Great British Bonus Set to Be Expanded with GBBPLUS

GBBPLUS, an extension of the Great British Bonus, will reward owners and breeders with two new separate initiatives tackling the current challenges facing Flat and National Hunt racing. The latest incentive initiatives will kick off Jan. 1, 2025.

“GBB was an important incentive and intervention step to encourage the breeding, buying, and racing of fillies,” the Thoroughbred Breeders Association Chairman Philip Newton said. “Its success now gives us confidence that we can influence behaviour in two other areas of the racing programme: the vital retention of stamina within the thoroughbred and the opportunity to follow a lead well established by our French neighbours in getting horses jumping sooner.”

   For Flat races, alongside the normal GBB bonus, GBBPLUS will offer an additional bonus of up to £20,000 for fillies whose covering fee was £50,000 or less winning:

• Class 2 -4 maiden, novice and conditions races at eight furlongs and over for two-year-olds, and at 10 furlongs and over for three-year-olds. Races that fulfil all core and extension criteria will therefore be worth up to £40,000 to a filly.

For 2-Year-olds, GBBPLUS will payout in:

• Nurseries eight furlongs and over

And for three- and four-year-olds, GBBPLUS will payout in:

• Class 2-4 handicaps at 10 furlongs and over, for which only the extension bonus would be payable, making these races worth up to £20,000 for a filly.
• Seven Listed races (fillies-only, 10-furlong and over), which would offer a bonus of up to £20,000, payable in the usual GBB format but only for 100% GBB-registered fillies.

The addition of four-year-olds would exclusively be for these extension-eligible races not the core GBB scheme.

For National Hunt races, GBBPLUS will:

• Include Class 3-4 open steeplechases, more than doubling the opportunities for chasing mares to win bonuses and encouraging progression into Class 1-2.
• Increase the bonus value for all class 1-4 steeplechase wins to £30,000 for 100% GBB and to £15,000 for 50% GBB in a break from the previous tradition offering larger bonuses in mares-only races and smaller ones in all-sex races.

The Horserace Betting Levy Board will provide £3.5 million to the current GBB scheme, and this funding will be increased by an additional £1.2 million to support GBBPLUS.

GBB is open to all British-born filly foals (registered with a GB suffix) with two eligibility and bonus levels: 100%, by a stallion based in Britain at the time of covering, with bonuses of up to £20,000 per race; 50%, by a stallion who stood outside Britain at the time of covering, with bonuses of up to £10,000 per race.

Provided all registration deadlines are met, bonuses are paid out 65% to the racing owner; 20% to the breeder; 7.5% to the trainer; 5% to the jockey; 2.5% to stable staff.

Further information at greatbritishbonus.co.uk.