In 2014, Wolverhampton became the first racecourse in Europe to install the Tapeta surface but, even so, it would be fair to say that the Dunstall Park track rarely attracts much attention. However, it did so on January 6, 2016 when, at an ordinary midweek meeting, an anonymous Southampton man went through the card and won £245,000 for his £10 stake.
The 34-year-old motor mechanic made his selections based on their market position and, more importantly, their names. He said, ‘I chose the horses based on their names. I looked at ones who were favourites and selected them at random based upon names that I liked.’ On a day when six out of seven favourites won, he also did himself a favour by taking early prices about his selections when he placed the bet the previous evening; at starting price, his £10 seven-fold accumulator would have yielded ‘just’ £80,000.
The punter admitted that his windfall was more down to ‘brilliant luck’ than any system or selection technique. However, after watching his first six selections – Whitecliff Prince, Artful Mind, Mr Boss Man, Oakley Girl, Perfect Cracker and Bank Of Gibralatar – prevail, his nerve was tested by his final selection, Ohsosecret, who only led inside the final 50 yards of the closing 5-furlong handicap and was all out to win by a head.
Nevertheless, win she did, sparking riotous celebration. Reflecting on his good fortune, the man said, ‘I was watching the results come in and after the first three had won, I started texting the wife. When the seventh one won, I was jumping around the place. It’s the biggest high I have ever had.’
According to the song, ‘Old Christmas comes but once a year’ but, for one anonymous Sky Bet punter, the festive season started several weeks early in 2017. On December 7 that year, the unnamed individual staked £2.30 each-way on a five-fold accumulator on National Hunt racing at Leicester and Wincanton. Four of his five selections – Arthington (3/1), Vocaliser (18/1), Lagavara (9/2) and Dontmindboys (4/1) – were at Leicester, where his only really anxious moment came in the fifth race on the card, the Lubenham Mares’ Handicap Hurdle. Sent off 4/1 second favourite, Lagavara drew clear with 11/4 favourite Daytime Ahead from the final flight but, after a ding-dong battle with the runner-up on the run-in, eventually prevailed by the narrowest possible margin, a nose.
Sometimes it ‘pays’ to highlight the very opposite of a favourite to show whats possible in the racing world! The Republic of Kazakhstan is famous for many things, including oil, natural gas, wild horses and, of course, Borat. It would be fair to say that gambling is not high on the list of attractions, but winners are winners wherever they appear. One such winner, who made the headlines in 2021, was a 44-year-old inhabitant of Almaty, the former capital of Kazakhstan, by the name of Mukhazhan.
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