Grades

Grading rules

Dogs races aren’t a free-for-all – animals are grouped together in grades in a bid to ensure that broadly speaking, races are fairly even.

Within this system, dogs move up or down depending on their age and ability. Younger dogs begin in the schooling and maiden races, but can progress rapidly if they show initial potential.

One of the most important things a handicapper must accurately determine is whether a dog is moving up or down in its class and subsequently how this compares with the other dogs in the race.

A typical grading system would be to give a prefix for a particular distance, for instance, a 475 metres race at Walthamstow has an A prefix and 640 metres an S prefix. The letter is followed by a number which gives the grade, or class, of the race. An A9 event would be the lowest, for instance and an A1 the highest.

Although grading rules are usually specific to each track, the differing categories of races are as follows:

Schooling races: These races mark the beginning of a dog’s career. They can be easily identified on the program because they are not given odds.

As well preparing the dogs for competition, these races provide owners with vital information concerning the dog’s future potential. It is important to remember when betting that these races do not really reflect a dog’s true ability. Often, the competitors are immature, undisciplined or do not put in great effort.

Maiden races: After a dog has been schooled, it enters maiden races against other non-winners. From a gambling standpoint, the inconsistency of the competitors makes betting a risky and erratic move.

Maiden winners: After a dog wins a maiden race, it is no longer a maiden and usually progresses to the higher category of races. Optimistic bettors often believe that a maiden winner will continue to win each race, and that they are really watching a future A grade dog race against inferior specimens. Such is the illogical psychology of gambling.

Realistically, most dogs never reach the A grades, and so, it must be assumed that a recently graduated winner is in absolutely uncharted territory where the field is much tougher – all the competitors are, after all, maiden winners themselves. It is for this reason that it is unwise to bet maiden winners in their first high-grade race.

Low-grade: Another drawback to betting on maiden winners is the type of dogs they will encounter in the lower grades. Often they will face higher category dogs reaching the end of their career, along with other maiden winners destined for top grade status. In simple terms, the inconsistent nature of the various competitors makes the prediction of odds difficult and punters should therefore normally avoid these races.

Middle grades: It is these grades that usually make for the most lucrative betting options. In additions to the dogs being consistent, it is easier to identify which animals are on the way up, and which are descending. The strongest are usually those who have had to drop a grade due to a temporary lack of form.

In order to decide which dogs are dropping in class, you must review older programs and analyse at least their last 12 races – this helps eliminate temporary surges or drops in form from your assessment, which may not be evident over just 6 races.

High grades: These races are often as difficult to pick as the low grades due to dogs being so evenly matched. Another difficulty lies in the fact that there are no higher grades from which the dogs can drop. This makes dogs on their way down almost impossible to identify.

If one decides to bet in this class, try to identify animals that are consistent top grade winners, and have competed at that grade for at least six races.

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