York Tips Day 3: 2026 Ebor Festival Predictions

All eyes are on the Knavesmire on Friday for the third day of the 2026 York Ebor Festival and William Hill News are here to preview the action.

Here, Steve Mullington brings you a prediction for every race at York this Friday and hopefully he can land a winner or two for William Hill readers. Check out his thoughts and the latest odds below.

1:50pm Mile Stakes Handicap (3yo) 1m 

Trained by Harry Eustace and ridden by regular 3lb-claiming apprentice Kaiya Fraser, OUTBACK HEAT arrives with a superb handicap profile perfectly suited to a track like York.

His last competitive start on 18 June saw him finish second in the Britannia Stakes at Royal Ascot, and his current odds of 8/1 in our horse racing betting look highly competitive.

2:25pm Lonsdale Cup (Group 2) 2m 

The fairly lightly raced stayer ILLINOIS is dropping down in grade today and while his recent efforts have left a lot to be desired, Aidan O’Brien’s horses can never be discounted at the Ebor Festival.

This marathon trip could spark significant improvement for the former Ascot Group winner.

3:00pm Gimcrack Stakes (Group 2) 2yo 6f 

Trained by Michael Dods, ARAPAHO GOLD (NAP) heads our betting market and rightly so.

Last time out he had to fight off high-profile competition to land the Listed Rose Bowl Stakes at Newbury, and to bring up a hat-trick of victories.

The two-year-old appears to be holding all the aces in this Group 2 and is a strong win selection.

3:35pm Nunthorpe Stakes (Group 1) 5f 

Napped some time ago at odds of 20/1 in my York antepost piece, ASFOORA (NB) can go out on a high before her retirement begins in earnest.

Available at fancy odds before finishing a resurgent fourth in the King George Stakes at Goodwood, last year’s winner remains popular at 8/1 and currently stands as our worst result of the entire meeting. She ranks as the leading each-way play of the day on Friday.

4:10pm Heritage Handicap 1m4f 

AL AZD brings high-class form lines to the table in this handicap, especially with that runner-up berth at Royal Ascot under his saddle.

If he tracks the early gallop, he is the class horse of the field and should really have too much overall for the other handicappers.

4:45pm Convivial Maiden Stakes 7f

This is the most lucrative maiden race in the UK racing calendar, boasting a massive £100,000 prize fund and LANCASTER TOWER can scoop the first prize pot.

Owned by Their Majesties the King and Queen, this John & Thady Gosden-trained colt can build open his debut race at Sandown where he finished an exploratory third. This son of Kingman is sure to come on one hundred-fold for the experience.

5:20pm Fillies Stakes Handicap 1m2f 

John & Thady Gosden have a formidable recent strike rate in this particular Friday closer, which leads me to pick NAGA in the lucky last.

The four-year-old is perfectly bred to thrive on York’s galloping terrain, and if she can run up to the same level as she did at Doncaster back in April, she’s in with a fighting chance.

*Odds subject to change – prices accurate at the time of writing*