#GreyhoundDerby2026

AUTHOR: Star Sports Content

GREYHOUND DERBY 2026: Kaan’s 2nd Round Betting Report

Our Head of On-Course, Kaan Hughes, is back to reflect on all the betting action from the second round of the Greyhound Derby…

⭐ GREYHOUND DERBY ANTE-POST ⭐

⭐ GREYHOUND DERBY SPECIALS  ⭐

⭐ STARSPORTS.BET GREYHOUND BETTING ⭐

The field is down to 96 (before non-runners), things are about to get underway, the sun is shining upon Towcester for night one of the second round of the 2026 Star Sports Greyhound Derby. What is more to like? writes KAAN HUGHES.

FRIDAY

Heat 1 and only four runners went to post as two runners were withdrawn throughout the week. Proper Heiress v the young pretender Ballymac Deniro, a match they say, we hold around £3300 on Proper Heiress around 8/11, we take £150 on Deniro and nothing the other two runners, hopefully this was not a sign of things to come. Heiress flew the lids, but Deniro gave him a good test to the corner, the vacant traps gave Heiress the chance to move across and gain an advantage, and the professional dog he is got the job done with the minimum of fuss, and Deniro gave a good chase. This is not the derby if we do not start off on the back foot.

Heat 2, now I know we may fancy one here in Epic Ace, but the fact we have taken £200 regardless of the price is farcical on the second round of the derby. The old lady at Plough Lane will be rolling in her flood plain. Epic Ace won the race in some style, and we won £192, well it is a winner I suppose. Deliah, do your thing, where are you? Let’s be having you!

Heat 3 a race nobody knew what to bet and a good spread of business, but by post time there was a move, and quite a big one for Teejays Buddy, who held over £3500 at an average of 2/1. A clear bogey and going off 13/8, we are happy enough, we have got enough running for us. A good start and heading into the corner we didn’t know our fate, but Rebel Alaska swooped the field and ran away from decent dogs to score nicely. This is good isn’t it.

Heat 4 another race where it’s 2/1 the field, now we will see who knows their onions. Why onions? Who ever came up with that phrase. Anyway, a spread of betting across the field and a £1000 bet at 7/2 was struck on Coloursaregreen. Interesting race with the clear bogey in trap three. Lids went up and the red line in our book went into the bed in front with us fearing the worst and heading back to square one, but this pup of Liam Dowlings, Ballymac Ralf paced up well and showed the most brilliant backstraight pace to run away winning well. Can we do this every week? I love the Derby, if only we could stand at Shelbourne Park too, it would be joyous.

Heat 5 a race of split opinion, some fancy Droopys Graph, some Aladdin, but all the money is for Lennies Tank. Standing us at post time in red for nearly £8000. We knew Lennie had a good start in him, and that’s what he did but Aladdin is a professional too and went up as fast but had the inside line, a couple in behind bumped and the loser in the book spun off wide, Droopys Graph gave good chase but Droopys Aladdin won by a neck and was a fantastic result for the book.

Heat 6 and the sun is starting to set, it is not summer yet folks. Madness to think that is the 21st June, the Derby would have finished, and we have not even had Summe, yet I’ve had sun stroke, a cold and everything else in between from Towcester. Last weeks impressive winner was Salacres Lock Up, he looked a worthy favourite again and attracted strong money to see us in red for just over £5000. Anything else will do. That was not to be, when the lovely white and black son of Unlock Unlock raced clear and never looked like coming back to the field. Not such a good result for the book.

Heat 7 the penultimate of the evening Ballymac Stud a standout favourite at 2/5, and business was quiet before a bit of money for the stripes which went wayward when the former raced clear and won like a pro, it’s as simple as that. The only downside is Lofty can now no longer try to keep shouting ‘Joachim’ who exited the competition, wonder if he knows he was the father of the Virgin Mary, St Joachim that is, not Lofty!

