The Molecomb Stakes is a Group 3

Conditions races

Conditions races are horse races where the weights carried by the runners are laid down by the conditions attached to the race. Weights are allocated according to; the sex of the runners, with female runners carrying less weight than males; the age of the runners, with younger horses receiving...

 flat

Flat racing

Flat racing is a form of Thoroughbred horse racing which is run over a level track at a predetermined distance. It differs from steeplechase racing which is run over hurdles...

 horse race

Horse racing

Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...

 in Great Britain

Great Britain

Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...

 open to two-year-old thoroughbred

Thoroughbred

The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...

s. It is run at Goodwood

Goodwood Racecourse

Goodwood Racecourse is a horse-racing track five miles north of Chichester, West Sussex, in England controlled by the family of the Duke of Richmond, whose seat is nearby Goodwood House...

 over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is scheduled to take place each year in late July or early August.

History

The event is named after Molecomb, a house on the Goodwood Estate

Goodwood House

Goodwood House is a country house in West Sussex in southern England. It is the seat of the Dukes of Richmond. Several architects have contributed to the design of the house, including James Wyatt. It was the intention to build the house to a unique octagonal layout, but only three of the eight...

 originally built by the 3rd Duke of Richmond

Charles Lennox, 3rd Duke of Richmond

Field Marshal Charles Lennox, 3rd Duke of Richmond, 3rd Duke of Lennox, 3rd Duke of Aubigny, KG, PC, FRS , styled Earl of March until 1750, was a British politician and office holder noteworthy for his advanced views on the issue of parliamentary reform...

 for his sister Lady Sarah Lennox

Lady Sarah Lennox

Lady Sarah Lennox was the most notorious of the famous Lennox Sisters, daughters of Charles Lennox, 2nd Duke of Richmond.-Early life:...

. The race was established in 1829, and the inaugural running was won by Convert.

The Molecomb Stakes was originally open to two-year-olds of either gender, but it was restricted to fillies in 1932. It was reopened to colts and geldings in 1981.

The race is currently held on the opening day of the five-day Glorious Goodwood meeting.

Records

Leading jockey

Jockey

A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...

 (8 wins):

• Lester Piggott
  Lester Piggott
  Lester Keith Piggott is a retired English professional jockey, popularly known as "The Long Fellow". With 4,493 career wins, including nine Epsom Derby victories, he is one of the most well-known English flat racing jockeys of all time....
  
   – Abelia (1957), Smooth (1966), Flying Legs (1968), Lady Rowley (1974), Hayloft (1975), Marwell (1980), Prowess Prince (1981), Precocious (1983)

----
Leading trainer

Horse trainer

In horse racing, a trainer prepares a horse for races, with responsibility for exercising it, getting it race-ready and determining which races it should enter...

 (7 wins):

• John Barham Day – Waresti (1834), Grey Momus (1837), Wapiti (1838), Crucifix (1839), The Ugly Buck (1843), Nutbourne (1844), Elmsthorpe (1852)
• John Porter
  John Porter (horseman)
  John Porter was an English Thoroughbred flat racing trainer whose horses won the English Triple Crown three times.-Biography:Born in Rugeley, Staffordshire, the National Horseracing Museum says that John Porter "was undoubtedly the most successful trainer of the Victorian era."From 1854 to 1855,...
  
   – Red Hazard (1877), St. Blaise (1882), Luminary (1884), Freedom (1886), Friar's Balsam (1887), La Fleche (1891), Rampion (1895)

