Lonsdale Cup Preview, Tips, Runners & Trends (Ebor Festival)

An extended two miles at Group 2 level gives stayers a proper examination on the Knavesmire, a race that regularly features the leading cup horses in training. Our trends guide covers the profile, the draw and the shortlist.
Lonsdale Cup Preview, Tips, Runners & Trends (Ebor Festival)
Andy Powell
Andy Powell Content Editor

You know how punters get lost in too much data or bet blindly? I break down the stats and trends so you can feel confident you’re betting with more than just gut instinct.

2027 Lonsdale Cup Preview

One for horses with plenty of stamina, the Lonsdale Cup is a Group 2 race that is run over two miles and fifty-six yards and is open to runners who are aged three or older. The race takes place on day three of the York Ebor Festival in August of each year.

The Doncaster Cup double
The Lonsdale Cup is a reliable stepping stone to Doncaster's Doncaster Cup, and unusually the form follows through. Eleven of the last eighteen winners to run again headed straight to Town Moor, and six of them completed the double, a far better strike-rate than most such trends offer. With the winner typically emerging from the front of the market, a well-fancied Lonsdale scorer is one to keep firmly onside for the Doncaster Cup rather than merely note in passing, making the winner a strong pointer for the autumn staying prize ahead of the next renewal.

Andy Powell - Horse Racing Betting Expert - OLBG.com

Lonsdale Cup Information:

Why not use the trends shortlist below to help you narrow down the field and then head over to the dedicated York tips page to see which runners are being supported by the OLBG expert racing tipsters to find yourself a bet? You may also be interested in other preview blogs that we have packed full of information. Head down to the Other Principal Races at York Racecourse section for links to these.

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How competitive is the Lonsdale Cup market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 20 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2021, when the race had an over-round of 107%. The race in 2018 was a race that was most in the bookie's favour with an over-round of 125%, whilst on average over the last 20 renewals of the Lonsdale Cup, the over-round has been 113%, which means the bookie expects to pay out £100 for every £113 which is bet.

Below you will find the 2027 Lonsdale Cup Trends. See which patterns have occurred over the recent renewals that you may be able to use for the next renewal. We also have a section that looks at the Lonsdale Cup Trend Analysis.

These are the top three quickest-run Lonsdale Cup races over the last 20 renewals:

  1. Stradivarius (3:27.06) in 2019
  2. Coltrane (3:27.92) in 2023
  3. Quickthorn (3:28.20) in 2022

Looking at the future form, is the winner worth following next time out? Over the past 20 renewals, if you had followed the winner of the Lonsdale Cup next time out, then you would have backed a total of 8 winners. Backing all 18 runners who have been out since their win at SP next time out would have returned an LSP of +1.90. Ahead of the 2027 Lonsdale Cup, why not head over to the racing predictions for tips on other races today?

The runner that holds the record over the past 20 renewals for the slowest time in the race was set in the 2007 renewal when Septimus from A P O'Brien under the guidance of Johnny Murtagh, won in a time of 3:38.82, whilst at the other end of the spectrum, Stradivarius, trained by John Gosden and ridden by Frankie Dettori set the quickest time of 3:27.06 in the 2019 renewal.

Lonsdale Cup Past Winners

Here are the Lonsdale Cup past winners for the last 10 renewals. Each row details the race year, the winning horse, and the horse's age & weight. Also detailed are the stall from which the horse came and the total number of runners in the race. The horse's trainer and the jockey at the time of winning the Lonsdale Cup are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.

YearHorse (Drawn)Info
2026
3:35.52
Al Nayyir (GB)
8yo 9-5 (5 of 8) 9/1
William Buick
Tom Clover (GB)
2025
3:29.04
Trawlerman (IRE)
7yo 9-8 (4 of 6) 5/6F
William Buick
John & Thady Gosden (GB)
2024
3:28.54
Vauban (FR)
6yo 9-5 (4 of 9) 11/2
William Buick
W P Mullins (IRE)
2023
3:27.92
Coltrane (IRE)
6yo 9-5 (5 of 7) 11/4
Oisin Murphy
Andrew Balding (GB)
2022
3:28.20
Quickthorn (GB)
5yo 9-5 (1 of 6) 9/4
Tom Marquand
Hughie Morrison (GB)
2021
3:30.87
Stradivarius (IRE)
7yo 9-3 (1 of 4) 4/6F
Frankie Dettori
John & Thady Gosden (GB)
2020
3:33.57
Enbihaar (IRE)
5yo 9-0 (2 of 7) 15/8F
Jim Crowley
John Gosden (GB)
2019
3:27.06
Stradivarius (IRE)
5yo 9-6 (3 of 4) 4/9F
Frankie Dettori
John Gosden (GB)
2018
3:29.69
Stradivarius (IRE)
4yo 9-6 (7 of 9) 4/11F
Frankie Dettori
John Gosden (GB)
2017
3:31.06
Montaly (GB)
6yo 9-3 (4 of 9) 16/1
P J McDonald
Andrew Balding (GB)

Where have the winning runners come from?

Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the Lonsdale Cup have been based:

  • GB: 16 winners with an additional 24 placings from 128 runners
  • IRE: 4 winners with an additional 4 placings from 24 runners

2026 Lonsdale Cup Replay


Lonsdale Cup Trainer Statistics

The leading trainer in the Lonsdale Cup over the last 20 renewals is John Gosden, who has won the race three times, with those three winners coming from Stradivarius (2018 & 2019) and Enbihaar (2020). Other trainers who have recorded multiple wins in the Lonsdale Cup are Andrew Balding (2 wins), W P Mullins (2 wins) and John & Thady Gosden (2 wins).

Here are some of the top Lonsdale Cup trainer statistics over the last 20 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):

TrainerR-W-PWinEW
John Gosden8-3-6-2.32-0.85
Andrew Balding12-2-5+8.75+5.78
W P Mullins11-2-4+4.50+3.83
John & Thady Gosden6-2-5-2.50-1.05
Saeed bin Suroor7-1-3-2.00+0.30
A P O'Brien7-1-3-4.80-1.93
Hughie Morrison5-1-1-1.75-2.59
Tom Clover3-1-2+7.00+7.20
Roger Charlton3-1-1+2.50+0.81
Marcus Tregoning3-1-1+0.50-0.44

Lonsdale Cup Jockey Statistics

The leading jockey in the Lonsdale Cup over the last 20 renewals is William Buick, who has won the race four times, with those four winners coming from Times Up (2012), Vauban (2024), Trawlerman (2025) and Al Nayyir (2026).

Here are some of the top Lonsdale Cup jockey statistics over the last 20 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):

JockeyR-W-PWinEW
William Buick11-4-6+19.33+11.47
Ryan Moore11-1-5-7.50-3.26
Oisin Murphy7-1-3-3.25-0.44
P J McDonald5-1-2+12.00+6.50
Tom Marquand5-1-1-1.75-2.59
Silvestre De Sousa3-1-2+2.00+3.40
James Doyle5-0-2-5.00-2.35
Jamie Spencer5-0-0-5.00-5.00
Luke Morris4-0-2-4.00+1.70
Rossa Ryan3-0-0-3.00-3.00

2027 Lonsdale Cup Runners & Shortlist

The runners and the final trends shortlist for the 2027 renewal of the Lonsdale Cup will be added once the final declarations are confirmed, which are usually 48 hours before the race.

Lonsdale Cup Trend Analysis

❌ The worst-performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners had 2 career places on the going; when backing these, the trend shows a record of 0-32.

Here are the most recent winning draws, along with the further placings in brackets:

  • 2026: Winner in 5 (4,8) [8 Runners]
  • 2025: Winner in 4 (1) [6 Runners]
  • 2024: Winner in 4 (6,1) [9 Runners]
  • 2023: Winner in 5 (1) [7 Runners]
  • 2022: Winner in 1 (5) [6 Runners]

The course which has produced the most winners of the Lonsdale Cup is Goodwood; there have been a total of 10 winners of this race who ran at Goodwood last time out. The next best course, which has produced the second most winners, is Ascot; there have been a total of 3 winners of this race who ran at Ascot last time out.

The race is open to both sexes, with male runners having produced a total of 18 winners from a total of 142 runners, while female runners have produced 2 winners from a total of 10 runners.

Looking over the past renewals, these are the stallions whose offspring have produced multiple winners of the Lonsdale Cup:

  • Sea The Stars (3 Wins)
  • Dubawi (2 Wins)
  • Halling (2 Wins)

These are the stallions whose offspring have not produced a winner of the Lonsdale Cup despite multiple attempts:

  • Galileo (0 Wins from 8 runners)
  • Dansili (0 Wins from 5 runners)

Looking at the winning odds over the last 20 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was Montaly in 2017, winning for Andrew Balding at odds of 16/1 under the guidance of P J McDonald. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 20 renewals, there have been 9 winning favourites in the race. Remember to use the best racing tipsters along with the information on this page to find a bet on the 2027 Lonsdale Cup.

Route to the Lonsdale Cup

Many trainers target races as preparation for the Lonsdale Cup. These are the races which the recent winners ran in before coming here:

InfoLast Race
2026 - Al Nayyir
Ascot - 7th of 11 (126/1)
Ascot Gold Cup
2025 - Trawlerman
Ascot - 1st of 8 (313/100)
Ascot Gold Cup
2024 - Vauban
Curragh - 3rd of 10 (11/8)
Comer Group International Curragh Cup
2023 - Coltrane
Goodwood - 3rd of 11 (3/1)
Goodwood Cup
2022 - Quickthorn
Longchamp - 1st of 6 (1/1)
Prix Maurice de Nieuil - Prix Radio FG
2021 - Stradivarius
Ascot - 4th of 12 (5/6)
Ascot Gold Cup
2020 - Enbihaar
Goodwood - 1st of 3 (1/2)
Lillie Langtry Stakes
2019 - Stradivarius
Goodwood - 1st of 8 (4/5)
Goodwood Cup
2018 - Stradivarius
Goodwood - 1st of 7 (4/5)
Goodwood Cup
2017 - Montaly
Sandown - 2nd of 6 (9/2)
Coral Marathon

Other Principal races during the York Ebor Festival

Remember to head over to the York predictions page to see which runner the racing tipsters support in the Lonsdale Cup. Below are the other principal races that we cover during the Ebor Festival, with links to each race blog and information for last year's winners.

