2023 Cape Town Met Betting Tips, Best Bookmakers & Free Bets

Held at Kenilworth in Cape Town, The Sun Met attracts huge numbers on course and it’s known as a showcase of South African racing at its best. South Africa’s best middle-distance thoroughbreds do battle in one of the most exciting races anywhere in the world.

The first Sun Met was run in 1883 when raced under the name of the Metropolitan Mile. It was taken out by Sir Hercules and although the race wasn’t overly popular in the early 1900’s, it has been a staple of South African racing since the 1960’s.

Boosting the popularity of the race was South African champion, Politician, which was the Phar Lap of South African racing. The chestnut cruised to a 3.25-length victory in 1979 and the massive crowed was delighted with the result.

Politician would create history a year later when winning the Sun Met in incredible fashion, cementing his legacy at Kenilworth. The Syd Laird-trained runner pushed his way through runners to run down filly Festive Season. Pocket Power would be the next horse to win back-to-back Sun Met’s in 2008 and would later add a third consecutive win in 2009.

The Sun Met has become one of the social events of the South African racing calendar. With two other Grade 1 races on the card, it’s a big occasion for not only the racing public, but also those looking to enjoy racing for the first time.

Some of the best thoroughbreds have won The Sun Met, including Politician, Divine Master, Wolf Power and Horse Chestnut.

When J & B stepped away from the sponsorship, Sun International came in and raised the prize money to R5 million, making it the richest race in South Africa.

Betting on The Sun Met is widely popular in South African and most of the big betting nations around the world.

A big field is always presented and due to this, the odds on offer are generous from bookmakers. Similar to the Melbourne Cup in Australia, The Sun Met offers punters with great each-way value.

That was evident in 2018 when Oh Susanna won as a 7.00 chance. The Australian-bred filly by Street Cry hailed from the powerful Justin Snaith stables and she would win again her start following in the Woolavington 2000, franking the form of The Sun Met.

Punters will typically get good odds for any runner and there’s not typically a short-priced favourite in the market. This allows punters to get value odds in the wide-open field.

Betting on horses that draw low numbers in the barriers is preferred. With the track circumference of 2800m, drawing on the outside can significantly hinder a runners’ chances.