acceptance

en-noun

acceptance (countable and uncountable, plural acceptances)

* First attested in 1574. From Middle French acceptance, from Old French accepter (“accept”). Equivalent to accept + -ance.

(horse racing, Australia, New Zealand, plural only) A list of horses accepted as starters in a race.


stock

From Middle English stok, from Old English stocc, from Proto-West Germanic *stokk, from Proto-Germanic *stukkaz (“tree-trunk”), with modern senses mostly referring either to the trunk from which the tree grows (figuratively, its origin and/or support/foundation), or to a piece of wood, stick, or rod. The senses of "supply" and "raw material" arose from a probable conflation with steck (“an item of goods, merchandise”) or the use of split tally sticks consisting of foil or counterfoil and stock to capture paid taxes, debts or exchanges. Doublet of chock.

stark (non-rhotic, father-bother merger)

(motor racing, of a race car) Having the same configuration as cars sold to the non-racing public, or having been modified from such a car.


pit

From Middle English pit, pet, püt, from Old English pytt, from Proto-West Germanic *puti, from Latin puteus (“trench, pit, well”), although there are phonetic difficulties.

he who digs a pit for others falls in himself

Two drivers have already gone into the pit this early in the race.

(motor racing) An area at a racetrack used for refueling and repairing the vehicles during a race.


pit

en-verb

pit (third-person singular simple present pits, present participle pitting, simple past and past participle pitted)

pits (present singular third-person)
pitting (participle present)
pitted (participle past)
pitted (past)

Bottas had to pit earlier than expected for fresh tyres. Hamilton followed him in next time around and the two drivers were instructed to stay off the kerbs to protect their tyres.

2020 September 13, Andrew Benson, “Tuscan Grand Prix: Lewis Hamilton claims 90th win after incredible race”, in BBC Sport:

(intransitive, motor racing) To return to the pits during a race for refuelling, tyre changes, repairs etc.


purple

en-adj

purple (comparative purpler or more purple, superlative purplest or most purple)

purpler (comparative)
more purple (comparative)
purplest (superlative)
most purple (superlative)

nonpurple

antonym(s) of “having purple as its colour”

From Middle English purple, purpel, from Old English purpul (“purple”, adjective), taken from Old English purpure (“purple colour”, noun), from Latin purpura (“purple dye, shellfish”), from Ancient Greek πορφύρα (porphúra, “purple-fish”), perhaps of Semitic origin. Doublet of purpura and purpure.
The sense of "imperial power" is from the wearing of the color purple by emperors and kings.

der

(motor racing, of a sector, lap, etc.) Completed in the fastest time so far in a given session.


SC

en-noun

SC (countable and uncountable, plural SCs)

(motor racing) Initialism of safety car.


GR

(automotive, marketing, motor racing) Initialism of Gazoo Racing.: A performance brand, automotive label, and, racing division, of Toyota.


GT

(motor racing) Initialism of grand tourer.


SP

SP (countable and uncountable, plural SPs)

He was an atheist, a rationalist, a medical student of no great distinction, an SP punter, a singer of bawdy songs, an acknowledged expert in matters erotic.

1985, Peter Carey, Illywhacker, Faber and Faber, published 2003, page 157:

It was the last time, too, when […] the races dominated the radio on Saturday afternoons and everyone had the number of an SP bookie.

1998, David Malouf, A First Place, Vintage, published 2015, page 196:


lane

From Middle English lane, lone, from Old English lanu (“a lane, alley, avenue”), from Proto-West Germanic *lanu, from Proto-Germanic *lanō (“lane, passageway”).
Cognate with Scots lone (“cattle-track, by-road”), West Frisian leane, loane (“a walkway, avenue”), Dutch laan (“alley, avenue”), German Low German Lane, Laan (“lane”), Swedish lån (“covered walkway encircling a house”), Icelandic lön (“a row of houses”).

cog

And it's Uncle Mo in front by two as they come to the top of the lane.


loose

en-adj

loose (comparative looser, superlative loosest)

looser (comparative)
loosest (superlative)

packaged

antonym(s) of “not held or packaged together”

bound

antonym(s) of “not bound or tethered or leashed”

From Middle English loos, los, lous, from Old Norse lauss, from Proto-Germanic *lausaz, whence also -less, leasing; from Proto-Indo-European *lewH-, *lū- (“to untie, set free, separate”), whence also lyo-, -lysis, via Ancient Greek.

