triple victory in 2015 with Tryster, Blue Aegean and Tempus Temporise. Tryster went on to be a star on the all-weather track, winning at the All-Weather Championships as well as the Winter Derby and Dubai’s Group 3 and Group 1 meetings.

Buratino also made a good appearance here for Mark Johnston, making his first win at Chelmsford City and securing a place in the Group 1 Phoenix Stakes as well as the Middle Park Stakes at the age of only 2 before going on to win the Royal Ascot Coventry Stakes in 2015.

Chelmsford City Betting Tips

In terms of statistics, Mark Johnston is top of the table at Chelmsford City, but if it is value you’re looking for, Johnston may not be your pick as he shows a substantial loss on level stakes. To get the best return for your stake, take a look at Saeed bin Suroor who has a great record, closely followed by William Haggas.

Top jockeys at Chelmsford City show a similar pattern to trainers, with a large disparity between the statistical leaders and those with a sizable return on level stakes. Luke Morris tops the table for sheer numbers but returns a significant loss on level stakes. Adam Kirby, however, has close to half the number of rides compared to Morris, but delivers a good return. It is worth keeping an eye out for Ryan Moore at Chelmsford City, given his remarkable strike rate and a very healthy level stakes profit. 

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