300-1 horse triumphs with record odds win
Property tycoon’s rank outsider makes racing history with ‘truly bizarre’ win at record odds
A horse has made racing history with the longest-odds win ever recorded in Britain and Ireland. At 300-1 for its second outing on the racetrack, He Knows No Fear was so unfancied that owner Luke Comer didn’t even attend the race at Leopardstown, Ireland, never mind bet. The horse had floundered on debut, and at the start of real-time bets, the odds had dropped to 999-1. A Midlands punter who placed a £10 bet at 300-1 is thought to have received the biggest payout.
IN HIS rags to riches journey from plasterer to property tycoon, Luke Comer, the billionaire businessman, has never missed an investment opportunity like this.
So despondent was the trainerowner as his horse, He Knows No Fear, floundered on his debut that he failed to attend – let alone bet – as bookies at Leopardstown, Ireland, put improbable odds of 300-1 on his second outing.
Yet to the amazement of Mr Comer, and the racing world, the rank outsider – 999-1 at the start of real-time bets – yesterday stormed to the most unfancied triumph in the sport’s history in Britain and Ireland.
Bookmakers described the win as “unprecedented” but Jim Gorman, the assistant to the media-shy co-founder of the Comer International property group, insisted the horse’s performance was not a complete surprise.
“This has not really come out of the blue,” Mr Gorman said. “We ran him in Limerick and I actually had a few quid each way on him. But he got left in the stalls, got no real run and didn’t learn anything. Myself and Luke were despondent after.”
Gamblers placed tiny bets on the horse. Just £264 was bet via the Betfair Exchange. But one punter in the Midlands, betting through Paddy Power at 300/1 was said to have received the biggest payout on a £10 wager.
He Knows No Fear was one of many high-priced runners in the race amid speculation that prices were becoming increasingly misplaced due to the reduced numbers of bookmakers on courses due to Covid-19. “Nobody backed him today – I also think the prices at the moment are a little bit false with no bookmakers allowed on the racecourse,” Mr Gorman added.
Mr Comer, 57, who has 70 horses in training, was said to be “thrilled” despite failing to place a bet. “He bred this (horse) by his own stallion and that gives him real, real pleasure,” the assistant added. “He is delighted.”
Agitaire, the favourite, who hit 1-100 in running, was the even money favourite before the off.
Barry Orr, a Betfair spokesman, said the scenes were “truly bizarre”.
“As you can imagine, it’s highly unusual for any horse to have a Betfair starting price at the ceiling price of 999-1 on the exchange,” he said. “And in a truly bizarre turn of events not only did the winner have a starting price of 1,000, but he also traded at those odds in-running – while the runner-up, and even money favourite traded at the basement price of 1.01 (1/100).”
Having been beaten by nearly 20 lengths at 250-1 in his previous race, He Knows No Fear, got his nose in front of Agitare in the final furlong at the Dublin racetrack.
The previous biggest winning starting price in Britain or Ireland was recorded in 1990 when Equinoctial won a Kelso jumps race at 250-1.
Paul Binfield, of Paddy Power, said: “These punting heroes have either been struck by divine inspiration or are extremely shrewd form judges.”
John Hill, of Coral, added: “Incredibly, 26 punters were able to find the winner, an amazing achievement given he was 300-1.”
The racehorse He Knows No Fear fluffed his first race; he entered his second as a 300-1 outsider. His manager, Jim Gorman, did not like those odds, so he did not place any money. He Knows No Fear won the race. In fact, he was the biggest-price winner since records began – and the message is: always bet on your own, even if he looks useless.
What other unlikely event is worth a punt? A Trump/pence landslide in the US presidential election? A Covid cure by Christmas? Gamblers interested in truly hopeless causes could take a look at the Liberal Democrat leadership race, now in what feels like its eighth year, where the loser will be the lucky one and the winner guaranteed to lose in the general. Odds of being irrelevant? 0-1.