Hollywood Gold Cup Betting Guide

One of the biggest Grade 1s of the season at Santa Anita takes place on May 31st in the form of the Hollywood Gold Cup. You can find out all about the illustrious race here. We will assess some of the likely runners and the betting markets that you can find for the race.

Hollywood Gold Cup Event Details

The Hollywood Gold Cup is a Grade 1, which takes place at Santa Anita on May 31st. The race covers a distance of 1 ¼ miles, and there is a purse of $300,000. This race takes place on the dirt surface, and horses that are aged three and older can enter.

Hollywood Gold Cup Preview

Due to the race not taking place until the end of May, the final declarations for the Hollywood Gold Cup will not be made until around May 26th. However, some runners are more likely than others to line up for the prestigious race. You can find some of the horses that should be competing in the 2021 renewal below:

• Idol

• Royal Ship

• Express Train

• Country Grammer

• Silver State

We can only speculate about the runners that will be lining up for the Hollywood Gold Cup at this point. Royal Ship could be one of the horses that looks set to compete in the Grade 1, as he won the Californian Stakes in April. The five-year-old was excellent at Santa Anita on that showing, as he won the famous Grade 2 in a time of 1:48.47. That was just his first win in five starts, but there is no denying the potential that he has. He has competed in Graded races previously, as he finished fifth in the Frank E. Kilroe Mile and fourth in the Native Diver Stakes.

Idol is another horse that could be set to compete for the shortest price in the Hollywood Gold Cup. The race at Santa Anita could be the logical step for connections on route to the Breeders’ Cup Classic in November. The four-year-old has placed in each of his last three Graded appearances. After finishing second in the San Antonio Stakes and third in the San Pasqual Stakes, he finally got his Grade win last time out in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap. That would be a strong form to bring into this race.

Express Train finished second in the Santa Anita Handicap but could be targeting the Hollywood Gold Cup. Like Idol, he has excellent Grade form behind him, as he has finished in a place position in his last four starts. He won the San Pasqual Stakes and was third in the recent Oaklawn Handicap behind Silver State.

Silver State for trainer Steven Asmussen has been in excellent form this year, as he has already won on all three starts. Before winning the Oaklawn Handicap, he had won the Fifth Season and Essex Handicap. If entered for the Hollywood Gold Cup, he could be aiming for a fifth straight win.

Hollywood Gold Cup Information

The Hollywood Gold Cup was inaugurated in 1938 and originally took place at Hollywood Park. The first running of the race was possibly one of the most famous, as it was won by Seabiscuit. Hollywood Park was closed between 1942 and 1943 as the course was a depot for planes during the Second World War.

The race was moved to Santa Anita in 1949 after a fire broke out at Hollywood Park. However, the race returned to its original venue the following year at a later date in the year, with Noor winning the illustrious race. The race moved to Santa Anita for good in 2014 after Hollywood Park was closed.

Happy Issue became the first mare or filly to win the race in 1944. Two Lea (1952) and Princessnesian (1968) have also achieved the feat. The race is a prestigious renewal for many reasons, but one of the most important being that it offers winning runners a direct route to the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

The most successful horses in the history of this race are Native Diver and Lava Man, who both won three renewals. Charles Whittingham and Laffit Pincay Jr are the respective leaders for most wins as trainer and jockey. Whittingham trained the winner on eight occasions, while Pincay Jr won the race on nine occasions.

Hollywood Gold Cup Betting Information

The Hollywood Gold Cup is one of the most exciting races of the season at Santa Anita, which means it is a popular betting race. You can find out more about the markets that you can make wagers on below:

• Win: The most popular market to utilize for the Hollywood Gold Cup is the win market. Here, gamblers must place their stake on the horse that will win the Grade 1.

• Place: Place betting is also offered. Customers will need to predict a horse that will finish in the top three to claim returns in this market.

• Exacta: The most difficult market to bet on for the Hollywood Gold Cup is the Exacta. You must correctly bet on the horses that finish in the first two positions to get returns from this market.