Ascot has a responsibility to remain competitive on the international stage, the course said on Monday, as it announced prize-money in 2018 would break through the £13 million-barrier for the first time.
The annual figure of £13,452,000 is £1.2m, or ten per cent higher, than in 2017 and does not include the industry-owned Qipco British Champions Day.
Prize-money at Royal Ascot is also up ten per cent at £7,305,000, while the Qipco-sponsored King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes is up £100,000 to £1,250,000.
The track’s executive contribution to prize-money in 2018 is £7.1m, a rise of nine per cent, with the large independent courses such as Ascot having foregone the extra income generated by the government’s levy reforms to meet the sport’s strategy of funnelling those funds to the lower and middle tiers.
Ascot’s director of racing Nick Smith said: “For us it is a real balancing act. We have got to make sure the Group 1 races remain competitive on the international stage. We’ve got to make sure these races move forward in an appropriate way.”
BRITAIN’S MILLIONAIRE CLUB
Derby £1.5m Epsom
Champion Stakes £1.3m Ascot
King George £1.25m* Ascot
QEII Stakes £1.1m Ascot
Grand National £1m Aintree
International £1m York
Sussex Stakes £1m Goodwood
*announced 2018 value
No race at Royal Ascot will be run for less than £90,000 – Smith said the ambition was to increase that to £100,000 in the near future – and Group 1 prize-money now begins at £500,000, rather than £400,000.
The Queen Anne Stakes and Prince of Wales’s Stakes will remain worth £600,000 and £750,000 respectively, and Smith added: “They’re competitive but not dominant in Europe, and that’s not necessarily where Royal Ascot should be, and they’re not comparable in prize-money terms to the likes of Australia, Dubai, Hong Kong and certain races in America.
“We’ve got to take responsibility for British racing on the international stage by making sure that bit-by-bit, where we can, we continue to move these things forward.
“We’re very fortunate in Britain, and specifically at Royal Ascot and with the King George, that there is considerable enhancement to breeding stock by winning give their enormous profile. But it would be complacent and inappropriate to rely on that.”
Royal Ascot’s prize-money has increased 62 per cent since 2012, with the annual programme having gone up 46 per cent in that period.
Ascot chief executive Guy Henderson added: “Under our statutory racing trust, all of Ascot’s returns are invested for the benefit of horsemen, our racegoers and off-course followers, both in the UK and internationally.
“In order to continue to attract the best horses to run at Ascot, and with the royal meeting a shop window for international investment in British racing, it is important we offer as competitive prize-money as we can, particularly at the high end.
“It’s therefore pleasing to be able to announce, through balanced progress, that Ascot is able to offer record prize-money alongside our other investments and continuing to reduce our grandstand debt on schedule.”
ROYAL ASCOT PRIZE-MONEY
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TUESDAY
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2017
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2018
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||
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Queen Anne Stakes (Group 1)
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4+
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One mile
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£600,000
|
£600,000
|
|
Coventry Stakes (Group 2)
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2
|
Six furlongs
|
£150,000
|
£150,000
|
|
King’s Stand Stakes (Group 1)
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3+
|
Five furlongs
|
£400,000
|
£500,000
|
|
St James’s Palace Stakes (Group 1)
|
3 colts
|
Old mile
|
£400,000
|
£500,000
|
|
Ascot Stakes (Handicap)
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4+
|
Two miles, four furlongs
|
£80,000
|
£90,000
|
|
Windsor Castle Stakes (Listed)
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2
|
Five furlongs
|
£80,000
|
£90,000
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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WEDNESDAY
|
|
|
||
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Jersey Stakes (Group 3)
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3
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Seven furlongs
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£90,000
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£90,000
|
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Queen Mary Stakes (Group 2)
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2 fillies
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Five furlongs
|
£110,000
|
£110,000
|
|
Duke of Cambridge Stakes (Group 2)
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4+ fillies & mares
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One mile
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£175,000
|
£175,000
|
|
Prince of Wales’s Stakes (Group 1)
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4+
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One mile, two furlongs
|
£750,000
|
£750,000
|
|
Royal Hunt Cup (Heritage Handicap)
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3+
|
One mile
|
£175,000
|
£175,000
|
|
Sandringham Stakes (Listed) (Handicap)
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3 fillies
|
One mile
|
£80,000
|
£90,000
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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THURSDAY
|
|
|
||
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Norfolk Stakes (Group 2)
|
2
|
Five furlongs
|
£100,000
|
£100,000
|
|
Hampton Court Stakes (Formerly Tercentenary Stakes) (Group 3)
|
3
|
One mile, two furlongs
|
£90,000
|
£90,000
|
|
Ribblesdale Stakes (Group 2)
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3 fillies
|
One mile, four furlongs
|
£200,000
|
£200,000
|
|
Gold Cup (Group 1)
|
4+
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Two miles, four furlongs
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£400,000
|
£500,000
|
|
Britannia Stakes (Heritage Handicap)
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3 colts & geldings
|
One mile
|
£120,000
|
£120,000
|
|
King George V Stakes (Handicap)
|
3
|
One mile, four furlongs
|
£90,000
|
£90,000
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FRIDAY
|
|
|
||
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Albany Stakes (Group 3)
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2 fillies
|
Six furlongs
|
£80,000
|
£90,000
|
|
King Edward VII Stakes (Group 2)
|
3 colts & geldings
|
One mile, four furlongs
|
£225,000
|
£225,000
|
|
Commonwealth Cup (Group 1)
|
3
|
Six furlongs
|
£400,000
|
£500,000
|
|
Coronation Stakes (Group 1)
|
3 fillies
|
Old mile
|
£400,000
|
£500,000
|
|
Queen’s Vase (Group 2)
|
3
|
One mile, six furlongs
|
£150,000
|
£200,000
|
|
Duke of Edinburgh Stakes (Handicap)
|
3+
|
One mile, four furlongs
|
£80,000
|
£90,000
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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SATURDAY
|
|
|
||
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Chesham Stakes (Listed)
|
2
|
Seven furlongs
|
£80,000
|
£90,000
|
|
Wolferton Rated Stakes (Listed)
|
4+
|
One mile, two furlongs
|
£80,000
|
£100,000
|
|
Hardwicke Stakes (Group 2)
|
4+
|
One mile, four furlongs
|
£225,000
|
£225,000
|
|
Diamond Jubilee Stakes (Group 1)
|
4+
|
Six furlongs
|
£600,000
|
£600,000
|
|
Wokingham Stakes (Heritage Handicap)
|
3+
|
Six furlongs
|
£175,000
|
£175,000
|
|
Queen Alexandra Stakes (Conditions)
|
4+
|
Two miles, six furlongs
|
£80,000
|
£90,000
|
|
TOTAL
|
|
|
£6,665,000
|
£7,305,000
|
fonte : RacingPost
