Royal Ascot

Ascot Gold Cup Trends & Best Bets For 2026

2 hours ago

| BY Steve Mullington

The Ascot Gold Cup takes place on the third day of the Royal Ascot meeting and is one of the most popular horse racing betting heats with punters across the world.

The Gold Cup is the oldest and one of the most prestigious races at Royal Ascot. Staged over a marathon trip of two-and-a-half miles, the race is based on stamina and attracts the very best staying horses in Europe.

Many horses down the years have had multiple Gold Cup wins, enhancing the race’s reputation as a specialist staying event.

Notable Winners

The most famous winner of the Ascot Gold Cup is Yeats, who is the only horse to win the historic race four consecutive times (2006–2009).
Stradivarius clocked up three consecutive titles from 2018 to 2020 under jockey Frankie Dettori and became one of the most beloved stayers of that time.
Sagaro (3 wins) dominated the staying division from 1975 to 1977 and was ridden by the legendary Lester Piggott.
Kyprios proved he was a premier stayer by taking victories in both 2022 and 2024 for the master Irish trainer Aidan O’Brien.

Overseas-Trained Winners

Sagaro (1975, 1976, 1977) was in fact trained by François Boutin in France.
Westerner (2005) was trained by Elie Lellouche in France too, with the race being held temporarily at York (Royal Ascot at York) while Ascot was under redevelopment.
French trained horses fairly dominated this race during the 1980’s with consecutive victories coming from horses like Lemhi Gold (1983) and Gildoran (1984, 1985).

Starting Prices

Punters generally have a high success rate in this race because favourites have a superb record and you rarely see a large priced upset coming from out of the sports betting. A perfect example of this trend would be the last five years:

2025: Trawlerman – 13/8 favourite
2024: Kyprios – 11/10 favourite
2023: Courage Mon Ami – 15/2
2022: Kyprios – 13/8 favourite
2021: Subjectivist – 13/2
2020: Stradivarius – 4/5 favourite

Most Successful Trainers In Ascot Gold Cup

Aidan O’Brien is the most successful trainer in the history of the Ascot Gold Cup with nine titles. 2006: Yeats 2007: Yeats 2008: Yeats 2009: Yeats 2011: Fame and Glory 2014: Leading Light 2016: Order of St George 2022: Kyprios 2024: Kyprios.
John Gosden (5 wins).
Saeed bin Suroor (5 wins).

Significant Ascot Gold Cup Trends

Favourites rule: 14 of the last 24 winners went off as the horse racing betting favourite. 8 of the last 12 winners were favourites, and 10 of those 12 were among the top three in the market.
Age: Horses aged 4 to 6 years old have won 21 of the last 24 renewals. Four-year-olds are the most successful single generation, accounting for 9 of the last 14 winners.
Group Class: 15 of the last 24 winners were already established Group 1 champions before entering the Gold Cup.