Racecourse Guide

Ffos Las
National Hunt

Trimsaran, Carmarthenshire · home of the Welsh Champion Hurdle

⬤ National Hunt
Turf
Left-Handed
Gentle Undulation

Shape

Shared Oval same as Flat

Track Type

Gentle Undulation

Fences

9 per circuit

Hurdles

6 per circuit

Home Straight

3 hurdles/fences

Run-in

Short both codes

Direction

Left-handed

Course Highlight

Welsh Champion Hurdle Class 2 H’cap

Course Overview

Track Breakdown

Ffos Las’s jumps course is not a separate circuit — it shares exactly the same left-handed oval used for Flat racing, built from scratch on a reclaimed opencast coal mine and opened in 2009. That purpose-built character carries over to the jumps track: gentle undulation only, none of the severe topography found at older courses like Chepstow, and fences generally described as “pretty average” — a fair, honest test rather than a specialist test of jumping technique.

Each circuit brings 9 fences, including two open ditches (no water jump is used), and 6 hurdles split evenly between the back and home straights. Both codes finish with a relatively short run-in. It’s a young track by any measure, and its National Hunt identity is still being written — but it already has one genuinely distinctive statistical fingerprint: a pace bias that runs backwards from almost everywhere else in Britain.

The Chase & Hurdles Course

Circuit Shares the Flat course exactly — the same left-handed oval, with no separate jumps circuit
Fences 9 per circuit, including two open ditches; no water jump
Hurdles 6 per circuit, split evenly between the back and home straights
Character Fences rated “pretty average” — a fair test rather than a specialist jumping challenge

The Welsh Champion Hurdle

History Originally run at Chepstow from 1969; its most recent revival moved the race to Ffos Las in 2011
Grade Runs as a Class 2 Limited Handicap Hurdle at Ffos Las — not Listed here, despite carrying Listed status during its Chepstow years in the 1980s
Details About 2 miles, run in October, worth around £50,000, sponsored by DragonBet

I walked the course at Ffos Las on the day it opened for racing and there’s no doubt about it – it’s a beautiful set-up, you can’t help being impressed. I don’t think it gets the backing from some people that it deserves, because all the current jocks – Flat and jumps – say good things about it. The jumping lads reckon the fences are a fair test – not too stiff, but no pushover – and it’s grand to ride. The one worry about it is that the going can become extreme. When it gets properly soft, it can be really hard work.Mick Fitzgerald, former top jump jockey — At The Races

Notable Races

The Racing Calendar

Class 2 Limited Handicap · October

Welsh Champion Hurdle

About 2 miles. Moved to Ffos Las in 2011 for its most recent home, a race with roots at Chepstow stretching back to 1969.

Feature Handicap Chase · October

West Wales National

About 3½ miles, run on the same card as the Welsh Champion Hurdle. Neither race currently carries Graded/Listed status.

Pace Bias

The Number That Matters

Ffos Las holds one of the rarest statistical fingerprints in British jump racing: it is one of only two UK courses — alongside Bangor — where front-runners are at a genuine disadvantage overall, with the effect strongest at 2m1f or shorter. Hold-up horses win more than 10% of the time here, comfortably above the UK/Ireland-wide hold-up average of 7.25%. Nationally, front-runners average a 14.91% win rate and prominent racers 11.42% — both far ahead of hold-up horses’ 7.25% baseline — which makes Ffos Las’s reversal genuinely unusual rather than a small sample-size blip.

Run Style Bias — A National Outlier

▲ Ffos Las Hold-Up

10%+ Strong (vs national baseline)

─ UK/Ireland Hold-Up Avg

7.25% Baseline

▼ UK/Ireland Front-Runner Avg

14.91% Reversed Here

Read this carefully: the bottom row is the national front-runner average, normally the strongest running style anywhere in Britain — shown here at full width for scale. At most courses that average comfortably beats hold-up form. At Ffos Las, the pattern flips: hold-up horses outperform their own national baseline while front-runners underperform theirs, especially over the minimum trip. Treat this as this course’s single most important betting angle.

