How to Read the Racing Form


Racing Form explained



One of the reasons why new punters shy away from horse racing is due to the complex nature of the race cards. These show the most recent form of each horse plus a few other pointers you can use when making your selections. However, these are not as difficult to understand as a quick glance would suggest, and with a few small pointers you will find yourself easily dissecting the upcoming horse racing and making your selections by looking at the form.

You can find a wealth of information from a race card, and you can take a look at these as either an overview of the entire race, or as one individual horse in a race, looking at their form in more depth. When it comes to an overall race card with information on every runner in a race, here is what you need to look out for to get to grips with it.

Ayr racecard


  • The first number on the left-hand side of the card (1 to 5 in this instance) is the number that each horse is in the race
  • The five characters next to that, often a mixture of numbers and letters are the most recent five runs by that horse, with the most recent being the one that is on the right, nearest to the horse’s name. More on what those abbreviations mean below
  • The number in grey after the horse’s name is the amount of days since the horse last ran, so for example, Ain’t My Fault last ran 26 days ago
  • WGT stands for weight, the numbers here show how much weight the horse will carry, this is a combination of the jockey’s weight and additional lead weights placed in the saddle
  • The number at the side of the trainer’s name is the RTF%, which stands for runners to form. This is based on the last 14 days and looks at how many of the trainers past runners go as expected, do those that are favourite or close to being favourite run well and possibly win? So in our example the trainer Lucinda Russell has a 20% RTF rate in the last 14 days. If a trainer doesn’t have a number here, they have not had enough recent runners to judge
  • OR, TS & RPR are all rating systems. OR is the most important, the horses official rating and the one used when working out the weights for a handicap race. RPR is the racing post rating while TS stands for top speed ratings, both of which have been in operation for many years and are respected, the higher the number the better the horse
Ain't My Fault form


Alongside studying a race overall, you can also take a more in-depth look into the recent form of each individual horse. As you can see above, alongside what we have already seen in the overall race card, you can also see more detail about the horse’s last runs here.

  • The race outcome section is the most important of this. The numbers at the start are the horse’s finishing position and number of runners. In the example above, Ain’t My Fault finished 2nd of five runners in his most recent start. The number of runners is an important factor here, something you don’t see on the overall race card. Again using this example, the horse has finished 2nd on his last four starts, but it is only here we see he has been running in fields of 5, 8, 9 and 3. If that form was all in three runner fields, those 2nd placed finished probably wouldn’t be as impressive
  • The final part to note is the OR/TS/RPR columns on the right-hand side. These are ratings as we know, but here you see how they have changed, if the horse has been consistent or it has come down or gone up a lot in the ratings recently. As you can see, the official rating of Ain’t My Fault has been relatively flat, the horse was rated 117 when running on the 19th January 2019, and goes into this race rated the same after small rises and falls in between

Race Card Form Abbreviations

When looking at the form you will see a mixture of numbers and letters, and sometimes even symbols at the side of each horse. Here is a quick look at what they all mean.

  • Numbers – the finishing position of the horse in the race, if the horse finished 10th or worse then 0 is shown to cover all of those, so 10th out of 20 runners and 19th out of 20 runners would look the same in this section
  • Letters – These appear when a horse has done something during a race, for example above Ain’t My Fault has an ‘F’ at the side of his name. F stands for faller, which means the horse fell, PU is another common one, this means the horse was pulled up mid-race by the jockey, U means the horse unseated the rider, slightly different to falling, while R is not too common but means the horse refused to race
  • Symbols – The two symbols you will see on a race card are ‘-‘ and ‘/’. A dash is there to show the end of a racing season, every horse will have one of these in their form if they have ran less than five times in that particular season. The ‘/’ symbol is when a horse has been off the track injured and missed an entire season

More Betting Guides

5 Mistakes to Avoid When Betting on Horse Racing

What is a Bad Each Way Race?

One Leg Left On a Horse Racing Acca, What To Do?

Top 20 Betting Offers

BetMGM
BetMGM
Bet £10, Get £40 in Free BetsClaim Offer

New customers only. 7 days to place qualifying bet of £10 at 1/1 (2.0) to receive 4 x £10 Free Bets: 1 x £10 football, 1 x £10 horse racing & 2 x £10 Bet Builders. Free Bets cannot be used on e-sports and non UK/IE horse racing. 7 day expiry. Exclusions apply. Stake not returned. 18+. T&Cs apply.

