Ascot Racecourse has announced record prize money of £15.64m in 2022 with increases across the Flat and Jumps programme.

This represents an increase of nearly £2 million on 2019 values (from £13.67m), or 14.4%, being the last year when planned prize money was distributed before the pandemic impacted 2020. These figures exclude the industry partnership QIPCO British Champions Day.

Royal Ascot (14th – 18th June 2022) will be worth £8,652,500, an increase of £1,322,500 (18%) on 2019 values which totalled £7,330,000.

Highlights include:

-  The Royal Ascot Tuesday card, featuring three Group One races, becomes Royal Ascot’s first £2 million day.

-  The Prince of Wales’s Stakes and the Platinum Jubilee Stakes (formerly Diamond) will become the first races at Royal Ascot to be run with a total prize fund of £1 million.

-  No race at Royal Ascot will be run for less than £100,000.

Outside Royal Ascot:

-  The King George VI & Queen Elizabeth QIPCO Stakes returns to its pre-pandemic value of £1.25 million.

-  A record £550,000 will be offered at the Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup (from £360,000 in 2019). The programme will increase to eight races (from six) with 12 runners in each race (from 10). Details of the team format will follow in 2022.

-  All Flat races will be worth at least £15,000 and all Jumps races will be worth at least £10,000 (excluding three National Hunt Flat races and one Hunters’ Chase at £5,000).

-  There will be additional £25,000 stable prizes offered on both QIPCO King George Diamond Day (23rd July 2022) and Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup Day (6th August 2022). These will be awarded £20,000 to the trainers and £5,000 to stable staff across the top three performing yards based on points achieved for first to fifth placings.

 

-  All plans remain subject to change depending on the COVID-19 landscape.

 

Guy Henderson, Chief Executive Officer at Ascot Racecourse, said:

“We are pleased to be able to announce a return to our pre-pandemic prize money plans as we re-build. Whilst these plans have been unavoidably delayed, today is about looking forward. It is vital we maintain the quality of the British Pattern and the top end programme generally. For obvious reasons, a large proportion of the increases announced today are focused on our 35 races at the Royal Meeting.

“Prize money is racing’s equivalent of remunerating the players on the pitch. We need to offer the best we can in order to attract the best and help maintain international investment in British racing. Our next ambition, as we build Ascot as a global brand wrapped around world class racing, is to be able to offer at least £1m for each of our nine Group One races in the coming years.

“Field sizes for races of both codes are under pressure. With this in mind, we have applied a number of targeted increases across our programme and raised our minimum prize money levels for both codes. Specifically, we have made some changes to QIPCO King George Diamond Weekend and expanded the Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup to eight races with fields of 12; the established races increase from £60,000 to £75,000 and we have added two new £50,000 races. 

“Our aim is for the stable prizes to incentivise owners and trainers to target these two fixtures and build on the successful trial at this year’s Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup.

“I wish to conclude by thanking Ascot’s staff, our customers and commercial partners for all their loyal support in 2021 which has so significantly contributed to the business being able to advance again in 2022.”