Absolute Steel is 200/1 Rank Outsider But Wins at Exeter

It was just the 3rd race of his career, but Absolute Steel would make headlines at the Novices Hurdle at Exeter.

The race took place on the 11th February 2024, and priced at 200/1, Absolute Steel was the rank outsider of the 8 runners taking part. He had finished last and second last in his first two races, so it’s fair to say that no one fancied him.

Why did he make headlines? Because he won, becoming the joint second longest priced winner ever in the UK.

The horse took the lead early on and kept it, setting a sensible pace considering the conditions. Despite wandering before most jumps, hitting quite a few, and almost losing it at the end, Absolute Steel crossed it in first place.

Speaking after the race, trainer, Tom Lacey, said:

“He was bought as an unbroken three-year-old in Ireland. We then broke him in, put him away for the spring and summer – and he ran perfectly acceptably at Market Rasen but Chepstow was a complete failure.”

“In his first run over hurdles he was very slow over the first couple and he was then on the back foot.

“So I said to Stan ‘look, just get him out of the gate, ride him aggressively and let’s see where we are with him’ – and nothing passed him.”

No one could have predicted it. Plenty of people bet on it though.

There was a huge crowd of 3,500 students on a day out from Plymouth and Exeter there on race day. None of them were serious punters, so many put small bets on the longest priced horses for fun. One on course bookmaker reportedly paid out around £70,000 in winnings on small bets. Ouch.

What’s more, Lacey had suggested on his blog that anyone wanting a fun each way should back Absolute Steel, and plenty of people read it. Not to mention bets made by the owners, a syndicate called ValueRacingClub.

This was one of those rare occasions where bookies may actually have felt the sharp end of a long odds winner.

Absolute Steel? More like Absolute Steal.