Horse Racing

Greyhound Derby - Racing: All You Need to Know

bet365 News Team Updated: 24 Nov 22 16:45

The final six dogs come together for a chance to land the biggest prize in greyhound racing at Towcester on Saturday evening.

(Article originally published 26.06.2022)

This year's renewal saw 192 dogs set out to win the most prestigious canine prize and there has been no end of thrills and spills along the way.

Ballinabola Ed had dominated the betting market for much of the competition, but the ante-post favourite was eliminated at the quarter-final stage.

Romeo Magico is the market leader at 2/1 for Saturday's Towcester extravaganza, which is the highlight of a high-quality 14-race card.

What: 2022 English Greyhound Derby

Where: Towcester Racecourse, Northamptonshire

When: 9.09pm, Saturday June 25th 2022

How to watch: Sporty Stuff TV and Sports Live Streaming

Odds: Romeo Magico 2/1, Kildare 9/4, Priceless Jet 7/2, Hello Hammond 6/1, Mickys Barrett 12/1, Savana Beau 14/1

When is the Greyhound Derby?

The competition got under way on May 19th, 2022 with 192 dogs in the final field. The competition runs for over six weeks with the final held on June 25th, 2022 and scheduled to go off at 9.09pm.

Where is the Greyhound Derby?

The Derby is run at Towcester Racecourse in Northamptonshire. It's the site of a former National Hunt racecourse, which was famous for its stiff uphill finish. The greyhound track has a circumference of 420m, with the Derby being run over a 500m distance.

Towcester opened its doors to greyhound racing in 2014 and held the Derby in 2017, 2018 and 2021 and recently signed a five-year deal to stage the showpiece event.

The English Greyhound Derby has a long history and was first held at London's White City Stadium in 1927. The race stayed in west London, bar a one-year switch to Harringay in 1940, until it was moved to Wimbledon in 1985.

The Derby continued to be staged at the Plough Lane venue until its doors were closed in 2016.

Nottingham held the 2019 and 2020 runnings of the great race, but Towcester has now been established as the new home of the biggest prize in greyhound racing.

How the competition works

The competing greyhounds are drawn into first-round heats, with three dogs qualifying from each race throughout the event. The top-three dogs from each heat then progress to the next round, with the rest of the field eliminated from the competition.

It's a random draw, apart from the fact that the greyhounds are seeded to their running style. The dogs are graded as railers, middles or wides and that plays a part in their trap draws.

The competition runs over a six-week period, until it reaches its crescendo, when there are just six greyhounds left in the event.

Not only is it a test of a dogs speed and skill, but also of their endurance and constitution and they need to maintain a high-level of performance throughout the competition.

Meet 2022's finalists

Trap 1 - Savana Beau
Started the competition as a 100-1 shot and he is owned by Towcester Racecourse Managing Director Kevin Boothby. Savana Beau is a strong-running dog and he picked up the previously unbeaten Signet Goofy, to snatch the third qualifying spot.

Trap 2 - Kildare
Won his semi-final, beating Priceless Jet and Savana Beau and the Peter Cronin-trained runner looks to hold strong claims in the final. Kildare is the youngest greyhound left in the competition, he showed brilliant early pace in the semis and he has Trap 2 again in the final.

Trap 3 - Hello Hammond
Hello Hammond is a strong-running type and the Paul Hennessy-trained dog could cause a surprise if he can hold his position in the early stages of the race. Looked good when winning his quarter-final from Trap 3, before staying on to grab third from the inside box in the semis.

Trap 4 - Romeo Magico
Graham Holland’s dog clocked 29.06 when a brilliant three-and-one-quarter length semi-final winner and he is now the market leader. That came out of Trap 2, but Romeo Magico showed enough early pace to just clear the field from the four box in the quarter-finals.

Trap 5 - Mickys Barrett
Recorded one of his best sectionals of the competition (4.22) in the semi-finals, but was unable to clear Romeo Magico on his inside. Mickys Barrett is again housed outside of that rival, but he chased hard last week and was eight-and-one-quarter lengths ahead of Savana Beau in third.

Trap 6 - Priceless Jet
Priceless Jet stayed on well from Trap 6 to finish half-a-length behind Kildare in the semi-finals. Paul Hennessy's charge broke the track record in the quarter-finals and he has the final draw to stay out of trouble on the outside.

Betting Clues

Clearly, the Derby is a huge betting event and some lucky punters will still be holding on to ante-post tickets. Theres still a chance to back the winner in Saturday's final and here is the view of bet365's Pat Cooney.

"It’s a case of so far, so good, here at bet365, with the earlier rounds mostly proving profitable.

"Of course, both favourites winning their semi-finals was expensive, but on balance we are ahead and more importantly in good shape from an ante-post position. I honestly feel that the final is still hard to call and think how the track is running on the night will be the key to the race.

"On the basis, we usually have fast conditions on final nights, I'll take Kildare to make all, but good luck to all the finalists."