The Betway Lincoln gets the 2017 Turf Flat season off to a flying start on Saturday (more on that later this week) so now may be a good time to look at the runners in this year’s Flat Jockeys’ Title race.
In days gone by, the jockeys’ championship was decided between the Lincoln in March and the November Handicap, also staged at Doncaster in the autumn. But nowadays the competitions runs between the middle of April and the middle of October. Jim Crowley was a surprise winner in 2016, finishing 16 winners ahead of Brazilian Silvestre De Sousa with that pair well ahead of the rest. But the competition is potentially more intriguing this year with the return of former champion Paul Hanagan.
Hanagan won the title in 2010 and 2011 but then went off to ride for Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum. That job has come to an end and Hanagan is now back in the UK full time and has already been promised plenty of rides for former boss Richard Fahey. Though Tony Hamilton is also employed by Fahey, he’ll be under no illusions that Hanagan will get the pick of the rides at Musley Bank. He can still ride at 8st 2lb and it’s no surprise that Unibet have put him in their betting to be 2017 Flat Jockey champion at a best 9/4.
Unibet are one of Europe’s biggest betting operators as well. They have built their reputation on quality products, great odds and innovative approaches to online betting.
They offer plenty of live streams and they can boast one of the coolest and most extensive live in-play betting portals around. Throw in a spattering of great promotions on a regular basis and you have such a solid overall product with Unibet.
Unibet offer a £30 welcome bonus offer for new customers.
This is a risk-free first wager offer from Unibet inviting you to get started with them and it is easy to get your hands on. Simply go and sign up with the bookmaker and get the “Bonus Money” refunded up to £30 if your first bet loses!
You can bet on a wide variety of sports to trigger this offer, and you don’t need any code for it or anything. Basically if your first bet loses you get the bonus and you can them withdraw your stake as well as any winnings from subsequent bets after completing the following requirements.
To get your refunded stake withdrawn, you need to wager your bonus money 3 times over. So, for example if your first bet of £10 loses, Unibet will credit you £10 instantly as bonus money. You need to place three subsequent bets of £10 to make your original stake and all associated winnings withdrawable – only bets with odds of 2/5 or higher count.
De Sousa may well have repeated his 2016 title win last year had he not suffered a 12-day suspension at one of the busiest times of the year. He’ll be determined to put matters right this year and is 7/4 with Unibet and others. Crowley has inherited Hanagan’s job with Hamdan Al Maktoum so it’s unlikely he’ll be in contention for this year’s crown as he’ll have to go where his retainer sends him – I wouldn’t entertain his best 8/1 quote. Ryan Moore will be similarly restricted in where he rides over the summer so I couldn’t have the 10/1 about the three-times champion either, nor an interest in either Andrea Atzeni or William Buick. It might be worth backing both De Sousa and Hanagan at the current odds as this year’s title race looks a match unless someone like Danny Tudhope (66/1) gets off to a flier and starts picking up outside rides over the season.
Stobart Flat Jockey’s Championship 2017 Current Odds
Silvestre De Sousa (7/4), Paul Hanagan (9/4), Jim Crowley (8/1), Ryan Moore and Andrea Atzeni (10/1), William Buick, Adam Kirby and Fran Berry (20/1), James Doyle and Oisin Murphy (25/1), Frankie Dettori and Luke Morris (50/1), Jamie Spencer and Danny Tudhope (66/1)
