Horse Racing

York Dante Festival 2025 Race Times, Running Order and ITV Races Covered

Joe Lyons Sports Editor

Published14 May 2025

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The York Dante Festival is one of the premier meetings of the early flat season and serves as a stepping stone to the most lucrative race on the British calendar.

With that in mind, take a look through the full running order and which races will be broadcast live on ITV Racing ahead of the three-day meeting in Yorkshire.

When Does The York Dante Festival Start?

The 2025 York Dante Festival will run from Wednesday 14th May to Friday 16th May.

Across the fixture there are five Group races beginning with the Group 2 Duke of York Stakes over 6f and Group 3 Musidora Stakes over 1m 2½f on Wednesday.

Two Group 2 races take centre stage on Thursday, both over 1m 2½f in the form of the Group 2 Dante Stakes and Group 2 Middleton Stakes.

Finally on Friday, the Group 2 Yorkshire Cup over 1m 6f is the curtain closer.

Without doubt the biggest race of the meeting is the Dante Stakes – Britain’s richest Classic trial worth £180,000 whose winner has gone on to win the Epsom Derby 11 times, most recently Desert Crown in 2022.

Derby favourite and unbeaten Acomb winner The Lion In Winter heads the field for Aidan O’Brien with his biggest challenger expected to be Alpine Trail who Godolphin recently paid £14,000 to supplement.

Last year’s Dante winner Economics improved to win the Group 2 Prix Guillaume d’Ornano at Deauville in August before sticking his neck out to prevail in the Group 1 Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown a month later.

The Duke of York Stakes was won by Mill Stream in 2024 who later went on to land the Group 1 July Cup at Newmarket.

The 2022 winner of that race, Highfield Princess, found Group 1 success in the Nunthorpe at York, Flying Five at the Curragh and the Prix de l’Abbaye at Longchamp on Arc weekend – so it’s not a bad guide going forward.

The Musidora Stakes can often offer decent clues on the Epsom Oaks, with 2022 winner Emily Upjohn beaten by a short head at the Surrey venue the following month and 2023 champion Soul Sister going one better in the £550,000 race.

The 2024 Middleton Stakes saw Bluestocking land her first Group 1, famously going on to win three more in the Pretty Polly at the Curragh before back-to-back Longchamp triumphs in the Prix Vermeille and later a dream swansong in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.

Stradivarius was a three-time winner of the Yorkshire Cup – used as a prep race before consecutive Ascot Gold Cup victories in 2018 and 2019.

York Dante Festival Race Times And Running Order 2025

See below the running times and full race schedule for the 2025 York Dante Festival with seven races each day and 21 contests in total.

York Dante Festival 2025 Race Times, Running Order and ITV Races Covered — York Dante Festival

Wednesday 14th May 2025 – York Dante Festival

2:10pm – Sky Bet Race To The Ebor Jorvik Handicap
Distance: 1m 4f | Prize: £33,501 | Class: 2 | Age: 4+ | 📺 ITV1, RacingTV
2:42pm – Churchill Tyres Handicap
Distance: 6f | Prize: £30,924 | Class: 2 | Age: 4+ | 📺 ITV1, RacingTV
3:13pm – 1895 Duke Of York Clipper Stakes (Group 2)
Distance: 6f | Prize: £85,065 | Class: 1 | Age: 3+ | 📺 ITV1, RacingTV
3:45pm – Tattersalls Musidora Stakes (Group 3)
Distance: 1m 2½f | Prize: £73,723 | Class: 1 | Age: 3 | 📺 ITV1, RacingTV
4:18pm – Conundrum HR Consulting Handicap
Distance: 7f | Prize: £15,462 | Class: 3 | Age: 3 | 📺 ITV1, RacingTV
4:55pm – British Stallion Studs EBF Novice Stakes
Distance: 5f | Prize: £20,616 | Class: 2 | Age: 2 | 📺 RacingTV
5:25pm – Stuey Weston & Friends Getting Out Handicap
Distance: 1m 4f | Prize: £12,885 | Class: 4 | Age: 4+ | 📺 RacingTV

Thursday 15th May 2025 – York Dante Festival

2:10pm – Lindum York Handicap
Distance: 5f | Prize: £30,924 | Class: 2 | Age: 4+ | 📺 ITV1, RacingTV
2:42pm – Oakmere Homes Hambleton Handicap
Distance: 1m | Prize: £38,655 | Class: 2 | Age: 4+ | 📺 ITV1, RacingTV
3:13pm – Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Middleton Fillies’ Stakes (Group 2)
Distance: 1m 2½f | Prize: £91,020 | Class: 1 | Age: 4+ | 📺 ITV1, RacingTV
3:45pm – Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Dante Stakes (Group 2)
Distance: 1m 2½f | Prize: £108,997 | Class: 1 | Age: 3 | 📺 ITV1, RacingTV
4:18pm – British Stallion Studs EBF Westow Stakes (Listed Race)
Distance: 5f | Prize: £39,697 | Class: 1 | Age: 3 | 📺 ITV1, RacingTV
4:55pm – Frank Whittle Partnership ebfstallions.com Novice Stakes
Distance: 6f | Prize: £15,462 | Class: 2 | Age: 2 | 📺 RacingTV
5:25pm – The Sky Bet Stakes
Distance: 1m 6f | Prize: £14,174 | Class: 3 | Age: 3 | 📺 RacingTV

Friday 16th May 2025 – York Dante Festival

2:10pm – Clipper EBF Marygate Fillies’ Stakes (Listed Race)
Distance: 5f | Prize: £39,697 | Class: 1 | Age: 2 | 📺 ITV1, RacingTV
2:42pm – Knights Solicitors Handicap
Distance: 1m 2½f | Prize: £25,770 | Class: 2 | Age: 4+ | 📺 ITV1, RacingTV
3:13pm – Sky Bet Fillies’ Stakes (Listed Race)
Distance: 1m | Prize: £39,697 | Class: 1 | Age: 3 | 📺 ITV1, RacingTV
3:45pm – Boodles Yorkshire Cup Stakes (Group 2)
Distance: 1m 6f | Prize: £102,078 | Class: 1 | Age: 4+ | 📺 ITV1, RacingTV
4:15pm – Irish Thoroughbred Marketing Handicap
Distance: 5f | Prize: £12,885 | Class: 3 | Age: 3 | 📺 RacingTV
4:55pm – Darley EBF ‘Confined’ Novice Stakes
Distance: 1m | Prize: £20,616 | Class: 2 | Age: 3+ | 📺 ITV1, RacingTV
5:30pm – Yorkshire Equine Practice Handicap
Distance: 7f | Prize: £12,885 | Class: 4 | Age: 4+ | 📺 RacingTV

Is The York Dante Festival On ITV Racing?

Yes, the ITV Racing cameras will be at York to cover the 2025 Dante Festival.

On the first two days – Wednesday and Thursday – ITV1 will broadcast the first five races. RacingTV will cover all seven including the final two.

On Friday, ITV1 will show races one through four and the sixth. As usual, RacingTV will broadcast each – including the fifth and seventh that ITV are missing.

Recent York Dante Stakes Winners

2024 – Economics (6/1)
2023 – The Foxes (6/1)
2022 – Desert Crown (7/2J)
2021 – Hurricane Lane (5/1)
2020 – Thunderous (13/2)
2019 – Telecaster (7/1)
2018 – Roaring Lion (3/1F)
2017 – Permian (10/1)
2016 – Wings of Desire (9/1)
2015 – Golden Horn (4/1)