What is a stayer in horse racing on the Flat?

You may well have heard the term ‘stayer’ when watching Flat racing and not every casual fan will really know what that term means. 

Fear not however, as we have you covered on that front. Here we take a look at what a stayer is, different kinds of stayers and how they are often bred specifically in order to be potential stallions of the future.

Put simply, a stayer is a horse who runs in races over longer distances. There are four main types of horses: sprinters, milers, middle-distance performers and stayers. Staying races on the Flat are usually characterised as races run over 1m6f (14 furlongs) or further.

Stayer vs extreme stayer

Not every stayer has the same profile and there are a couple of subdivisions, with the main two being those who are competitive over 1m6f to 2m at a push and those with seemingly limitless stamina reserves who can race over 2m4f or further.

Horses who start off as middle-distance types (competing over 1m2f and 1m4f) can often compete over 1m6f and in some cases, up to two miles. 

For example, the final British Classic of the season is the St Leger over an extended 1m6f and most competitors had previously run over 1m4f. The biggest staying race on the calendar is the 2m4f Ascot Gold Cup, which requires an abundance of stamina.

These horses are often not really seen to best effect over 1m6f or two miles, although there are some greats who are an exception to the rule. The difficulty for finding extreme stayers is that Flat horses aren’t really bred to race over that sort of distance, making them rare.

When most horses begin to run out of petrol, the extreme stayers continue to maintain or quicken their pace in the closing stages over marathon trips.

Stayers’ Triple Crown

There are several elite ‘Cup’ races throughout the Flat season and the three main ones which form the Triple Crown are the Ascot Gold Cup (2m4f), Goodwood Cup (2m) and Doncaster Cup (2m2f).

The Ascot Gold Cup is the most valuable and prestigious staying race on the calendar and the 2m4f Group 1 isn’t for faint-hearted. Many two miles have entered the race with high expectations and failed to see the trip out, which is why specialists are the way to go.

Goodwood’s Goodwood Cup takes place in the summer and it’s the least testing of the three races. The track is very forgiving and it is run over a flat two miles. The Doncaster Cup has lost some prestige in recent years but the 2m2f event is a strong staying test.

The staying programme is extremely important to the industry, as it protects the long term future of breeding Flat horses with stamina in mind. The current trend, even for middle-distance horses, emphasises the use of stallions with speed.

Physique and constitution

It’s worth noting that stayers often tend to peak later in their careers, as they need to develop physically in order to cope with the demands of long distance races. This means that they often struggle as two-year-olds, where they race over inadequate trips. 

Our future stayers often don’t get to the racecourse before turning three, but those who do will often be seen later in the year when there are 1m2f two-year-old races on offer. 

For obvious reasons, they don’t possess the explosive turn of foot that sprinters and some milers inherit but successful stayers have a high cruising speed which they can maintain over long distances. 

Leading stayers who go on to be stallions often become National Hunt stallions because they are more likely to produce progeny who will stay three miles or further. A good example of this is four-time Ascot Gold Cup winner Yeats, who has been crowned champion NH sire.

From a breeding perspective, there needs to be some stamina on both sides of the pedigree, especially for the extreme stayers and it’s very rare that horses with two speedy parents go on to stay two miles or further.

Longevity is a cornerstone of extreme stayers, which is why the likes of Yeats, Stradivarius and Kyprios were able to come back year after year. They are often less valuable from a breeding perspective too, which encourages owners to keep them in training for longer.

Staying race betting strategy

Tried and tested performers are often the way to go over extremely long trips and whilst there’s always a chance that the unconfirmed stayers can get the trip, it’s often more prudent to side with those who have already shown the ability to do so.

Always been on the lookout for an Aidan O’Brien stayer, as he has proven himself to be the best trainer of horses over extreme trips. He produced the Brilliant Yeats to win the Ascot Gold Cup and worked wonders with two-time winner Kyprios too.

Longevity over explosiveness

Highly successful stayers such as Stradivarius and Yeats ended up being real fan favourites because the racing public got to see them every season over a long period of time. That’s fairly rare on the Flat and it’s extremely important that the sport continues to produce horses who can thrive in the staying division.