Midnite
Midnite
Bet £10 Get £20 in Free BetsClaim Offer

New UK Customers. Register using code BETGETSPORTS. Must bet £10 in total on 4+ legs, min odds 4.0. £20 awarded as 4 X £5 free bets once settled, AND 50 Free Spins to use on Big Bass Splash (valued at 10p per spin). Free bet T&Cs Apply. 18+. BeGambleAware.org

easyBet
easyBet
Bet £20 and Get £20Claim Offer

New Customers Only. Sign up with bonus code: EB20. Bet £20 and get £20 in Free Bets. Paid as £5 Free Bet on Soccer, £5 Free Bet on Horse Racing, £5 Free Bet on Multiples and a £5 Free Bet on any Market. Terms apply 18+ gambleaware.org.

PariMatch
PariMatch
Bet £10 Get £30 in BonusesClaim Offer

18+ New Customers Only. Opt in and bet £10 on football (odds 2.00+) within 7 days. Get 4x£5 Free Bets for set markets and a £10 Slot Bonus for Big Bass Splash, 30x wagering, to withdraw max £250. Rewards expire in 20 days. Full T&Cs apply. gambleaware.org | Please gamble responsibly

Tote
Tote
Bet £10 Get £40 in BonusesClaim Offer

New customers online only. Eligibility restrictions apply. Only valid with code B10G40 on registration. £10 min qualifying bet at 1/1 (2.0) odds or greater across sports or racing (if EW then min £10 Win + £10 Place). Receive £20 Tote Credit, £10 Free Sports Bet and 50 Free Spins on Big Bass Bonanza within 48 hours of qualifying bet settlement. 7-day expiry on free bets & Tote Credit. Your first bet will be your qualifying bet. One per customer. UK & ROI customers only. 18+. Full T&Cs apply. Gambleaware.org.Full T&Cs apply.

Betway
Betway
£30 Free Bet if First Acca losesClaim Offer

Min Stake: £5. Maximum Free Bet: £30. First bet on a Football, Racing, Tennis, Cricket or Basketball multiple with 3+ selections. Overall odds: 3.00 (2/1) or higher. Free Bets available upon settlement of the qualifying bet. 100 Free Spins on More Unusual Suspects (£0.10 per spin) credited on settlement of qualifying Acca bet. No wagering requirements on free spin winnings. Offer valid 7 days from account opening. 18+ GambleAware.org. Full Terms apply

TalkSportBET
TalkSportBET
Bet £10 Get £30 in Footy Free BetsClaim Offer

18+ New customers only. Opt in via mobile or app & bet £10+ on any football market at 2.00+ odds within 7 days. No Cash out. Get 6x £5 Free Bets on selected markets. Free bets expire in 7 days. T&Cs apply. GambleAware.org | Please gamble responsibly

Bzeebet
Bzeebet
Bet £10, Get a £10 Free BetClaim Offer

18+. New Customers Only. Max 1 x £10 Free Bet. Qualifying bets at Odds of 1/1 or greater. Paid as Bonus Token Min 4/5 Odds Req. Skrill, Neteller, Paypal not eligible. T&Cs Apply. Please gamble responsibly.

Highbet
Highbet
Bet £10, Get £20 Free BetsClaim Offer

New customers Deposit and place your first bet on Sports at odds of Evens (2.0) or greater. Once bet is settled you will receive 1x £10 Free Bet Token to be used on Football, 1x £10 Free Bet Token to be used on Horse Racing. Full terms apply. 18+ begambleaware. Please gamble responsibly.