(US, slang, motor racing, of a stock car) Having oversteer.


maiden

From Middle English mayden, meiden, from Old English mæġden (“girl”), originally a diminutive of mæġeþ (“girl”) via diminutive suffix -en, from Proto-West Germanic *magaþ, from Proto-Germanic *magaþs. Equivalent to maid + -en.

(horse racing) A racehorse without any victory, i.e. one having a "virgin record".

(horse racing) A horse race in which all starters are maidens.


draw

en-noun

draw (countable and uncountable, plural draws)

From Middle English drawen, draȝen, dragen (“to drag, pull, push, draw (out), go to, make, add, etc.”), from Old English dragan, from Proto-West Germanic *dragan, from Proto-Germanic *draganą, from Proto-Indo-European *dʰregʰ- (“to draw, pull”). Doublet of drag and draught.
cognates
* Albanian dredh (“to turn, spin”)
* Danish drage
* Dutch dragen
* German tragen (“to carry”)
* Old Armenian դառնամ (daṙnam, “to turn”)
* Sanskrit ध्रजस् (dhrájas, “gliding course or motion”)
* West Frisian drage

cog

(horse racing) The stall from which a horse begins the race.


nose

Sranan Tongo: noso

Aukan: nosu

Saramaccan: núsu

Audio (London, UK)

Audio (UK)

From Middle English nose, from Old English nosu, from Proto-West Germanic *nosu, variant of *nasō, old dual from Proto-Indo-European *néh₂s- ~ *nh₂es- (“nose, nostril”).
See also Saterland Frisian Noose, West Frisian noas, Dutch neus, Swedish nos, Norwegian nos (“snout”), German Low German Nees, Nes, Näs, German Nase, Swedish näsa, Norwegian nese, Danish næse (“nose”); also Latin nāris (“nostril”), nāsus (“nose”), Lithuanian nósis, Russian нос (nos), Sanskrit नासा (nā́sā, “nostrils”).

Red Rum only won by a nose.

(horse racing) The length of a horse’s nose, used to indicate the distance between horses at the finish of a race, or any very close race.

马鼻 (maa⁵ bei⁶, literally “horse's nose”)


distance

en-noun

distance (countable and uncountable, plural distances)

From Middle English distance, distaunce, destance (“disagreement, dispute; discrimination; armed conflict; hostility; trouble; space between two points; time interval”), from Anglo-Norman distance, distaunce, destance, Middle French distance, and Old French destance, destaunce, distaunce (“debate; difference, distinction; discord, quarrel; dispute; space between two points; time interval”) (modern French distance), and directly from their etymon Latin distantia (“difference, diversity; distance, remoteness; space between two points”) (whence also Late Latin distantia (“disagreement; discrepancy; gap, opening; time interval”)), from distāns (“being distant; standing apart”) + -ia (suffix forming feminine abstract nouns). Distāns is the present active participle of distō (“to be distant; to stand apart; to differ”), from dis- (prefix meaning ‘apart, asunder; in two’) + stō (“to stand”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- (“to stand (up)”)).
The verb is derived from the noun.
cognates
* Middle Dutch distancie, distantie (modern Dutch distantie); Dutch afstand (“distance”, literally “off-stand, off-stance”)
* German Distanz; German Abstand
* Italian distanza
* Portuguese distância
* Spanish distancia

afstand

(countable, uncountable) amount of space between points

An amount of space between points (often geographical points), usually (but not necessarily) measured along a straight line.