Statistics · Since 2010

Top Trainers & Jockeys

Trainer	Runs	Wins	Win%	Places	Place%	A/E	P/L
1 Williams, Evan	1231	150	12.19%	348	28.27%	0.85	-213.16
2 Bowen, Peter / Michael	837	123	14.70%	282	33.69%	0.96	-214.73
3 Curtis, Miss Rebecca	470	98	20.85%	212	45.11%	0.97	-52.13
4 Twiston-Davies, N A	395	75	18.99%	157	39.75%	0.96	-37.52
5 Pipe, D E	370	62	16.76%	136	36.76%	0.89	-49.31
6 Vaughan, Tim	578	59	10.21%	156	26.99%	0.70	-236.69
7 Henderson, N J	150	55	36.67%	76	50.67%	1.13	+37.49
8 O’Neill, Jonjo and AJ	354	54	15.25%	129	36.44%	0.83	-11.84
9 Hobbs, P J / White, J	205	33	16.10%	75	36.59%	0.85	-54.44
10 Rees, D A	281	32	11.39%	74	26.33%	1.01	+50.13
11 Williams, Miss Venetia	178	30	16.85%	65	36.52%	0.97	+5.67
12 Honeyball, A J	156	30	19.23%	64	41.03%	0.81	-25.97
13 Mulholland, N P	243	27	11.11%	77	31.69%	0.80	-11.27
14 Snowden, Jamie	110	27	24.55%	48	43.64%	1.19	+15.09
15 Pauling, Ben	94	25	26.60%	47	50.00%	1.22	+46.78
16 Bailey, K C	134	24	17.91%	54	40.30%	0.96	-23.04
17 Nicholls, P F	94	24	25.53%	42	44.68%	0.97	-3.19
18 Llewellyn, B J	274	23	8.39%	71	25.91%	0.85	-42.23
19 Greatrex, W J	161	23	14.29%	55	34.16%	0.74	-73.47
20 Murphy, Olly	87	23	26.44%	37	42.53%	1.06	+11.79

Ffos Las NH, since 2010. Evan Williams leads the page on volume (150 wins from 1231, 12.2% SR, A/E 0.85), though the market prices that in. The real value signals are Ben Pauling (A/E 1.22, +£46.78) and Jamie Snowden (A/E 1.19, +£15.09). Oppose the over-bet Tim Vaughan (A/E 0.70), W J Greatrex (A/E 0.74) and N P Mulholland (A/E 0.80).

Jockey	Runs	Wins	Win%	Places	Place%	A/E	P/L
1 Bowen, Sean P	499	104	20.84%	199	39.88%	1.03	-16.68
2 Wedge, Adam	530	75	14.15%	162	30.57%	0.96	-35.99
3 Twiston-Davies, Sam	420	70	16.67%	161	38.33%	0.84	-91.14
4 McCoy, A P	216	59	27.31%	103	47.69%	0.85	-33.96
5 Scudamore, Tom	341	58	17.01%	123	36.07%	0.97	-30.46
6 Johnson, Richard	365	55	15.07%	137	37.53%	0.70	-137.98
7 Moloney, Paul	336	49	14.58%	100	29.76%	0.97	-12.44
8 O’Brien, T J	296	43	14.53%	108	36.49%	0.96	-76.88
9 Sheehan, Gavin	180	40	22.22%	71	39.44%	1.11	-4.33
10 Jones, Ben R	215	36	16.74%	73	33.95%	1.04	-57.27
11 Bowen, James C	250	27	10.80%	77	30.80%	0.66	-82.80
12 Brennan, P J	140	26	18.57%	55	39.29%	0.97	+27.40
13 Moore, Jamie	189	25	13.23%	63	33.33%	0.96	-68.41
14 Bass, David	107	25	23.36%	41	38.32%	1.15	+24.38
15 Coleman, A	174	20	11.49%	54	31.03%	0.63	-69.94
16 Tudor, Jack	165	20	12.12%	39	23.64%	0.93	-57.00
17 Boinville, Nico	63	20	31.75%	27	42.86%	1.26	+28.57
18 Johns, Alan	189	19	10.05%	50	26.46%	0.86	-40.92
19 Williams, Isabel	156	19	12.18%	46	29.49%	0.83	-11.37
20 Jacob, Daryl	118	19	16.10%	43	36.44%	0.81	-32.81

Ffos Las NH, since 2010. Sean P Bowen leads the riders on volume (104 wins from 499, 20.8% SR, A/E 1.03). The real value signals are Nico Boinville (A/E 1.26, +£28.57) and David Bass (A/E 1.15, +£24.38). Oppose the over-bet A Coleman (A/E 0.63), James C Bowen (A/E 0.66) and Richard Johnson (A/E 0.70).

