NEWTON ABBOT Racecourse
A practical guide to NEWTON ABBOT Racecourse, including its track layout, jumping test and the courses most likely to provide useful form clues.
About NEWTON ABBOT Racecourse
Newton Abbot racecourse is a lovely course set in the rolling Devon countryside. It was first opened in 1866, and is now the foremost summer jumping venue in the UK.
Key Characteristics
The Newton Abbot course is a flat oval course of about nine furlongs, with seven easy fences per circuit. The sharpness of the course coupled with the very short run in means that it suits the handy front running horse, and it is very hard to come from behind and win.
Course Summary
Track: Tight left handed track with an easy finish.
Fences: Easy
Interesting Facts
- Founded in 1866, when local racing enthusiasts pooled their money to buy the 91-acre site. The first recorded meeting ran over two days, 9-10 August 1866.
- Commonly described as the most westerly racecourse in the UK - and separately, as the most southerly, thanks to its position in south Devon.
- Newton Abbots switch to being a summer jumps specialist was partly weather-driven - after its once-lucrative Boxing Day fixture was abandoned six years in a row due to conditions, the course leaned into its mild south-Devon climate instead. It now runs fixtures March-October, with around 18 fixtures a year.
- A tight, flat, left-handed oval - sources put it at roughly 1 mile 1 furlong to 1 mile 2 furlongs, making Newton Abbot one of the smallest circuits in England.
- Seven fences per circuit, and a notably short run-in to the line - this rewards handy, front-running types, since there's little room to make up ground late at Newton Abbot.
Similar Courses
Form from the following courses may be particularly relevant when assessing runners at NEWTON ABBOT:
- Aintree
- Fontwell
- Kelso
- Bangor
- Southwell
- Kempton
- Market Rasen Course map
Course Map
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