(horse racing) Chiefly in by a distance: a space of more than 30 lengths (about 80 yards or 7.3 metres) between two racehorses finishing a race, used to describe the margin of victory; also (archaic), any space of 240 yards (about 219.5 metres) on a racecourse.

pitkä ero

space of more than 30 lengths between two racehorses finishing a race; any space of 240 yards on a racecourse

THere vvere a Great many Brave, Sightly Horſes vvith Rich Trappings that vvere brought out One day to the Courſe, and Only One Plain Nag in the Company that made ſport for All the reſt. But vvhen they came at laſt to the Tryal, This vvas the Horſe that ran the VVhole Field out of Diſtance, and VVon the Race. / The MORAL. Our Senſes are No Competent Judges of the Excellencies of the Mind.

1692, Roger L’Estrange, “[The Fables of Abstemius, &c.] Fab[le] CCCXXXIX. A Plain Horse Wins the Prize.”, in Fables, of Æsop and Other Eminent Mythologists: […], London: […] R[ichard] Sare, […], →OCLC, page 296:

The amount of space between points (often geographical points), usually (but not necessarily) measured along a straight line.

(horse racing) Originally, the space measured back from the winning post which a racehorse running in a heat must reach when the winner has covered the whole course, in order to run in a subsequent heat; also, the point on the racecourse that space away from the winning post; now, the point on a racecourse 240 yards from the winning post.

väli

space measured back from the winning post which a racehorse running in a heat must reach when the winner has covered the whole course, in order to run in a subsequent heat; point on the racecourse that space away from the winning post; point on racecourse 240 yards from the winning post


distance

en-verb

distance (third-person singular simple present distances, present participle distancing, simple past and past participle distanced)

distances (present singular third-person)
distancing (participle present)
distanced (participle past)
distanced (past)
distance (infinitive)

sijoittaa erilleen

to set (someone or something) at a distance from someone or something else

[H]e is of Opinion it is inhuman, that Animals ſhould be put upon their utmoſt Strength and Metal for our Diverſion only. Hovvever, not to be particular, he puts in for the Queen's Plate every Year, vvith Orders to his Rider never to vvin or be diſtanced; […]

1713 March 29 (Gregorian calendar), [Richard Steele], “Wednesday, March 18. 1713.”, in The Guardian, number 6, London: […] J[acob] Tonson […]; and sold by A. Baldwin […], →OCLC, page [2], column 1:

(chiefly US, horse racing, archaic) Of a racehorse: to beat (another horse) by a certain distance; also (passive voice), to cause (a horse) to be disqualified by beating it by a certain distance.

of a racehorse: to beat (another horse) by a certain distance; to cause (a horse) to be disqualified by beating it by a certain distance


hard

en-noun

hard (countable and uncountable, plural hards)

From Middle English hard, from Old English heard, from Proto-West Germanic *hard(ī), from Proto-Germanic *harduz, from Proto-Indo-European *kort-ús, from *kret- (“strong, powerful”). Cognate with German hart, Swedish hård, Ancient Greek κρατύς (kratús), Sanskrit क्रतु (krátu), Avestan 𐬑𐬭𐬀𐬙𐬎 (xratu).

(countable, motor racing) A tyre whose compound is softer than superhards, and harder than mediums.


overlay

/ˈəʊ.vəˌleɪ/

From Middle English overleyen, from Old English oferleċġan, from Proto-West Germanic *obarlaggjan, from Proto-Germanic *uberlagjaną, equivalent to over- + lay. Cognate with Saterland Frisian uurläze, úurlääse, Dutch overleggen, German Low German overleggen, överleggen, German überlegen, Swedish överlägga, Norwegian overlegge. Compare overlie.

