The York Dante Festival starts tomorrow — Wednesday May 13. Three days. Five Group races. The most important Classic-trial meeting of the British flat season. Here is the complete guide to all three days.
Wednesday May 13 — Musidora Day
The Wednesday card runs from 1:45pm to 5:15pm on ITV Racing. Five races are live on ITV each day of the three-day meeting.
Feature races on Wednesday:
- 3:30pm — Go Local Stores Minster Stakes (Group 2, 6f, all-aged sprint) — the renamed Duke of York Stakes. 17 runners including Big Mojo, Powerful Glory, American Affair. First major sprint of the flat season.
- 4:05pm — Tattersalls Musidora Stakes (Group 3, 1m2.5f, 3yo fillies, Oaks trial) — 10 runners including I'm The One. Key trial for the Epsom Oaks on June 7.
Thursday May 14 — Dante Day
The highlight of the entire meeting. The Thursday card runs from 1:45pm to 5:15pm.
Feature races on Thursday:
- 4:05pm — Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Dante Stakes (Group 2, 1m2.5f, 3yo, Derby trial) — 12 runners including Christmas Day (O'Brien, 3/1 favourite), Raaheeb (Burrows, 3/1), Maho Bay and Al Zanati (Appleby/Godolphin). The most important Derby evidence day of the spring. £102,078 to the winner.
- Middleton Stakes (Group 2, 1m2.5f, fillies and mares 4yo+) — runs on the same card, providing evidence for older fillies' programmes at Royal Ascot.
Friday May 15 — Yorkshire Cup Day
The final day completes the Dante Festival.
Feature races on Friday:
- 4:05pm — Boodles Yorkshire Cup Stakes (Group 2, 1m6f, 4yo+, Gold Cup pipeline) — Scandinavia (O'Brien/Moore, 3/1) is the 5/5 trends-perfect favourite. St Leger winner targeting Royal Ascot Gold Cup.
TV Coverage
Five races per day on ITV Racing. Every race across the three days is also available on Racing TV. ITV Racing begins coverage at approximately 1:30pm each day. The Dante Stakes on Thursday is the ITV feature race of the entire week — the clearest Derby trial available before Epsom on June 6.
How to Watch
ITV Racing is free-to-air on ITV1 and ITVX. Racing TV requires a subscription. All major bookmakers offer free live streaming to customers with a funded account or a qualifying bet on the relevant race.
Trotbot publishes one daily selection across all three Dante Festival days. Sign up free at horseracingoracleai.com
Betting involves risk. Please gamble responsibly. Visit BeGambleAware.org.
Facts verified via web search May 12 2026. Sources: Read Horse Racing race times and schedule, Racing Post Thursday racecard, StableBet Dante Festival preview.