What does BD mean in horse racing? Racecards at Cheltenham Festival explained

The Cheltenham Festival is in full swing. Last year the meeting was held behind closed doors because of the coronavirus pandemic. The highest number of spectators are expected to attend the Festival than ever before.

Colours, jockey and trainer names are displayed on the TV. The colours of the jockeys' hats and the hats of their horses are also visible.

BD means official rating. It is a fundamental part of handicapping. Flat horses earn a rating between 0 and 140, National Hunt horses between 170 and 170.

The Racing Post Rating (RPR) is similar to OR. RPR is a daily horse racing newspaper well known for its content around the sports betting markets.

Form is an important statistic to see how good the horse has been in recent meetings.

The numbers and symbols in the form of the racecard indicate the position the horse finished in a race. The symbol '-' seperates racing seasons.

The number 1-9 indicate the position the horse finished in a race. The symbol '-' seperates racing seasons.

BD means beaten favourite in horse racing. F means the horse fell, R means a horse refused, U means another runner brought it down and UR means it unseated the jockey.

BD means the horse was brought down by another runner.

C indicates a horse has won on that course before. D indicates the horse won over that distance before, CD indicates it has also won that way before and BF stands for beaten favourite.