(horse racing) A horse going off at higher odds than it appears to warrant, based on its past performances.


bug

First attested in this form around 1620 (referring to a bedbug), from earlier bugge (“beetle”), a conflation of two words:
# Middle English bugge (“scarecrow, hobgoblin”), perhaps from obsolete Welsh bwg ("ghost, hobgoblin"; compare Welsh bwgwl ("threat", older "fear")) or from Proto-Germanic *bugja- (“swollen up, thick”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰew-, *bu- (“to swell”) (compare Norwegian bugge (“big man”), dialectal Low German Bögge (“goblin”, “snot”)). Or, from a word related to buck and originally referring to a goat-shaped spectre.
# Middle English budde (“beetle”), from Old English budda (see sċearnbudda (“dung beetle”)), from Proto-Germanic *buddô, *buzdô, from the same ultimate source as above (compare Low German Budde (“louse, grub”), Norwegian budda (“newborn domestic animal”)). More at bud.
The term is used to refer to technical errors and problems at least as early as the 19th century, predating the commonly known story of a moth being caught in a computer.

cog

given enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow

The "bugs" are the asterisks next to the apprentice's name. One bug is a five-pound allowance, two bugs equal seven pounds, and three bugs equal ten pounds.

1999, Anita Scialli, Inside Track 1999, page 62:

(slang, US, horse-racing) An asterisk denoting an apprentice jockey's weight allowance.

(slang, US, horse-racing, by extension) A young apprentice jockey.


break

From Middle English breken, from Old English brecan (“to break”), from Proto-West Germanic *brekan, from Proto-Germanic *brekaną (“to break”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰreg- (“to break”). The word is a doublet of bray.
Cognates
Cognates of Germanic origin include Scots brek (“to break”), West Frisian brekke (“to break”), Dutch breken (“to break”), Low German breken (“to break”), German brechen (“to break”), French broyer (“to crush, grind”), Gothic 𐌱𐍂𐌹𐌺𐌰𐌽 (brikan, “to break, destroy”), Norwegian brek (“desire, yearning”).
Also cognate with Albanian brishtë (“fragile”), Latin frangō (“break, break up, shatter”, verb), whence English fracture and other terms – fragile, frail, fraction, and fragment.

cog

Cigar was distracted at the break and let his five opponents get the jump.

1999, Jay Hovdey, Cigar: America's Horse, page 63:

Perhaps it stumbles to its knees at the break, effectively losing the race at the outset.

2010, John Alexander, Exotic Wagering the Winning Way, page 60:

(horse racing) The start of a horse race.


chalk

en-noun

chalk (countable and uncountable, plural chalks)

→ Hindi: चाक (cāk)

→ Japanese: チャコ (chako), チョーク (chōku)

→ Nepali: चक (cak)

→ Swahili: chaki

→ Swazi: íshóki

→ Thai: ชอล์ก (chɔ́k)

→ Tsonga: choko

→ Tulu: ಚಾಕ್ (cākŭ)

→ Yoruba: ṣọ́ọ̀kì

From Middle English chalk, chalke, from Old English ċealc, from Proto-West Germanic *kalk, borrowed from Latin calx (“limestone”), again borrowed from Ancient Greek χάλιξ (khálix, “pebble”). Doublet of calx and cauk.

(US, sports, chiefly basketball, horse racing) The favorite in a sporting event.


tout

en-verb

tout (third-person singular simple present touts, present participle touting, simple past and past participle touted)

touts (present singular third-person)
touting (participle present)
touted (participle past)
touted (past)

From Middle English touten (“to jut out, protrude, gaze upon, observe, peer”), from Old English *tūtian (“to be sticking out, protrude”), related to Old English tȳtan (“to stand out, be conspicuous, shine”), ultimately from Proto-Germanic *tut(t)- (“to stick out, project”). Compare Icelandic túta (“a teat-like prominence”), tútna (“to be blown up”). Possibly influenced by dialectal toot (“to stick out; project; peer out; peep”), from Middle English toten, totien, from Old English tōtian (“to peep out; look; pry; spectate”). Compare also Old English tot, ġetot (“pomp, splendour, vainglory”).

cog

(UK, slang, horse-racing, transitive) To spy out information about (a horse, a racing stable, etc.).