Winners since 1980

Year	Winner	Jockey	Trainer	Time
1980	Marwell	Lester Piggott Lester Piggott Lester Keith Piggott is a retired English professional jockey, popularly known as "The Long Fellow". With 4,493 career wins, including nine Epsom Derby victories, he is one of the most well-known English flat racing jockeys of all time....	Michael Stoute Michael Stoute Sir Michael Ronald Stoute is a Barbadian British thoroughbred horse trainer in flat racing. Stoute, whose father was the Chief of police for Barbados, left the island in 1964 at the age of 19 to become an assistant to trainer Pat Rohan and began training horses on his own in 1972...
1981	Prowess Prince	Lester Piggott Lester Piggott Lester Keith Piggott is a retired English professional jockey, popularly known as "The Long Fellow". With 4,493 career wins, including nine Epsom Derby victories, he is one of the most well-known English flat racing jockeys of all time....	Eric Eldin
1982	Kafu	Greville Starkey Greville Starkey Greville Starkey was an English jockey who rode almost 2,000 winners during a 33-year career on the flat.Starkey scaled the heights of his profession during his 33-year career in which he rode 1,989 winners on the Flat...	Guy Harwood Guy Harwood Guy Harwood is a retired British racehorse trainer. Harwood was born in Pulborough, West Sussex, in 1939. Harwood began riding at the age of 18 and won 40 point-to-point races and 14 National Hunt races over the next few years...
1983	Precocious	Lester Piggott Lester Piggott Lester Keith Piggott is a retired English professional jockey, popularly known as "The Long Fellow". With 4,493 career wins, including nine Epsom Derby victories, he is one of the most well-known English flat racing jockeys of all time....	Henry Cecil Henry Cecil Sir Henry Richard Amherst Cecil is a successful English horse racing trainer who has had many winners in the Epsom Derby, 1,000 Guineas and 2,000 Guineas, Epsom Oaks and the St. Leger Stakes....
1984	Absent Chimes	Philip Robinson Philip P. Robinson Philip Peter Robinson is an English flat racing jockey.The son of Peter Robinson, a jockey and trainer, he rode his first winner in 1978 at Great Yarmouth. He was British flat racing Champion Apprentice in 1979 and 1980. One of his most famous victories was his win on Pebbles, trained by Clive...	David Thom
1985	Hotbee	Tyrone Williams	John Bridger
1986	Gemini Fire	Steve Cauthen Steve Cauthen Steve Cauthen is a retired American jockey.Cauthen, the son of a trainer and a farrier, grew up in Walton, Kentucky around horses, which made race-riding a logical career choice. He rode his first race on May 12, 1976 at Churchill Downs; he finished last, riding King of Swat...	Paul Felgate	1:01.15
1987	Classic Ruler	John Reid John A. Reid John Andrew Reid John Andrew Reid John Andrew Reid (born August 6, 1955 in Banbridge County Down, Northern Ireland is a retired flat race jockey.Reid served as an apprentice in his native Ireland to Leslie Crawford, before moving to England and joining Verley Bewicke. His first Classic victory came...	Charlie Nelson	0:59.33
1988	Almost Blue	John Carroll	Jack Berry	1:01.16
1989	Haunting Beauty	Pat Eddery Pat Eddery Patrick James John "Pat" Eddery is a former flat racing jockey. Pat's father Jimmy Eddery was a jockey, as is his brother Paul Eddery.-Career:...	Jimmy Etherington	1:00.15
1990	Poets Cove	John Reid John A. Reid John Andrew Reid John Andrew Reid John Andrew Reid (born August 6, 1955 in Banbridge County Down, Northern Ireland is a retired flat race jockey.Reid served as an apprentice in his native Ireland to Leslie Crawford, before moving to England and joining Verley Bewicke. His first Classic victory came...	Wally Carter	0:57.53
1991	Sahara Star	John Reid John A. Reid John Andrew Reid John Andrew Reid John Andrew Reid (born August 6, 1955 in Banbridge County Down, Northern Ireland is a retired flat race jockey.Reid served as an apprentice in his native Ireland to Leslie Crawford, before moving to England and joining Verley Bewicke. His first Classic victory came...	Michael Stoute Michael Stoute Sir Michael Ronald Stoute is a Barbadian British thoroughbred horse trainer in flat racing. Stoute, whose father was the Chief of police for Barbados, left the island in 1964 at the age of 19 to become an assistant to trainer Pat Rohan and began training horses on his own in 1972...	0:59.14
1992	Millyant	Michael Roberts Michael Roberts (jockey) Michael Roberts is a South African jockey currently residing in Suffolk, England, with his wife Verna and two daughters, Melanie and Carolyn. Roberts has had a successful career, winning many English and South African races multiple times. He was British flat racing Champion Jockey in 1992...	Rae Guest	0:57.58
1993	Risky	Walter Swinburn Walter Swinburn Walter R. Swinburn is a retired flat racing jockey who competed in Great Britain and Ireland as well as internationally.Swinburn was born in Oxford...	Richard Hannon Richard Hannon Richard Hannon is a British horse trainer based in East Everleigh Stables, Marlborough, Wiltshire.Hannon's family has a tradition of horse training—his father was also a horse trainer, his son Richard is currently the assistant trainer, and his son-in-law Richard Hughes is the stable jockey. ...	1:00.77
