Editing Horse racing in Great Britain (section)

==Important races and meetings==

===Flat===
{{further|List of British flat horse races}}
Britain is home to some of the world's most important flat races and race meetings.  While ancient horse races like the [[Kiplingcotes Derby]] and [[Newmarket Town Plate]] are now mainly curiosities, there are many older races which retain modern relevance.  The five [[British Classic Races|British Classics]] – the [[1,000 Guineas]], [[2,000 Guineas]], [[Epsom Oaks|The Oaks]], [[Epsom Derby|The Derby]] and the [[St. Leger Stakes|St. Leger]] – were founded in the late 18th and early 19th centuries and still represent the pinnacle of achievement for each generation of horses.  The structure and distances of these races, if not the exact names, have been adopted by many other European horse racing authorities, such as [[Irish Classic Races|Ireland]].  [[Royal Ascot]] is the major flat racing festival in Europe and attracts horses from all over the world.  The modern flat season in Britain now also climaxes with [[British Champions Day]], a festival of championship races, also held at [[Ascot Racecourse|Ascot]].

===National Hunt===
{{further|List of British National Hunt races}}
In [[National Hunt racing]], the [[Cheltenham Festival]] is the foremost jump racing festival in the world, and is an annual target for both British and Irish trainers. The festival hosts races such as the [[Cheltenham Gold Cup]] and [[Champion Hurdle]], which are seen as the peak of their disciplines and over the years have been won by horses whose appeal has transcended the sport, including [[Kauto Star]] and [[Desert Orchid]].  More widely known still is the [[Grand National]] at [[Aintree Racecourse|Aintree]], which despite being a very long and difficult race that is historically contested by a lower grade of horses than races at Cheltenham, has produced some of the sports equine superstars, like [[Red Rum]].  It has an estimated global audience of 600 million viewers.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.thejockeyclub.co.uk/aintree/ |title=Broadcasting of the Grand National |publisher=[[Aintree Racecourse]] |access-date=22 April 2013 }}</ref>

===Major festivals===
{|
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| valign="top" | 
* ''March''
** Cheltenham – The [[Cheltenham Festival]]
** Lingfield Park – Blue Square [[Winter Derby]]
* ''April''
** Aintree – [[Aintree Grand National]]
** Ayr – [[Scottish Grand National]]
** Newmarket – Craven Meeting
** Sandown Park – Bet365 Gold Cup Celebration
* ''May''
** Newmarket – [[2,000 Guineas Stakes|Guineas Meeting]]
** Chester – Chester's May Festival
** York – Dante Meeting 
* ''June''
** Epsom Downs – [[Epsom Derby]] Meeting
** Ascot – [[Royal Ascot]]
** Newcastle – [[Northumberland Plate]]
* ''July''
** Sandown Park – Coral-Eclipse Meeting
** Newmarket – Newmarket's July Meeting
** Ascot – King George Day
** Goodwood – Glorious Goodwood
| valign="top" | 
* ''August''
** York – Ebor Festival
* ''September''
** Haydock Park – William Hill Sprint Cup
** Doncaster – [[St. Leger Stakes|St. Leger Meeting]]
** Ayr – Western Meeting
** Ascot – Ascot's September Festival
* ''October''
** Newmarket – Totesport Cambridgeshire Meeting
** Newmarket – Newmarket's October Meeting
** Ascot – [[British Champions Day|Champions Day]]
** Doncaster – [[Racing Post Trophy]]
* ''November''
** Cheltenham – The Paddy Power Open
** Haydock & Aintree – North West Masters
** Newbury – Hennessy Meeting
* ''December''
** Sandown Park – Tingle Creek Meeting
** Kempton Park – Stan James Christmas Festival
** Chepstow – Coral [[Welsh National]]
|}