Royal Ascot 2026: Irish horses favourites to lift Gold Cup
The centrepiece of the flat racing season is here, with Royal Ascot ready to welcome some of the world’s premier horses to Berkshire.
Starting on 16th June and offering five days of early summer racing, the meeting is one of the major landmarks of the British social calendar.
For the trainers, owners and jockeys, however, Royal Ascot offers the chance to collect some of the most prestigious trophies in British racing.
ITV horse racing tips and best bets for York and Salisbury on Thursday, May 14
Day two of the Dante Festival gets underway at York Racecourse on Thursday and Sports News Blitz’s horse racing expert Kieran McHugh is back for the main event.
ITV are showing five races from York and one from Salisury, all spearheaded by the Dante Stakes at 16:05.
ITV horse racing tips and best bets for York and Yarmouth on Wednesday, May 13
Day one of the Dante Festival gets underway at York Racecourse on Wednesday and Sports News Blitz’s horse racing expert Kieran McHugh returns to cast his eye over proceedings.
ITV are showing five races from York and one from Yarmouth, leaving our resident racing reporter with lots of action to uncover.
ITV horse racing tips and best bets for Newmarket, Goodwood and Thirsk on Saturday, May 2
Every year, at the start of May, Sports News Blitz tipster Jeff Mexico breaks into his mother’s house and steals a pair of her shoes.
He then wears them for a few days before chucking them in the sea, as he doesn’t feel there’s enough plastic in the ocean.
His mother still hasn’t realised she is missing all these shoes, granted she has been dead since 2009.
Anyway to the horses.
ITV horse racing tips and best bets for Sandown, Leicester and Haydock on Saturday, April 25
Sports News Blitz’s racing tipster Jeff Mexico fell over when he was running in the playground this week and scraped his knee.
We gave him a hug, offered some soothing words and patched him up with a Spiderman plaster, which he showed off to all his friends. Now he’s fully ready to deliver this Saturday’s racing tips for the six races on ITV.
ITV horse racing tips and best bets for Aintree on Friday, April 10
Day Two of the 2026 Grand National Festival arrives on Friday, and Sports News Blitz’s horse racing pundit Kieran McHugh is back for more after scoring a profit on the first day at Aintree Racecourse.
ITV are again showing six races from Aintree, and our horse racing expert is hoping for more success in Liverpool.
Grand National 2026: Willie Mullins star supported for Aintree Hurdle success in William Hill market movers
William Hill have seen some significant market movers ahead of the first day of the 2026 Grand National festival at Aintree Racecourse, Sports News Blitz’s horse racing expert Kieran McHugh reports.
Willie Mullins’ El Fabiolo is the main market mover in the Aintree Hurdle, as punters seem keen to side with the nine-year-old.
But Mullins’ charge is not the only major market mover before action gets underway, with Lulamba and Protektorat also being supported.
Horse racing tips: Best bets for Aintree on Thursday, April 9
Day One of the 2026 Grand National Festival gets underway at Aintree, and Sports News Blitz’s horse racing pundit Kieran McHugh has returned to cast his varifocals over the meeting.
ITV is showing six races from Aintree, and our resident racing reporter is keen to unearth the secrets of the card after striking oil in Dubai with a 28/1 winner.
ITV horse racing tips and best bets for Kelso, Newbury and Bangor-On-Dee on Saturday, March 21
After a very profitable Cheltenham, normal service is resumed for Sports News Blitz’s horse racing pundit Kieran McHugh.
ITV Racing are showing 10 races on Saturday, from three different meetings, and our racing reporter is looking to continue his fine form.
Cheltenham Festival 2026 day four: Tips for televised races on ITV
After a thrilling and dramatic Cheltenham Festival, the fourth and final day is upon us with all eyes on the Cheltenham Gold Cup.
Sports News Blitz’s Jeff Mexico and Kieran McHugh seem to have saved their best until the end, and after a successful Thursday, they return for the finale on Friday, March 13.
Cheltenham Festival 2026 guide: Day-by-day race times, how to watch tv guide, best horses, trainers, jockeys and more
The 2026 Cheltenham Festival is the biggest four days in National Hunt racing. Sports News Blitz delivers a guide to the race times, tv schedule, top horses, trainers, jockeys and more.