Heat 8, the final one of the evening, Underground Gold in one, Lennies Eddie in four, Glengar Silent in six, this is juicy! 2/1 into 7/4 Underground Gold with lumps of money sitting us red for over £7000, Eddie only wins us £900, the bottom £6700 and the rest even money, a good book, but not a great book, it’s nice to lay different dogs. I know it’s the Derby but put the good racing on and the punters and customers will turn out, they are still here! Glengar Silent, like name silent in the boxes and forgot to come away, crowded wide early, before surging late, Eddie trouble throughout but gave everything but was denied and we go home managing to knock a bit back. It happens, but if the races are competitive, you have a chance. Anyway, there’s two graded races left, which we know nothing about, the M40 is closing and we need to get this kit away and out of here for a rare earlier finish, we will be ready to go again in under twenty-four hours.

SATURDAY

Here we are for night two of the second round of the 2026 Star Sports Greyhound Derby. This is getting good; the sun is shining once again! Don’t say it too loud though.

On arrival we complemented the soundtrack choices, sat in the bar going through our cards and from Elton Johns Crocodile Rock, Staceys Mom – Bonus points for anyone who can name the group without having to search for it.

Anyway, tonight promises to be a great night’s racing, and we get things underway with Heat 9 at 6.38pm where one of the star ladies of the track lines up warm order, ‘Strike It Skye’, from the inside in trap 1, she looks to have a great chance and we (don’t say this too loudly) decide not to get too busy as we thing she is at a backable price. On parade and a flurry of business was underneath us, they’d come at us fast and suddenly, we had the fancied selection losing us over £4000, a lot of business done at 4/5. She wasn’t the only one to be bet though, when Lennies Desire who ran well last week was holding just around £1000 in the hod at an average of 11/2. He was a keeper, the favourite a £3k loser and the rest good winners. She didn’t get away best, but she paced up lovely and took off from the backstraight to lead going away, and we were already on the backfoot.

Heat 10 a split of opinion here, Ballymac Iroko opened favourite here at 13/8, but I had a feeling Ballymac Kobe should have been fav, and the 2/1 Kobe was splattered off the board and into the Towcester backstraight, the big hitters stumbled down the steps and were filling the satchel. This is the Greyhound Derby as we know it, we already have a dog holding over £5k so becomes a £10k loser, Iroko moves out, let’s try and get him in the book. Kranky Drake was an eye catcher last week but saw no money. Looks like we need a result. We got one, Kobe never really involved and Kranky Drake won with an arm aloft from the other side of the joint, I believe Lofty backed that one himself.

Heat 11, Gaytime Clyde looked a worthy favourite for Graham Holland after last weeks performance, and an even monkey at evens with other bets of small note saw the market take control and he was getting shorter, all while the rest of the field drift, kennel companion and veteran performer, Faypoint Harvey was a best priced 9/2, from nowhere a couple of warm faces turned up and a handful of bets launched into us saw us holding £2k at an average of 9/2 the named ‘Harvey’. He is the big loser, everything else a winner. Lids opened and Gaytime Clyde was asleep and Harvey flew the lids with most others napping, we feared the worst and into the corner the former then managed to miss the bend and wipe out another runner. The bogey racing further clear. From there the jolly, a small winner gave chase and looked to do the unthinkable from the position he was in, but just failed, and it was truly a case of how far he would have won, but instead it was a case of how long until the next, as we have to pay out! A painful blow.

Heat 12 last weeks new track record holder, Ballymac Duffle not attracting much support and the biggest bet of a monkey at ½, saw him a £513 loser and the rest just over a thousand-pound winners. It was a prime case of let’s just sit back and watch a great dog run. That was exactly what happened when he flew the lids this week from trap four and won by a long way breaking his own track record. A beautiful hound.