Wednesday at the Ebor Festival

The highlight of the opening day of the Ebor Festival is the Juddmonte International, a Group 1 race with a purse of £1.25 million, which is part of the British Champion Series.

RaceLast WinnerInfo
13:50 York
Ebor HKJC World Pool Handicap
Air Force One (IRE)
5yo - 13/2
Geoff Oldroyd
P J McDonald
14:25 York
Acomb Stakes
Haffner (USA)
2yo - 11/8
A P O'Brien
Ryan Moore
15:00 York
Great Voltigeur Stakes
Maltese Cross (FR)
3yo - 9/4
William Haggas
Tom Marquand
15:35 York
Juddmonte International Stakes
Item (GB)
3yo - 10/1
Andrew Balding
Colin Keane
16:10 York
Ebor Stayers Heritage Handicap
Small Fry (IRE)
5yo - 2/1
Joseph Patrick O'Brien
Dylan Browne McMonagle

Thursday at the Ebor Festival

The fillies and mares take centre stage on Thursday at the festival in the Yorkshire Oaks, another Group 1 which is part of the British Champion Series.

RaceLast WinnerInfo
13:50 York
Lowther Stakes
Libertango (IRE)
2yo - 3/1
George Boughey
Billy Loughnane
14:25 York
Harrys Half Million By Goffs
Sun Goddess (IRE)
2yo - 1/1
A P O'Brien
Ryan Moore
15:00 York
Clipper Handicap
The Lost King (GB)
4yo - 7/1
Andrew Balding
Oisin Murphy
15:35 York
Yorkshire Oaks
Kalpana (GB)
5yo - 10/11
Andrew Balding
Colin Keane
16:10 York
Galtres Stakes
Prizeland (GB)
3yo - 11/1
Andrew Balding
Oisin Murphy
17:20 York
Ebor Fillies Heritage Handicap
Machadadorp (GB)
3yo - 9/1
Andrew Balding
Oisin Murphy

Friday at the Ebor Festival

The British Champion Series race for Friday at the Ebor Festival is the 500k Nunthorpe over the sprint distance of five furlongs. The Lonsdale Cup is also part of the British Champion Series on Friday.

RaceLast WinnerInfo
13:50 York
Ebor Mile Heritage Handicap
Blue Courvoisier (GB)
3yo - 13/2
Clive Cox
Rossa Ryan
14:25 York
Lonsdale Cup
Al Nayyir (GB)
8yo - 9/1
Tom Clover
William Buick
15:00 York
Gimcrack Stakes
Arapaho Gold (IRE)
2yo - 2/1
Michael Dods
Connor Beasley
15:35 York
Nunthorpe Stakes
Bacio (USA)
3yo - 3/1
Wesley A Ward
Juan J Hernandez
16:10 York
Ebor Middle Distance Heritage Handicap
Plage De Havre (GB)
5yo - 11/2
Andrew Balding
P J McDonald

Saturday at the Ebor Festival

The highlight on the final day of the Ebor Festival is the Ebor Handicap itself, a stamina-testing class two handicap which carries a purse of 500k.

RaceLast WinnerInfo
13:50 York
Strensall Stakes
Archivist (GB)
4yo - 9/1
Hamad Al Jehani
Callum Rodriguez
14:25 York
Melrose Heritage Handicap
Infraad (IRE)
3yo - 100/30
William Haggas
Tom Marquand
15:00 York
City of York Stakes
Notable Speech (GB)
5yo - 9/4
Charlie Appleby
William Buick
15:35 York
Ebor Handicap
Daiquiri Bay (GB)
4yo - 10/1
Alan King
Rossa Ryan
16:45 York
Roses Stakes
Sale Shark (IRE)
2yo - 17/2
Hugo Palmer
Oisin Murphy
17:20 York
Ebor Finale Heritage Handicap
Raammee (GB)
4yo - 13/8
Roger Varian
Ray Dawson

Article Contributor Information

We are fortunate to have an excellent team of specialists and experts at OLBG. Contributing to the creation and maintenance of this Lonsdale Cup Preview are Andy and James. They both work on the Horse Racing Tips team, overseeing the tipsters and managing the tip settlement, while also creating and managing all the horse racing event previews for Flat racing.

James Banting

James Banting

Content Editor

James Banting, a passionate horse racing enthusiast and aficionado, brings a wealth of experience to OLBG, having attended numerous race meetings over the years. His background working with the Jockey Association provides him with a unique insider's perspective on the industry.
Andy Powell

Andy Powell

Content Editor

Andy, a seasoned horse racing expert with over 15 years of experience, possesses a comprehensive understanding of the sport, from delving into complex statistical data for flat racing in the UK and Ireland to crafting insightful flat racing blogs for OLBG.

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