Copybet
Copybet
Bet £20, Get £60 in Free BetsClaim Offer

Full T&Cs apply. New UK customers only. The qualifying bet should be either a Single or Acca (2+ selections) bet, start at £20, have 1.9 or greater odds and must be settled within 7 days of opt-in. 3 Free bets include: 1 x £20 Free bet Racing (Horse Racing or Greyhound Racing); 1 x £20 Free Bet Live Football; 1 x £20 Free Bet Live. Max payout – £500. 7-day expiry. To unlock the offer, complete the first deposit via the banking app (Open banking). 18+. BeGambleAware.com

MatchBook
MatchBook
Bet £50 get £50 in Free BetsClaim Offer

New customers Only. New customer must place and settle £50 in bets on Matchbook markets only. The user must bet on at least 4 different events to qualify. The user must place and settle bets at odds of 2.0 or more. Bets can be placed on singles, multiples and Bet Builders. The user must place and settle bets before the closing date of the promotion to qualify. . T's and C's Apply. Be Gamble Aware. 18+

AllBritishSport
AllBritishSport
Bet £10, Get a £10 Free BetClaim Offer

New Customers Only. £10 in real money. Bets placed on sports at odds of 2.00 or more. Bets must be placed within 24 hours of registration. £10 free bets must be wagered on sports. UK residents. Full terms apply. Gambling can be addictive, play responsibly. 18+

32Red
32Red
150% Casino Bonus up to £150!Claim Offer

18+. BeGambleAware.org. New customers only. Min. £10 deposit, debit card only. Up to 50x wagering, game contributions vary, max. stake applies, 7 day expiry. See full terms. #AD

Betfred
Betfred
Bet £10 and get £50 in Free BetsClaim Offer

New customers only. Register with BETFRED50. Deposit £10+ via Debit Card and place first bet £10+ at Evens (2.0)+ on Sports within 7 days to get 3 x £10 in Sports Free Bets & 2 x £10 in Acca Free Bets within 10 hours of settlement. 7-day expiry. Eligibility & payment exclusions apply. Full T&Cs apply.

Bet442
Bet442
Bet £20 Get £20 in Free betsClaim Offer

18+. New Customers Only. Min deposit £20. Maximum one £10 Free Bet & two £5 Bet Builder Free Bets. Qualifying bet must be placed at odds of Evens (2.00) or greater. Paid as bonus tokens: Token 1 Min odds Req: 4/5 (1.80). Token 2 & 3 are valid for Bet Builder products only and are subject to min odds of 2/1 (3.00). T&Cs Apply. Please gamble responsibly.

JeffBet
JeffBet
Bet £10, Get £30 Free BetClaim Offer

New Players Only. Free bet - one-time stake of £30, min odds 1.5, stake not returned. 1X wager the winnings. Wager from real balance first. Wager calculated on bonus bets only. Max conversion: £200. Valid for 7 Days from receipt. Limited to 1 sport & 5 casino brand/s within the network. Withdrawal requests void all active/pending bonuses. Excluded Skrill and Neteller deposits. Progress Play network Full Terms apply.

Monster
Monster
Bet £20, Get a £40 Free BetClaim Offer

New Players Only. Free bet - one-time stake of £40, min odds 1.5, stake not returned. 1X wager the winnings. Wager from real balance first. Wager calculated on bonus bets only. Max conversion: £200. Valid for 7 Days from receipt. Limited to 1 sport & 5 casino brand/s within the network. Withdrawal requests void all active/pending bonuses. Excluded Skrill and Neteller deposits. Progress Play network Full Terms Apply.

William Hill
William Hill
Deposit & Bet £10 to get £60 Free BetClaim Offer

18+. Play Safe. New customers only, using promo code T60. Valid from 13/04/2022. Online play. Get £60 Bonus split between Vegas & Sports in the following manner – (i) Deposit £10 to unlock £20 Vegas Free Bet on Selected Games (72hr expiry, wagering reqs apply); then (ii) bet £10+ (odds 1/2+) with cash (excl. £10 deposit) or Vegas winnings (after wager reqs met). Once settled, receive £40 Sports Free Bets excluding Virtual Markets (4x £10, 7 days expiry). Full T&Cs apply. #ad

10bet
10bet
100% Welcome Bonus up to £50Claim Offer

New bettors; Code SPORT; Wager deposit & bonus 8x; Max qualifying bet stake=initial bonus; Valid 60 days; Min odds, payment method exclusions apply; New customers only. T&C apply; 18+ Please gamble responsibly.

Coral
Coral
Bet £5 Get £20 in Free BetsClaim Offer

18+ New Customers only. Certain deposit methods & bet types excl. Min first £5 bet within 14 days of account reg at min odds 1/2 to get 4 x £5 free bets. Free bet available to use on selected sportsbook markets only. Free bets valid for 7 days, stake not returned. Restrictions + T&Cs apply.