Fakenham betting with William Hill

Fakenham is a popular National Hunt racecourse in the heart of Norfolk. With a circumference of just a mile, Fakenham is the sharpest of all Jumps’ tracks and one that suits the most nimble of thoroughbreds.

Thoroughbred racing has taken place at Fakenham since 1905 and every race of the track’s 14 fixtures is broadcast live on Sky Sports Racing.

The racecourse brought its facilities into the 21^st century in 2002 by opening a brand new £1m Members’ Stand, which was named and officially opened by Fakenham’s Patron, the Prince of Wales.

The Royal connection goes even further, with HRH The Queen having had many winners at the track over the years, not least Gold Award who won a Fakenham bumper before going on to run at in the Champion Bumper at the Cheltenham Festival that season.

Fakenham is one of the most affordable racecourse to visit anywhere in the country, with adult ticket prices starting at just £10, while all children under 18 get in for free.

Fakenham is also the venue for the West Norfolk Hunt’s Point to Point.

Fakenham betting – the big meetings/races

Fakenham’s big race of the season is the Fakenham Silver Cup, a 2m handicap hurdle that takes pride of place at the Spring National Hunt meeting in March.

The 0-125 is by some way the most competitive Fakenham betting event of the season and is sometimes won by a horse capable of making his mark in a higher grade, like 2012 winner Conquisto, who was only just touched off in a warm amateur riders’ event at Aintree’s Grand National meeting on his next start.

Brian Ellison trained the winner twice between 2011 and 2014, on both occasions with Fujin Dancer, who successfully switched between Flat and Jumps racing during that period.

Fakenham stages the Norfolk National Handicap Chase at its popular May meeting and this extremely competitive Fakenham betting contest is always one of the great spectacles of the National Hunt season.

Runners in the Class 3, 3m5f contest have to negotiate 22 fences, so it‘s a real test of jumping as well as stamina.

This relatively young race has only been around since 2015 but, in its brief history it has already proved a tough nut for bettors to crack, with two of the first three winners sent off a double-figure price in the Fakenham betting.

Fakenham stages a hugely popular ladies’ day in early June, which is generally the track’s biggest day in terms of attendance, although the Christmas meeting also attracts a big crowd of racegoers keen to make the most of the holiday period.

Fakenham odds – impact on ante-post betting for future races

Very few races at Fakenham create ante-post ripples for bigger contests, but an impressive bumper winner, often trained by a high-profile trainer like Nicky Henderson or Paul Nicholls, can often enter the betting for the Champion Bumper at the Cheltenham Festival.

Potters Legend was an impressive winner of an early-season bumper at Fakenham and was immediately targeted at the Listed bumper at Cheltenham’s big November meeting, where he finished a hugely creditable second behind Ballyandy, who went on to win the Champion Bumper later in the season.

Similarly, there are several novice chases run at the track and it’s not uncommon that they throw up a good horse with aspirations of graded-race success.

Wonderful Charm, trained by Paul Nicholls, won a novice chase at Fakenham in 2013 in such impressive style that his next port of call was the Grade 2 Rising Star Novices’ Chase, which he won by a length.

Starluck was a juvenile novice hurdler going places in 2008 and, having won a Fakenham novices’ hurdle by a whopping 18 lengths, he ended up in the Triumph Hurdle at Cheltenham, in which he finished a hugely respectable fourth.

Fakenham course characteristics

Fakenham is an almost square-shaped, left-handed course that is very sharp in nature, with a short run-in on both the hurdles and chase track.

It’s widely regarded as the tightest and sharpest Jumps track in the UK and, as such, very much favours nippy types who race prominently and can handle sharp turns well.

Avoid long-striding gallopers that excel on stiff tracks when assessing William Hill’s Fakenham betting markets.

However, ground conditions at Fakenham can get testing and races can often be strongly-run, resulting in horses needing to dig much deeper into their stamina reserves than expected.

Because they often go quite hard from an early stage, pressure on jumping is increased and that results in more casualties than is often the case at a minor track.

The ability to travel and jump slickly is crucial, while it often pays to challenge a bit earlier than normal on hold-up types because of the short run-in. A good jump is always required at the last obstacle because there is so little time to get back up if momentum is lost.

Fakenham betting tips

It’s a long journey from Christian Williams’ Glamorgan base to Fakenham, but it’s clear that the young trainer only makes the trip when he thinks it’s going to be worthwhile, and that is borne out by his record at Fakenham since he took up training.

Williams is especially hot with his runners in chase races at Fakenham and his contenders need serious consideration in Fakenham betting lists.

Olly Murphy has quickly established himself as a trainer to follow at many of the country’s National Hunt tracks, not least Fakenham where his hurdlers so often hit the target.

Lucy Wadham’s horses also need close attention in Fakenham betting lists, especially when attracting support. Newmarket-based Wadham loves to have a winner at nearby Fakenham and the canny trainer rarely seems to leave the money behind when one of hers is backed.

Peter Bowen, like Christian Williams, tends to make the long journey from his Welsh base a fruitful one, and that’s also the case with sons Sean and Jamie, who dominate the jockey standings at Fakenham, along with Richard Johnson.

Fakenham racecourse – how to get there

The racecourse is situated a mile south of Fakenham town, on the B1146 (East Dereham road).

On race days, follow the yellow AA signs that direct racegoers towards the designated access into the racecourse.

There’s free car parking available, however there’s a fee of £8 per car for parking in the Members’ Enclosure.

The nearest train station is Kings Lynn, which is 22 miles away, while Norwich is a little further away (25 miles).

Racegoers looking to travel to Fakenham by bus should take route X29 from Norwich and route X8 if travelling from Kings Lynn.

Boost your Fakenham betting experience

For more Fakenham betting news, visit news.williamhill.com and be sure to check out William Hill promotions where you can find the best Fakenham odds throughout the year.