(US, slang, horse-racing, transitive) To give a tip on (a racehorse) to a person, with the expectation of sharing in any winnings.

(UK, slang, horse-racing, intransitive) To spy out the movements of racehorses at their trials, or to get by stealth or other improper means the secrets of the stable, for betting purposes.

(US, slang, horse-racing, intransitive) To act as a tout; to give a tip on a racehorse.


weight

en-verb

weight (third-person singular simple present weights, present participle weighting, simple past and past participle weighted)

weights (present singular third-person)
weighting (participle present)
weighted (participle past)
weighted (past)

From Middle English weight, weiȝte, weght, wight, from Old English wiht, ġewiht (“weight”), from Proto-Germanic *wihtiz ("weight"; compare *weganą (“to move”)), from Proto-Indo-European *weǵʰ- (“to move; pull; draw; drive”). Equivalent to weigh + -th.
Cognate with Scots wecht, weicht (“weight”), Saterland Frisian Wächte (“scale”), Gewicht (“weight”), West Frisian gewicht (“weight”), Dutch gewicht (“weight”), German Low German Wicht, Gewicht (“weight”), German Wucht (“massiveness, force”), Gewicht (“weight”).

gloss

"weight"; compare <i class="Latn mention" lang="gem-pro">*weganą</i> (“to move”)

inh

(transitive, horse racing) To handicap a horse with a specified weight.


boot

Solombala English: бучь (bučʹ)

→ Russian: бутса (butsa)

→ Serbo-Croatian:

Cyrillic script: бу́це

Latin script: búce

→ Swahili: buti

From Middle English boote, bote (“shoe”), from Old French bote (“a high, thick shoe”). Of obscure origin, but probably related to Old French bot (“club-foot”), bot (“fat, short, blunt”), from Old Frankish *butt, from Proto-Germanic *buttaz, *butaz (“cut off, short, numb, blunt”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰewt-, *bʰewd- (“to strike, push, shock”); if so, a doublet of butt. Compare Old Norse butt (“stump”), Low German butt (“blunt, plump”), Old English bytt (“small piece of land”), buttuc (“end”). More at buttock and debut.

cog

couldn't pour water out of a boot with the instructions on the heel


show

en-verb

show (third-person singular simple present shows, present participle showing, simple past showed or (archaic) shew, past participle shown or (now rare, US) showed)

shows (present singular third-person)
showing (participle present)
showed (past)
shew (archaic past)
shown (participle past)
showed (US archaic participle past)
show (infinitive)

disprove

antonym(s) of “indicate a fact to be true”

From Middle English schewen, from Old English scēawian (“to look, look at, exhibit, display”), from Proto-West Germanic *skauwōn, from Proto-Germanic *skawwōną (“to look, see”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kewh₁- (“to heed, look, feel, take note of”); see haw, gaum, caveat, caution.
Cognate with Scots shaw (“to show”), Dutch schouwen (“to inspect, view”), German schauen (“to see, behold”), Danish skue (“to behold”). Related to sheen.
Wider cognates include Ancient Greek κῦδος (kûdos), Latin caveō whence English caution and caveat, and Sanskrit कवि (kaví, “seer, prophet, bard”).

cog

In the third race: Aces Up won, paying eight dollars; Blarney Stone placed, paying three dollars; and Cinnamon showed, paying five dollars.

