davewatts50
Amateur Rider
My involvement in horse racing began in the late 1980s, studying race cards and form in the Racing Post and learning often the hard way how difficult it is to beat the bookmakers. Like most punters, early success was limited, but the foundations were being laid for a more disciplined and analytical approach.
Over the years, I developed a strong grounding through Placepot betting, focusing on race structure, pace, and eliminating unlikely contenders rather than simply trying to pick winners. This methodical way of thinking remains central to my approach today.
In the early 2000s, with limited time available, I chose to specialise in All-Weather racing. At the time, it was largely overlooked by the betting public, but I noticed frequent pricing errors and strong value opportunities. By concentrating on a small, clearly defined area of racing, I began to achieve consistent profits, particularly in sprint races where pace and track bias played a decisive role.
My analysis has always been rooted in evidence rather than opinion. Over the years, I’ve used a variety of speed figures including creating my own. For those of you that have created your own you will understand how time consuming this task is. It’s not something you do once and it’s done. It’s a continual process that doesn’t stop.
I decided a long time ago that I would have a paid subscription for my speed rating and I’ve been using Inform Racing speed ratings for many years. There are various proprietary speed figures that you can purchase. I just really like the user-friendly website and I trust the Inform Racing figures.
In recent years I’ve added another layer: RaceIQ metrics and sectional data, freely available via the Racing TV app and website. Most punters still underuse these tools, but I’ve found they’re extremely powerful for understanding early speed, race strength, and how efficiently a horse actually ran.
Around four years ago, I began publishing my selections and analysis in an All-Weather racing blog. Over a two-year period, the selections returned a profit of around 300 points, a result that reflects both discipline and a deep understanding of this specialist area of the sport.
I have written a book available on Amazon in print or kindle format called UK ALL-WEATHER Sprint racing. It’s a practical guide to picking winners. The book brings together over three decades of experience, focusing on how to analyse All-Weather racing using pace, draw, track biases, Inform Racing speed ratings, and RaceIQ metrics and sectional data. My aim is not to promise easy profits, but to share a structured, repeatable approach that gives the reader a genuine edge in one of the most misunderstood areas of the sport.
Why the All-Weather Still Offers an Edge
The UK All-Weather programme has been part of the racing landscape for decades, yet it remains widely misunderstood and, in many cases, underestimated by bettors. To many, it is still viewed as inferior to turf racing, something to be tolerated through the winter rather than analysed properly.
That perception is precisely where the opportunity lies.
All-Weather racing is not a poor substitute for turf; it is a different discipline altogether. The surfaces are more consistent, the variables are fewer, and the same horses compete against each other regularly under near-identical conditions. For the disciplined analyst, this creates repeatable patterns particularly in sprint races where pace, draw, and race shape play a far greater role than raw class alone.
It’s not about betting every race, following systems blindly, or chasing short-term results. It is about understanding how All-Weather races are won, why markets consistently misprice certain scenarios, and how to build a structured approach that can be applied again and again.
If you are prepared to specialise, to ignore noise, and to trust evidence over opinion, the All-Weather can still provide one of the clearest edges available to the private bettor.
Over the years, I developed a strong grounding through Placepot betting, focusing on race structure, pace, and eliminating unlikely contenders rather than simply trying to pick winners. This methodical way of thinking remains central to my approach today.
In the early 2000s, with limited time available, I chose to specialise in All-Weather racing. At the time, it was largely overlooked by the betting public, but I noticed frequent pricing errors and strong value opportunities. By concentrating on a small, clearly defined area of racing, I began to achieve consistent profits, particularly in sprint races where pace and track bias played a decisive role.
My analysis has always been rooted in evidence rather than opinion. Over the years, I’ve used a variety of speed figures including creating my own. For those of you that have created your own you will understand how time consuming this task is. It’s not something you do once and it’s done. It’s a continual process that doesn’t stop.
I decided a long time ago that I would have a paid subscription for my speed rating and I’ve been using Inform Racing speed ratings for many years. There are various proprietary speed figures that you can purchase. I just really like the user-friendly website and I trust the Inform Racing figures.
In recent years I’ve added another layer: RaceIQ metrics and sectional data, freely available via the Racing TV app and website. Most punters still underuse these tools, but I’ve found they’re extremely powerful for understanding early speed, race strength, and how efficiently a horse actually ran.
Around four years ago, I began publishing my selections and analysis in an All-Weather racing blog. Over a two-year period, the selections returned a profit of around 300 points, a result that reflects both discipline and a deep understanding of this specialist area of the sport.
I have written a book available on Amazon in print or kindle format called UK ALL-WEATHER Sprint racing. It’s a practical guide to picking winners. The book brings together over three decades of experience, focusing on how to analyse All-Weather racing using pace, draw, track biases, Inform Racing speed ratings, and RaceIQ metrics and sectional data. My aim is not to promise easy profits, but to share a structured, repeatable approach that gives the reader a genuine edge in one of the most misunderstood areas of the sport.
Why the All-Weather Still Offers an Edge
The UK All-Weather programme has been part of the racing landscape for decades, yet it remains widely misunderstood and, in many cases, underestimated by bettors. To many, it is still viewed as inferior to turf racing, something to be tolerated through the winter rather than analysed properly.
That perception is precisely where the opportunity lies.
All-Weather racing is not a poor substitute for turf; it is a different discipline altogether. The surfaces are more consistent, the variables are fewer, and the same horses compete against each other regularly under near-identical conditions. For the disciplined analyst, this creates repeatable patterns particularly in sprint races where pace, draw, and race shape play a far greater role than raw class alone.
It’s not about betting every race, following systems blindly, or chasing short-term results. It is about understanding how All-Weather races are won, why markets consistently misprice certain scenarios, and how to build a structured approach that can be applied again and again.
If you are prepared to specialise, to ignore noise, and to trust evidence over opinion, the All-Weather can still provide one of the clearest edges available to the private bettor.
