In-running carnage: opening the door on some of Betfair's most notorious losers

Champ's remarkable surge to snatch victory in the RSA at the Cheltenham Festival caused carnage on Betfair's Exchange, with the unlikely winner touching 400 in running, while £4,800 was matched at 1.06 on runner-up Minella Indo.

But a trip down memory lane reveals a host of results that make this year's RSA look tame by comparison.

Still great value on the exchanges – you just might have to work a bit harder

From dodgy camera angles to the commentator's curse, Betfair's in-running market has seen huge sums traded and lost after the impossible became reality.

The stories behind many of those 1.01 losers are as crazy as the sums lost, and here are ten of the most costly highlights.

Horse: Date: Race details: Nottingham, 1m½f handicap
Amount lost at 1.01: £202,324

Nottingham's 1m4f oval would appear one of the more conventional course layouts, but the deceptive angle of the winning line has made a habit of confusing in-running punters and commentators alike.

In a competitive handicap, Kay Gee Be came through to lead just over a furlong out and looked the most likely winner.

Emerging as the challengers late on were Chapter And Verse and, nearest to the stands' side which the angle favours, Fantasy Gladiator.

They were closing quickly as the line approached but to the naked eye Kay Gee Be was just doing enough. While it was tight at the finish, anyone watching in real time would have been hard pressed to call any other result than Kay Gee Be winning.

Commentator Mike Cattermole described it as "very tight" and Richard Hoiles in the Racing TV studio warned of the "deceptive angle". They both favoured Kay Gee Be and were not alone.

The freeze frame revealed the finish was closer than had initially looked, yet it still came as a bombshell when Fantasy Gladiator was called the winner by a nose from Kay Gee Be, with the runner-up going down in history as the most expensive 1.01 loser in Betfair history.

July 1, 2008
Hamilton, 1m½f handicap
£88,893

The first disqualification on the list cost 1.01 backers dear, when first-past-the-post Jollyhockeysticks was relegated to second by the Hamilton stewards.

Hot favourite Deep Winter, ridden by Paul Hanagan, was the beneficiary but only after the stewards took an age to reverse the first and second.

Jollyhockeysticks made what had appeared a race-winning move when coming through to lead inside the final furlong.

However, she hung markedly as 4-6 shot Deep Winter made progress in second, taking the favourite across the track in the closing stages.

Although appearing to edge left, Deep Water was responding to pressure and the stewards adjudged that, had she experienced an uninterrupted run, she would have beaten Jollyhockeysticks.

Duntle
September 8, 2012
Leopardstown, 1m Group 1
£58,578

The only Group 1 to feature and the second result to play out in the stewards' room, the 2012 Matron Stakes lacked nothing for drama and the decision to reverse the first and second divided opinion and caused considerable anguish on Betfair.

The fact it took 25 minutes for the stewards to make their judgement indicates just how tight the call was was but eventually runner-up Chachamaidee was placed ahead of first-past-the-post Duntle, costing 1.01 backers dearly.

The 2012 Matron Stakes: stewards took 25 minutes to make their judgementCredit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

Duntle was involved in a minor barging match with Alanza as she looked for racing room, forcing Chachamaidee – who was making her bid for victory down the outside – wider still.

A short-head separated the pair at the post but the stewards looked at the earlier interference and agreed with Chachamaidee's rider Tom Queally it had made a difference to the result.

The betting on the stewards' inquiry was equally fascinating, with Duntle backed at 1.01 to keep the race. Punters who thought Chachamaidee would get the verdict were matched at a high of 16.

A subsequent appeal by connections of Duntle took a further three and a half hours to untangle before the decision of the raceday stewards was upheld.

Brazilian Brush
July 14, 2008
Windsor 5f handicap
£51,345

How can a horse who finished a well-beaten 11th feature among the biggest losers in Betfair history? It may seem unlikely but is exactly what happened during the last race on a Monday night at Windsor.

The situation unfolded in the concluding 5f handicap when course commentator Mike Cattermole mistook winner Make My Dream for Brazilian Brush, who was toiling down the field.

Make My Dream did just that for one canny Betfair punter, who snapped up £15 at 999-1 about the winner when a photo was called, but many others were left out of pocket as more than £51,000 was lost trying to recoup £510 on an also-ran trading at 1.01.

After Cattermole's initial error, the on-course At The Races team compounded the mistake by suggesting Brazilian Brush had "clearly won" in the photo. Cattermole was quickly on the PA system after the judge announced the result to apologise for his mistake, but it was too late to save exchange punters.