(intransitive, motor racing) To finish third, especially of horses or dogs.


stick

en-noun

stick (countable and uncountable, plural sticks)

→ Catalan: estic

→ Italian: stick

→ Korean: 스틱 (seutik)

→ Portuguese: stique, estique

→ Sranan Tongo: tiki

From Middle English stikke (“stick, rod, twig”), from Old English sticca (“rod, twig”), from Proto-West Germanic *stikkō, from Proto-Germanic *stikkô, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)teyg- (“to pierce, prick, be sharp”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Stikke (“stick”), West Flemish stik (“stick”). Related to stigma.

der

better than a poke in the eye with a burnt stick

better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick

better than a poke in the eye with a shitty stick

it is easy to find a stick to beat a dog

(horse racing) The short whip carried by a jockey.

A stick-like item:
The short whip carried by a jockey.


stick

From Middle English stiken (“to stick, pierce, stab, remain embedded, be fastened”), from Old English stician (“to pierce, stab, remain embedded, be fastened”), from Proto-Germanic *stikōną (“to pierce, prick, be sharp”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)tig-, *(s)teyg- (“to pierce, prick, be sharp”).
See also the related Proto-Germanic *stikaną, whence West Frisian stekke, Low German steken, Dutch steken, German stechen; compare also Danish stikke, Swedish sticka.
Cognate with the first etymology (same PIE root, different paths through Germanic and Old English), to stitch, and to etiquette, via French étiquette – see there for further discussion.

inh

(uncountable) The tendency to stick (remain stuck), stickiness.

(motor racing) The traction of tires on the road surface.


tissue

en-noun

tissue (countable and uncountable, plural tissues)

From Middle English tissu, from Old French tissu (“woven”), past participle of tistre (“to weave”), from Latin texō (“to weave”).

Pricing the first show is a matter of the bookmaker's individual judgment, relying upon advice from all quarters, particularly the tissue; but very soon in the betting exchanges it becomes clear that the sole criterion for the fixing of a horse's price is demand.

2016, Gerald Hammond, The Language of Horse Racing:

(horse racing, slang) The scratch sheet or racing form.


flat

From Middle English flat, a borrowing from Old Norse flatr (compare Norwegian and Swedish flat, Danish flad), from Proto-Germanic *flataz, from Proto-Indo-European *pleth₂- (“flat”); akin to Saterland Frisian flot (“smooth”), German Flöz (“a geological layer”), Ancient Greek πλατύς (platús), Latvian plats, Sanskrit प्रथस् (prathas, “extension”). Doublet of plat and pleyt.
The noun is from Middle English flat (“level piece of ground, flat edge of a weapon”), from the adjective.
The algebraic sense was coined by Serre in a 1956 paper, originally as French plat.

inh

This horse will do better over the flat.

flat racing, the flat season

In light of Horse Racing Ireland's Covid-19 contingency plan announcement, that whenever racing resumes the Flat will be given priority, Elliott has decided to keep a number of talented jumpers on the go during the summer, with a view towards a dual-purpose campaign.

2020, Brian Sheerin, Racing Post, "Gordon Elliott maps out summer Flat campaigns for talented jumpers" (article) https://www.racingpost.com/news/gordon-elliott-maps-out-summer-flat-campaigns-for-talented-jumpers/431475

2021 (retrieved), racing365.com, "Flat Racing Explained" https://racing365.com/flat-racing-explained/
In British horse racing, the classics are a series of horse races run over the flat (i.e. without jumps).

An area of level ground (sometimes covered with shallow or tidal water).

(horse racing, with 'the' or attributively, sometimes with capital) Level horse-racing ground, as contrasted with courses incorporating jumps, or the racing done on such ground.

As forecast, Joe suspected nothing as he pottered round the flat in the sunshine, absorbed in the task of picking winners.