March is a magical time of year. The weather starts to behave itself, it’s not dark at 4pm and 8am and most importantly - it’s the Cheltenham Festival.
Cheltenham Festival 2026 day two: Tips for televised races on ITV
After an action-packed opening day, Prestbury Park opens its doors once more as the second day of the Cheltenham Festival gets underway. Sports News Blitz’s Jeff Mexico and Kieran McHugh survived the first day of the ‘Fez’ and return for round two at HQ on Wednesday, March 11.
The first race is underway at 1:20pm and proceedings conclude at 4:40pm, leaving 20 minutes for tea, tears, and tribulations before you can rage all over again because someone took the minus offer on The Chase.
Cheltenham Festival 2026: Richard Johnson and co give their Gold Cup fancies and best selections
After being allowed out on day release for a preview night, Sports News Blitz’s horse racing expert Kieran McHugh has reported back with all the Cheltenham Festival expert opinions.
Check out who they are backing for glory…
Breakout Jockeys and Horses to Follow in the Upcoming Calendar
Horse racing is a sport that is constantly evolving, with new names joining the sport every year.
Every star coming into the sport will aim to make their impression, whether that is by winning a notable Grade One or scoring victory in one of the Classics.
Breakout jockeys will be looking to upset the status quo, and their mounts will likely be overlooked due to the inexperience of the rider when making online horse racing betting selections.
But, who are potentially some of the breakout jockeys and horses worth following in 2026?
ITV horse racing tips and best bets for Southwell on Friday, February 20
After taking a profit in five races last week, Sports News Blitz’s horse racing pundit Kieran McHugh is hoping to continue his good run of form.
Friday Night Live returns at Southwell on ITV, and amidst the excitement of Constitution Hill’s flat debut, our pundit is hoping to provide some guidance through the card.
ITV horse racing tips and best bets for Leopardstown on Sunday, February 1
Sunday, February 1 hosts the second day of the Dublin Racing Festival.
After jetting around the globe, Sports News Blitz’s Kieran McHugh landed in Ireland.
And our pundit is keen to unearth some clues for the Cheltenham Festival.
ITV horse racing tips and best bets for Sandown, Musselbrough and Leopardstown on Saturday, January 31
Sometimes we struggle to keep up with the personal life of Sport News Blitz’s horse racing tipster Jeff Mexico. This week he carried out an ‘important scientific experiment’ during Storm Chandra, which hit the UK this week.
Standing naked behind the Betfred in St Austell, he wanted to see if a 75 mph wind would move his genitals independently. Without going into too much detail, he concluded the experiment a success and was promptly arrested for indecent exposure.
While you have that unpleasant image in your mind, why not take a gander at Jeff’s 11 tips for ITV’s big weekend of equine action at Sandown, Musselburgh and day one of the Dublin Racing Festival at Leopardstown.
Racing punter turns £40 into over £30k
One William Hill punter welcomed the weekend in with a huge horse racing win, as they landed separate winning treble and patent bets to the tune of over £30,000.
Which 10 horses could steal the show at Leopardstown’s Dublin Racing Festival?
At the end of January, National Hunt fanatics will descend on Leopardstown Racecourse, for the Dublin Racing Festival.
One of the highlights of the National Hunt calendar, the DRF always attracts some of the best horses, trainers and jockeys in the business.
The Dublin Racing Festival is held annually at Leopardstown, with the showpiece races namely the Irish Gold Cup and the Irish Champion Hurdle.
Sports News Blitz’s racing expert, Kieran McHugh, has picked out 10 horses which he believes you should be keeping an eye on before the Leopardstown extravaganza begins on January 31.
Horse racing tips and best bets for the King’s Plate Festival in South Africa
Oisin Murphy features as South Africa’s finest descend on Kenilworth racecourse this weekend - with a place at Breeders’ Cup at stake.
Sports News Blitz’s Kieran McHugh offers his suggested tips for the three Grade One races featured at the King’s Plate Festival, including the 165th running of the main event.
The three Grade One races are all part of the Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series, giving the victors a guaranteed starting spot, in their respective races, at Keenland in the USA.