Canterbury Racecourse Tips [December 2024]

Canterbury Racecourse Preview

There’s mid-week racing galore at Canterbury Racecourse and this is what they are best known for. The track is located just 11km away from Sydney’s CBD, making it just a 15-minute drive. Canterbury Racecourse also hosts night racing and the floodlight system makes this possible.

While the track and facilities might be smaller than some of the other metropolitan tracks in NSW, spectators are only metres away from the action. The long turns at Canterbury Racecourse usually provide significant benefits to front runners and this is something Canterbury races tips need to consider.

Canterbury Betting Strategy Types

Developing a betting strategy for races at Canterbury Racecourse is pretty important. The good news is that you don’t have to do the heavy lifting yourself. The Canterbury horse racing tips at OnlyRacing will also suggest a recommended strategy that involves different bet types.

There are many different bet types available in any horse racing market, but we’ve found three in particular that we want to focus on:

First Four

A First Four can be tricky to land, but the payout potential is significant, especially if you are including a few roughies in your bet. It is one of the more exotic bets going around and involves a lot of concentration because you have at least four horses to follow in the race.

Many will include a First Four in their Canterbury tips for today because the return on your bet can be significant. The First Four involves successfully picking the top four horses across the finishing line, in the correct order. You can also add more than four runners to your bet.

Multi

Multi bets are becoming all the rage these days, that’s for sure. The more established bookies in the market will offer a wider range of markets for a Multi, so if this is something you’re interested in, it’s probably better to stick with one of those bookies.

You can add Canterbury best bets to your Multi and even include legs on different sporting events as well. The limit pretty much doesn’t exist and the more legs you add the higher the odds for the Multi are likely to be. You can have all the legs in your Multi for events on the same day, or even choose to spread them out across multiple days (or months).

Quadrella

You may have already heard of a Quadrella (or a Quaddie) due to the huge payout that bettors receive if they land one. It’s the payout potential that really entices bettors when it comes to Canterbury races tips (and you can’t forget about the bragging rights either!).

For your Quaddie to be successful, you need to pick the winner of four races on the card at Canterbury Racecourse. You can add more than four runners in your bet, to increase your chances of hitting the Quaddie, but in doing so, you are decreasing the payout you may receive.

Canterbury Racecourse History

Horse racing first began at Canterbury in 1852 when Cornelius Proud used a cleared part of his land for racing. This location was used by locals regularly. After a few years with no racing, Frederick Clissold and Thomas Austen Davis brought racing back to the area when they held a meeting close to the existing track.

In 1884, the site was then leased by the Canterbury Park Race Club and it became the organisation's headquarters. The track itself, a grandstand and a recreational park were built and the first meeting was held in 1884.

There was an onsite zoo that housed animals like kangaroos, emus, wallabies, brolgas, kookaburras and pheasants up until World War I. The Sydney Turf Club acquired Canterbury Racecourse and the first meeting was held in 1945. They held the racecourse up until 2011 when they merged with the Australian Jockey Club to form the Australian Turf Club.

Distance:	Guide:
1,000m	At the shortest distance, runners begin the race on the course proper and there’s about 300m of straight before the first and final turn, giving a small advantage to inside barriers.
1,100m	At this distance, runners start 100m back on the track compared to the 1,000m races. This means there is less advantage to inside barriers because there is more straight for runners to work things out.
1,200m	Racing begins in a chute off the back straight and runners have a significant amount of straight before the first turn. Therefore, barriers don’t have much significance here.
1,300m	Similar to races at the 1,200m distance except runners have an additional 100m to fight for the best position before the first turn. Again, barriers don’t have much influence here.
1,500m	Races at the 1,500m distance begin in a chute which feeds runners into the first turn. Runners have about 250m before the first turn of the race, giving inside barriers more of an advantage.
1,900m	Races at this distance begin at the top of the home straight, giving runners about 300m before the first turn and this does give inside barriers some advantage.
2,800m	At 2,800m, runners begin in a chute which is near the starting point of 1,200m races. Runners have the entire back straight to work themselves out, so barriers don’t come into play here.

How to Get to Canterbury Racecourse

If you’re ready to head to Canterbury Racecourse, armed with your Canterbury race tips for today, you’ll be pleased to know there are a couple of options. Free infield parking is available onsite for up to 2,000 vehicles and there is also a dedicated member’s and owners parking.

If you don’t want to drive to the track, public transport is a viable option. Trains on the T3 Bankstown Line will take you to Canterbury Train Station. From there, it is just a 10-minute walk to the track. Buses are also available and there are bus stops at the front entrance. Taxis and rideshare services can get you to and from the track as well.