Ayr Gold Cup

The Ayr Gold Cup is a flat handicap horse race held in the United Kingdom and open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. The race is run at Ayr in Scotland over a distance of six furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is scheduled to take place each year in September. A maximum of 27 runners can line up for the 6f sprint and traditionally the Ayr Gold Cup is one of the most unpredictable races in the calendar, often offering the long-shots as much of a chance as the favourites. 

The event was first held in 1804, and it was originally raced at Ayr's former racecourse at Belleisle. In the early part of its history it was restricted to horses bred and trained in Scotland, initially contested over two separate heats covering two miles, followed by a single race over a two-mile distance. 

The Ayr Gold Cup first became a handicap in 1855 before being shortened to about a mile in 1870. The Belleisle track closed in 1907, and the race was relocated to its current home and shortened to six furlongs in 1908. The field for the Ayr Gold Cup is formed from the highest-weighted horses entered for the race. Those who fail to qualify for the main race are now offered the chance to compete in the Ayr Silver Cup, a consolation race introduced in 1992, with the Ayr Bronze Cup held for horses that fail to reach the Silver Cup race.

The lightest winning weight in the race since it became a sprint is 6 st 13 lb (44 kg). This was carried to victory by Marmaduke Jinks in 1936. The heaviest is 10 st (63½ kg), the burden of Roman Warrior in 1975, which was the last time a horse trained in Scotland won the race. 

Tom Dawson's 15 race victories between 1835 and 1869 see him holding the record as the race's leading trainer. Tom Nicholson and William Noble are tied as the event's leading jockey with four wins. Dazzle holds the record as the event's most successful horse, claiming three consecutive victories in 1889, 1890 and 1891. 

Highland Colori, trained by Andrew Balding, won the 2013 Ayr Gold Cup, coming from 20/1 to win the race in a time of 1:12:65. The result ended trainer Kevin Ryan's hopes of making it three straight Ayr Gold Cup winners and four winners in total following his successes in 2007, 2011 and 2012.

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