Sire Statistics · Since 2010

Top Sires

Sire	Runs	Wins	Win%	Places	Place%	A/E	P/L
1 Milan	348	41	11.78%	111	31.90%	0.78	-132.44
2 Oscar (IRE)	273	41	15.02%	82	30.04%	0.86	-67.84
3 Kayf Tara	266	40	15.04%	107	40.23%	0.89	-36.47
4 Presenting	210	37	17.62%	73	34.76%	1.04	-24.64
5 Flemensfirth (USA)	290	36	12.41%	91	31.38%	0.67	-124.91
6 Westerner	203	30	14.78%	72	35.47%	0.87	-37.64
7 King’s Theatre (IRE)	187	30	16.04%	71	37.97%	0.87	-28.70
8 Getaway (GER)	204	29	14.22%	67	32.84%	0.96	-37.37
9 Beneficial	224	28	12.50%	74	33.04%	0.77	-76.75
10 Midnight Legend	143	27	18.88%	53	37.06%	1.07	-29.02
11 Mahler	155	26	16.77%	52	33.55%	1.04	+16.99
12 Old Vic	134	20	14.93%	49	36.57%	0.81	-2.94
13 Dr Massini (IRE)	131	19	14.50%	37	28.24%	1.15	+19.45
14 Black Sam Bellamy (IRE)	123	17	13.82%	40	32.52%	0.81	-29.52
15 Alflora (IRE)	121	16	13.22%	39	32.23%	0.92	-27.94
16 Shantou (USA)	109	16	14.68%	34	31.19%	0.88	-48.16
17 Walk In The Park (IRE)	103	16	15.53%	36	34.95%	1.03	+90.28
18 Definite Article	91	16	17.58%	28	30.77%	1.03	-28.57
19 Robin Des Champs (FR)	80	16	20.00%	25	31.25%	1.09	+3.03
20 Brian Boru	65	16	24.62%	24	36.92%	1.46	+19.38

Ffos Las NH, since 2010. Milan tops the sire list (41 wins from 348, 11.8% SR, A/E 0.78), though the market prices that in. The real value signals are Dr Massini (IRE) (A/E 1.15, +£19.45) and Brian Boru (A/E 1.46, +£19.38). Oppose the over-bet Flemensfirth (USA) (A/E 0.67) and Beneficial (A/E 0.77).

Insider Knowledge

Betting Angles

🎯

Back the Patient Ride

One of only two UK courses (with Bangor) where front-runners are at a genuine disadvantage — hold-up horses win 10%+ here against a 7.25% national average.

📉

Front-Runners Struggle Most Over Minimum Trip

The shorter the race, especially at 2m1f or less, the worse a led-all-the-way run tends to fare here.

🏆

Peter Bowen Rates It Among His Best

31 winners in the last five seasons at a 15% strike rate (A/E 1.02) — one of his most productive tracks, and his runners hold their price rather than being over-bet.

📈

The Value Trainers Are the Raiders

David Pipe (A/E 1.37, +£20.47 from 117 runs), Jamie Snowden (A/E 1.36) and Nicky Henderson (A/E 1.37) are the sharpest trainer angles here. Rebecca Curtis, by contrast, is the course’s biggest volume fade — 13 winners from 131 at A/E 0.67.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

Evan Williams Is the Volume King

42 winners from 420 runners in the last five seasons — comfortably the deepest footprint of any yard here — though the market rates him fairly (A/E 0.78), so his runners are rarely a betting overlay.

🐎

Walk In The Park Leads the Sires

Walk In The Park (IRE) returns A/E 1.21 and +106.45 here, with Doyen (IRE) (A/E 1.39, +35.48) and Shirocco (GER) (A/E 1.15) also profitable; Milan (A/E 0.59) and Flemensfirth (USA) (A/E 0.72) are the fades.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Assuming front-runners hold their usual edge here. Ffos Las is one of only two UK courses (with Bangor) where the reverse is true — hold-up horses outperform the national average.
Treating the Welsh Champion Hurdle as a black-type race at Ffos Las. It runs as a Class 2 Limited Handicap here, despite carrying Listed status during its original spell at Chepstow.
Expecting a specialist jumping test. The fences are rated “pretty average” — a fair test of a horse’s other form, not a happy hunting ground for a fencing specialist.

Common Questions

Ffos Las Racecourse FAQs

Is there a pace bias at Ffos Las?

Yes, and it’s a genuine rarity: Ffos Las is one of only two UK courses (alongside Bangor) where front-runners are at a statistical disadvantage, with hold-up horses winning over 10% of races against a national average of 7.25%.

Is the Welsh Champion Hurdle a Graded race at Ffos Las?

No. It runs as a Class 2 Limited Handicap Hurdle at its current home, despite having held Listed status during its earlier years at Chepstow.

Are Ffos Las’s fences difficult?

No — they’re generally described as “pretty average,” making the course more of a fair overall test than a specialist jumping challenge.

Is the jumps course separate from the Flat course at Ffos Las?

No, they share exactly the same left-handed oval. Ffos Las does not have a distinct jumps circuit.

Explore

Other Jumps Tracks

Chepstow

Left-handed, severely undulating — home of the Coral Welsh Grand National.

Aintree

Home of the Grand National — Mildmay and National courses.

Cheltenham

Old Course and New Course — the home of jump racing.

Want the thinking behind National Hunt bets?

FormDial posts every selection before the off with its full reasoning: the angle, the price, the logic. See how course analysis feeds into real selections.

Today’s Dial →

From the Formdial Shop

Going racing here?

The Trackside Companion is your day at the races, written to order — every race on your meeting’s card broken down, plus this track’s draw, angles and people distilled from the guide you’ve just read. Order at least a week before your raceday.

Plan your raceday →

Ffos LasNational Hunt