Couple More..

[Jono333]

Hi again. Been trying to bet on horses myself recently without any help (really ******* addictive!), ive actually made a bit of a profit! but thats beside the point. I was wondering if someone could help me out on a couple more questions please while i try to nail the basics. 1. What is the difference between classes or groups of races (i.e class 1, 2 3 etc) 2. What do you refer to when you say "starts of at a mark of.." i can see "OR" on sporting life but dont really understand it, does it affect its chances of winning? 3. What does different race types mean, like Handicap race, Claim Stakes, etc etc? Thanks alot for you guys' help!

[billy the punter]

Re: Couple More.. The whole of racing is dependent on OFFICIAL RATINGS (OR) basically, sometimes called "a mark". This is a rating determined by the handicapper for each horse, the rating relates to how much weight horses carry opposed to their rivales. Eg Royal Power (OR 99) Choreography (OR 81) If they run in the same handicap Royal Power would carry 18lbs more than Choreography (99-81=18). So if Royal Power was top weight the card would read: Royal Power 10st 0lbs Choreography 8st 10lbs The grades of handicaps are determined my ratings. For example a Class 4 handicap is open to horses rated 0-80. Class 2 is for better class (or higher rated) horses. Class 6 is for lower rated. Well that's handicaps for you, in a nutshell.