Story highlights
Jockey Club Racecourses reintroduces ￡1m ($1.5m) bonus
Kauto Star won similar bonus for winning three Grade 1 chases in 2006-07
New jackpot honors retired racer who died earlier this year
UK horse racing’s ￡1 million ($1.5m) jackpot is back.
Nine years after Kauto Star triggered the bonus awarded by bookmakers Betfair, a new initiative called the “Chase Triple Crown” has been launched in honor of the star steeplechaser who died earlier this year.
The seven-figure sum put up by the UK’s Jockey Club Racecourses is on offer for any horse that can match the bay gelding’s achievement of winning the Betfair Chase, William Hill King George VI Chase and Betfred Cheltenham Gold Cup during the 2006/07 season.
Jockey Club Racecourses, who own and operate 15 racecourses in the UK, has launched the incentive after Kauto Star, who retired from racing in 2012, was put down following a paddock fall in June.
“We want to encourage horses to attempt to win all three of our ‘Chase Triple Crown’ races and forge a place in racing folklore reserved for only the very best,” Paul Fisher, group managing director of Jockey Club Racecourses, said in a statement.
“We’ve a huge amount of respect at Jockey Club Racecourses for our sport’s heritage and we’re keen to find new ways to encourage new historic feats like this because they create such fantastic excitement and bring British racing to the attention of all.”
Jockey Club Racecourses hope that it will not only drum up more interest in horse racing, but also to provide a further incentive for everyone – from the owners to the stable staff – involved in the running of high-quality chasers.
The bonus will see the owner taking 65% of the fee, the trainer 15%, the jockey 10% and stable staff 10%. If different jockeys ride the horse then the 10% share will be split a third per ride.
“Hopefully the chance to win ￡1 million over-and-above our prize money for the three races makes the Chase Triple Crown opportunity even more compelling for owners and trainers, supports jockeys and stable staff too, and will provide a great story to follow if the treble is on,” Fisher added.
“Kauto Star was a special racehorse and I’m delighted to announce this bonus in his honor.”
The first leg of the Chase Triple Crown is the Betfair Chase on November 21, with the William Hill King George VI Chase taking place on December 26 and the Betfred Cheltenham Gold Cup on March 18, 2016.