1994	Hoh Magic	Michael Hills	Michael Bell	0:57.75
1995	Almaty	Kevin Darley Kevin Darley Kevin Darley is a retired jockey, and a co-president of the Jockeys' Association of Great Britain...	Con Collins	0:58.17
1996	Carmine Lake	John Reid John A. Reid John Andrew Reid John Andrew Reid John Andrew Reid (born August 6, 1955 in Banbridge County Down, Northern Ireland is a retired flat race jockey.Reid served as an apprentice in his native Ireland to Leslie Crawford, before moving to England and joining Verley Bewicke. His first Classic victory came...	Peter Chapple-Hyam Peter Chapple-Hyam Peter Chapple-Hyam is a Thoroughbred racehorse trainer. He trained Dr Devious to win the Epsom Derby in 1992 and repeated the feat with Authorized in 2007. He managed two Group One wins in his first season as a trainer in 1991...	0:58.32
1997	Lady Alexander	Pat Shanahan	Con Collins	1:00.12
1998	Inya Lake	Richard Quinn	Mick Channon Mick Channon Michael Roger "Mick" Channon is a sportsman who enjoyed a career as a striker with Southampton and England in the 1970s and later became a hugely successful racehorse trainer.-Southampton:...	0:59.96
1999	Misty Miss	John Egan	David Evans	0:58.37
2000	Misty Eyed	Lee Newman	Nerys Dutfield	0:58.48
2001	Whitbarrow	Basil Marcus	Rod Millman	0:58.25
2002	Wunders Dream	Michael Fenton	James Given	0:58.28
2003	Majestic Missile	Michael Hills	William Haggas	0:58.83
2004	Tournedos	Ted Durcan	Mick Channon Mick Channon Michael Roger "Mick" Channon is a sportsman who enjoyed a career as a striker with Southampton and England in the 1970s and later became a hugely successful racehorse trainer.-Southampton:...	0:58.54
2005	Strike Up the Band	Adrian Nicholls	David Nicholls	0:58.36
2006	Enticing	Michael Hills	William Haggas	0:59.19
2007	Fleeting Spirit Fleeting Spirit Fleeting Spirit is a retired, Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse who was trained in the United Kingdom during a racing career which lasted from 2007 to 2010. She was a specialist sprinter, running all of her races over five and six furlongs...	Johnny Murtagh Johnny Murtagh Johnny Murtagh is a Irish flat racing jockey from Bohermeen, Navan, County Meath.He excels on the big stage, having won many Group 1 races around the world...	Jeremy Noseda Jeremy Noseda Jeremy Noseda is a British racehorse trainer.After six years working for John Dunlop, and five years as assistant to John Gosden, he joined Sheikh Mohammed's Godolphin operation in late 1993, and played a significant role in training such horses as Lammtarra, Halling and Balanchine.He started...	0:57.96
2008	Finjaan	Richard Hills	Marcus Tregoning Marcus Tregoning Marcus Tregoning is a horse racing jockey who worked in an apprenticeship under Dick Hern. Tregoning began training horses by himself in the year 1997, originally starting with 50 horses.-Notable Races and Wins:...	0:57.88
2009	Monsieur Chevalier	Richard Hughes Richard Hughes (jockey) Richard Hughes is an Irish flat jockey who most commonly rides in Great Britain. Born in Dublin, he is the son of successful National Hunt trainer, Dessie Hughes. His main provider of rides has been trainer Richard Hannon who is also his father in law andfrom 2001 to 2007 he was also retained by...	Richard Hannon Richard Hannon Richard Hannon is a British horse trainer based in East Everleigh Stables, Marlborough, Wiltshire.Hannon's family has a tradition of horse training—his father was also a horse trainer, his son Richard is currently the assistant trainer, and his son-in-law Richard Hughes is the stable jockey. ...	0:58.24
2010	Zebedee	Richard Hughes Richard Hughes (jockey) Richard Hughes is an Irish flat jockey who most commonly rides in Great Britain. Born in Dublin, he is the son of successful National Hunt trainer, Dessie Hughes. His main provider of rides has been trainer Richard Hannon who is also his father in law andfrom 2001 to 2007 he was also retained by...	Richard Hannon Richard Hannon Richard Hannon is a British horse trainer based in East Everleigh Stables, Marlborough, Wiltshire.Hannon's family has a tradition of horse training—his father was also a horse trainer, his son Richard is currently the assistant trainer, and his son-in-law Richard Hughes is the stable jockey. ...	0:58.49
2011	Requinto	Wayne Lordan	David Wachman	0:57.51

Jimmy Barnie finished first in 1990, but he was relegated to fourth place following a stewards' inquiry.

Earlier winners

* The 1941 running took place at Newmarket

Newmarket Racecourse

The town of Newmarket, in Suffolk, England, is the headquarters of British horseracing, home to the largest cluster of training yards in the country and many key horse racing organisations. Newmarket Racecourse has two courses - the Rowley Mile Course and the July Course. Both are wide, galloping...

.