In a final ironic twist, Brazilian Brush was owned at the time by the Racehorse Owners Association's racing club for 18-32-year-olds sponsored by none other than Betfair.

Rio's Girl
October 3, 2011
Warwick, 5f handicap
£42,400

Another case of mistaken identity in commentary led to Rio's Girl becoming a hefty in-running loser despite finishing tenth.

She was lucky to stay upright around the home turn after suffering interference two furlongs out, and was never a factor, at least until she was mistaken for eventual winner Straboe, who proved a short-head too strong for runner-up Bateleur.

Given the low autumn sun and with both riders wearing predominantly green silks, it was easy to see how Stewart Machin had made the error, but that probably did little to console the affected in-running punters.

Riggins
November 27, 2010
Kempton, 1m Listed
£39,078

Riggins may have been first past the post in the Hyde Stakes, but the fact he shared the spoils with Fanunalter having looked the outright winner earns him a place on the list.

Although costly for some punters, trainer Ed Walker was celebrating as Riggins gave him a first success with his very first runner.

Fanunalter, trained by Marco Botti, was first to go for home under Adam Kirby, but Riggins finished like a train and, to the naked eye, looked like he had just edged ahead under William Buick close home.

A frustrated Kirby certainly thought so, as did 1.01 backers of Riggins, but half of the near £80,000 punted at 1-100 slipped away as the judge called a dead-heat.

Jeanry
November 10, 2010
Bangor, 2m1f handicap hurdle
£27,679

Conditional rider Chris Timmons endured a horror show of a ride at Bangor with the rider copping a 28-day ban after a calamitous error of judgement on Jeanry cost him and the seven-year-old's backers dear.

Timmons was riding the 4-1 shot for trainer Jim Whitehead and, after jumping the last, it appeared the pair were comfortably going to succeed.

When six lengths clear half a furlong out and after checking over both shoulders, Timmons eased his mount down drastically, only to suffer the ultimate embarrassment when caught by Matt Griffiths aboard Monsieur.

Despite attempting to recover the damage had been done, and Jeanry lost by three-quarters of a length.

Timmons, who held his hands up and accepted blame, was subjected to booing and insults by punters as he unsaddled and was subsequently hit with a four-week ban.

Opt Out
June 30, 2012
Newcastle, 5f maiden
£24,955

You'd expect any horse owned by Alan Shearer to be a good finisher and Slipstream Angel was just that at Newcastle, much to the frustration of Opt Out backers.

Racing on the stands' rail used to be a big advantage on Newcastle's straight turf course when the ground was testing, and the first three winners over the course on that day had made their challenges against the favoured rail.

Consequently, front-runner Opt Out was backed into 6-4 favouritism and was soon scooting clear from the highest draw. Punters started hoovering up the short in-running prices, not least because the leader was trained by Mark Johnston, whose horses are renowned for pouring it on in front.

However, Opt Out dramatically weakened near the finish and was caught in the dying strides by Slipstream Angel, with £27 matched at 999-1.

May 11, 2019
Nottingham, 6f Novice Stakes
£34,315

The curse of Nottingham struck again when 4-1 chance Obee Jo suffered a last-gasp defeat courtesy of 125-1 outsider Lady Monica.

Obee Jo looked sure to oblige when going clear inside the final furlong, with rider David Allen looking supremely confident as he checked the state of play on the big screen.

Yet Lady Monica and Royston Ffrench made up at least four lengths with a blistering finish that also had serious repercussions for those betting in-running.

Emma Lamb
October 21, 2018
Sedgefield, 2m1f bumper
£31,903

On a day of drama at Sedgefield, the bumper provided an unlikely victory for Honourary Gift.

Emma Lamb had moved four lengths clear for Joe Colliver and Jedd O'Keeffe, only to swerve at the paddock gate and unseat Colliver 50 yards from the finish.

The in-running damage did not end there, with Risk And Co left in front but unable to hold off the well-backed Honourary Gift, who having looked booked for a disappointing third returned an unlikely 11-8 winning favourite.

If you enjoyed this, you might like the following articles by Lewis Porteous:

Inside the inner-city riding school changing lives in Liverpool

'Half the stuff written about me is made up' – Michael Owen sets record straight

Christian Williams: the radical regime behind Welsh hero's breakthrough moment

'Dad always said make work a pleasure – I haven't done a day's work in my life'

Have another look at September's Big Read with record-breaker Hollie Doyle

Kieran Shoemark: 'I didn't know right from wrong – I was completely twisted'

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