Heat 13, Hackney Corner our big Ante Post bogey lined up here and one I really wanted to go after with pace around him. Opening 8/11 we knew we’d get business, what we didn’t expect was to be knocked down like one of Glen McGrath’s inswingers! Lumps, absolute lumps. Lofty, you tap I’ll count and grab. Just keep laying, we must get some of it back. Holding around the sum of £12k at the off, and bet into 4/6, we barely laid another dog, I genuinely can’t remember if we did? Have we got this spectacularly wrong (again). Matthew Wilders ain’t nothin gonna break my stride, unless this wins was the remarks across the pitch! Fantastic tune, what we are about to witness, may not be fantastic. Lids rise and his neighbours get away lovely, he’s missed his break badly, the strong running, Romeo Empire has come under the bars, wow. We’ve got chance, until, scrimmaging at the corner, and he catapults around the field with sights on one dog, the only short runner, and he got past it off the last and Empire gave a late charge, but failed. Jeez, this is ugly, someone send an SOS, ah, another tune that was blaring on the Tannoy, great songs, awful results, you can’t have everything!

Heat 14 the headscratcher of last week, Scooby The lady, how did she get beat many will always ask, who cares? That’s history, it’s a new week now. She is a best priced back 8/11 were we lay an £1100 to win £800, there wasn’t much action outside of that. They are all still counting their winnings from the last, or I was still paying out, or they’re not breaking their stride to have a bet here. The Lady wins and another loser in the book. Out of nowhere, what starts playing, Saturday night, I feel the air is getting hot! No Lofty’s not actually lost it with his keyboard tonight, all is playing well, but Whigfield, and absolute 90’s banger is blaring. If in doubt, enjoy the music, music is a great escape for all things in life, it can bring nostalgia like no other. Shut your eyes and just listen. Right enough of that, we’ve got work to do.

Heat 15 we are firmly in, and a long way in, so we need to find a result if the business comes our way. Glengar Kane one of the outright leading fancies is drifting and from 8/13 out to 8/11 and 4/5 in a place we lay small business but the one who just could not be bet enough was in trap one, Goldcash Warrior, 13/8, eaten alive into 5/4 and firmly sits red in our book for over £12k. Friend of the show as he likes to say, Stephen Darbyshire was in attendance and could not believe the action, fresh from his travels to and from Ascot via Northampton. The journeyman I like to call him, a bloody good one, mind. This is make or break (not completely make, but get us going should I say). Mr Buckley it’s about time you did us a favour. Away they go and Kane has come under the bars the strapping brindle. Into the corner and he’s a couple clear, a little trouble in behind for the bogey, and never really moments worry. I am not quite sure how Wannabe by the Spice Girls fits in here, but yes, it was on followed by an Oasis classic. We are firmly back in the game.

The final heat of the Derby in round two being heat 16 before the TV Trophy heats got underway saw the fast-starting Swords Style in red and last weeks well backed Slippery Brian in the stripes of six. The faces are standing and the prices are on the board. Are you ready, £1000 at 5/1 Priceless Romeo who hasn’t been mentioned, followed by another £300, bits and pieces about the Style in one, but the money was all for one dog at 7/4, Slipper Brian, and by the off we had him holding around £9k. At the lids rise, the inside four boxes were all five figure winners, the 5 a small winner, the 6 sending us home with our tail between our legs. Swords Style showed his usual early dash into the bend and raced clear, the rest trailing in behind with a bit of trouble, he never had a moments worry, and somehow, we had performed a Houdini act. I’m not quite sure at this point whether Journey – Don’t stop believing had been playing or I was just singing it to myself, either way, we roll on.

To finish the card there were three heats of the Barking Mad Betting TV Trophy. Mongys Wild was 1/12, so we bet without. I made Frankton Ivy and Reality Power the front end and we laid a few quid at 51 early for Laughil Pippa who never featured and we managed to cop £200. The second aw highly rated Greenwell Gypsy who was very weak out to 8/11 and we only managed to get small bits in with money for Savanaregimental at 20/1. This time copped around £600. The final race saw Innfield Fifi 4/7 do battle with Remember Betty at 5/2 by which point it had turned to freezing, everyone had vacated and we had the two losers being a 25/1 & 50/1 poke, we won £16, which paid for the sweets!

That’s it for the week, it’s been emotional, my watch has told me the noise environment was too loud, and it also told me my blood pressure was raised, I wonder why? What a game.

We are back next Saturday for the great 3rd round where you will see the Derby heats all on one night for the first time this year. Please find us on a racecourse in the meantime throughout the week.


Take care one and all.

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