Opened in 2015, Chelmsford City is the newest racecourse in the UK, having originally opened as Great Leighs in 2008 for one year.
It’s now a popular destination for horse racing fans and hosts meetings throughout the year on its all-weather track.
Just 55 miles from Newmarket, it’s the all-weather track of choice for the leading stables in the country, and trainers such as John & Thady Gosden, Charlie Appleby, William Haggas, and Sir Michael Stoute regularly have runners at Chelmsford.
Chelmsford Tips for Today
There’s a competitive seven-race card at Chelmsford this evening, and we’ve highlighted a horse that’s travelling almost 400 miles to run at the course tonight in our Longest Travellers, plus an in-form jockey that’s riding a 50/1 chance in today’s Stats & Trends - click on the links below for more details!
Check out more from the Freebets horse racing hub, including tips, stats, market movers and today’s racecards!
We’ve highlighted two important factors below to help you select your bets for Chelmsford.
The flying five
Over five furlongs at Chelmsford, you need a horse that likes to be up with the pace from the get-go, and that has the tactical speed to hold its position round the bend - rarely does anything win from behind over the flying five.
Speed is key
As mentioned above, look for horses that like to race prominently and have plenty of tactical speed, particularly in races up to one mile in distance.
Top Chelmsford Jockeys
Jack Mitchell and Richard Kingscote are the jockeys to keep an eye out for at Chelmsford, with both hovering around a 20% strike rate at the track.
Top Chelmsford Trainers
Many of the top Newmarket stables send runners to Chelmsford, so it’s no shock that John & Thady Gosden and Roger Varian have an excellent strike rate at the track - both at around the 25% mark.
Chelmsford Free Bets & Betting Offers
There’s horse racing throughout the year at Chelmsford, making it an ideal venue to enjoy the top betting offers from the leading UK bookmakers.
Check out the latest promotions and betting offers and grab some generous new customer bonuses for the Chelmsford action.
One popular welcome bonus currently is from BetGoodwin, which sees you get 50% of any first-day losses refunded as a free bet.
Betfair is also a popular destination for horse racing punters alongside bet365, who offers £30 in bet credits when you join.
Chelmsford Racecourse Layout & Info
Previously known as Great Leights, Chelmsford City Racecourse is located near Braintree in Essex and hosts flat racing on its Polytrack surface.
With the bonus of floodlights, it hosts race meetings throughout the year, and it’s a popular all-weather track for Newmarket trainers, with some high-quality horses having raced at Chelmsford over the years.
It’s known for being a fair and galloping track, and races typically have plenty of pace in them - you rarely get a slow run race at Chelmsford.
Aside from being the newest racecourse in the country, it’s also unique in the UK due to the grandstand being in the middle of the track.
Chelmsford Top Featured Races
Chelmsford’s two feature races through the year are both Listed events held in May and June - full details are in the table below.
| Race | Grade | Distance | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chelmer Fillies’ Stakes | Listed | 6 furlongs | May |
| Queen Charlotte Fillies’ Stakes | Listed | 7 furlongs | June |
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