Although the two sports are completely different, many aspects of both horse racing and Formula 1 cross over. Of course, both sports are fundamentally about racing and winning, but more than that, they are tests of endurance and mentality.
In addition to the training and hard work that goes into both sports, they also both provide fantastic spectator events. In this article, we’ll look at whether the F1 set up could prove to be an inspiration for future horse racing events.
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Could we see F1 Inspiration at the Cheltenham Festival?
The most renowned horse racing event is of course Cheltenham Festival, which is a four-day event that includes the most anticipated races of the year. The highlight of the week is the Cheltenham Gold Cup, which is the event that helps racehorses cement their names in history. According to the latest Cheltenham Gold Cup odds, the favourite to win this year is Al Boum Photo, who also won the Gold Cup in 2019 and 2020. He’s currently priced at 14/5, with second favourite Champ next in line with a price of 11/2. If Al Baum Photo was to win the event for a third successive year, it would almost certainly confirm his status as a legendary racehorse.
The Gold Cup can be compared to the prestigious Monaco Grand Prix, which is often considered to be one of the highlights of F1. Similarly to how winners of the Gold Cup are received in horse racing, drivers who are able to win Grand Prix events at Monaco can make an instant name for themselves. The positions of drivers in the starting grid is usually a good indication of how they might get on in the event, for the Golden Cup, it’s a good idea to research Gold Cup tips for an indication of how horses may get on.
With some similarities between the sports already apparent, how could horse racing events such as Cheltenham Festival be inspired by the format of F1 events? One potential suggestion could be the inclusion of some kind of team event. Part of the excitement of F1 Grand Prix events is that there is an individual winner for the driver that wins the race, but there is also a constructors’ title for the team that has the most points combined.
Team events in horse racing isn’t an entirely new suggestion, as The Racing League was introduced in the UK in 2020. However, a team-based event at an event as prestigious as Cheltenham could help to take the spectacle to even higher levels. Such an event could work similarly to F1, where there is still an individual prize for the overall winner of the race, but each runner earns points for the position they finish in and the winning team is decided by the combined score of teammates. This could make for an interesting dynamic for both spectators and runners, as the focus would be on two horses instead of one.
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Whether an event like this could ever come to fruition is debatable. Horse racing is a sport that is ingrained in tradition and many spectators may hold the view that there is no need to change an event as established as Cheltenham Festival. Despite this, there could be potential for some F1 inspired event in the future, as this would help to open up horse racing to a wider audience.