1963, George Blaikie, Scandals of Australia's Strange Past, Adelaide: Rigby Limited, page 117:

(Australia, horse racing, with 'the' or attributively, sometimes with capital) the area in the centre of a racecourse.


wet

en-noun

wet (countable and uncountable, plural wets)

From Middle English wet (“wet, moistened”), wett, wette, past participle of Middle English weten (“to wet”), from Old English wǣtan (“to wet, moisten, water”), from Proto-Germanic *wētijaną (“to wet, make wet”), from Proto-Indo-European *wed- (“water, wet”) (also the source of water).
Cognate with Scots weit, wete (“to wet”), Saterland Frisian wäitje (“to wet; drench”), Icelandic væta (“to wet”). Compare also Middle English weet (“wet”), from Old English wǣt (“wet, moist, rainy”), from Proto-West Germanic *wāt, from Proto-Germanic *wētaz (“wet, moist”), related to Scots weit, weet, wat (“wet”), North Frisian wiat, weet, wäit (“wet”), Saterland Frisian wäit (“wet”), West Frisian wiet (“wet”), Middle Dutch wet (“wet, damp, watery”), Swedish and Norwegian våt (“wet”), Danish våd (“wet”), Faroese vátur (“wet”), Icelandic votur (“wet”).

cog

Wets, designed to channel water away from underneath the tyres, maximise grip and minimise the chance of aquaplaning.

2004, Jonathan Noble, Mark Hughes, Formula One Racing For Dummies, page 303:

(motor racing, in the plural) A tyre for use in wet weather.


pull

en-verb

pull (third-person singular simple present pulls, present participle pulling, simple past and past participle pulled)

pulls (present singular third-person)
pulling (participle present)
pulled (participle past)
pulled (past)

push

antonym(s) of “apply force to (something) so it comes towards one”

Verb from Middle English pullen, from Old English pullian (“to pull, draw, tug, pluck off”), of uncertain ultimate origin. Related to West Frisian pûlje (“to shell, husk”), Middle Dutch pullen (“to drink”), Middle Dutch polen (“to peel, strip”), Low German pulen (“to pick, pluck, pull, tear, strip off husks”), Icelandic púla (“to work hard, beat”).
Noun from Middle English pul, pull, pulle, from the verb pullen (“to pull”).

cog

it's not the whistle that pulls the train

pull someone's chestnuts out of the fire

The favourite was pulled.

(horse-racing) To hold back, and so prevent from winning.

'I never liked Bowler, and I had my suspicions when Captain Ferndale persuaded you to put him up in that race. I did not discover until some time after that he pulled the horse.'

1897, Nat Gould, Not So Bad After All, page 200:

(horse racing, transitive) To impede the progress of (a horse) to prevent its winning a race.


hammer

From Middle English hamer, from Old English hamor, from Proto-West Germanic *hamar, from Proto-Germanic *hamaraz (“tool with a stone head”) (compare West Frisian hammer, Low German Hamer, Dutch hamer, German Hammer, Danish hammer, Swedish hammare). This is traditionally ascribed to Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱmoros, from *h₂éḱmō (“stone”), but see *hamaraz for further discussion.
(declare a defaulter on the stock exchange): Originally signalled by knocking with a wooden mallet.

sense

We is headin' for bear on I-one-oh
'Bout a mile outta Shaky Town.
I says, "Pig Pen, this here's the Rubber Duck
And I'm about to put the hammer down."

1975, “Convoy”, in C.W. McCall, Chip Davis (lyrics), Black Bear Road, performed by C. W. McCall:


classic

From French classique, from Latin classicus (“relating to the classes of Roman citizenry, especially the highest”), from classis. By surface analysis, class + -ic.

der

The goal of the top horses was to win a Classic (or preferably three, thus claiming the Triple Crown) or the Ascot Gold Cup, […]

2012, Dr Joyce Kay, Professor Wray Vamplew, Encyclopedia of British Horse Racing, page 316:

(horse racing) Any of the British Classic Races, five long-standing Group 1 horse races run during the traditional flat racing season.


milkshake

(slang, horse racing) An alkaline supplement administered to a horse to improve its racing performance.


milkshake

en-verb

milkshake (third-person singular simple present milkshakes, present participle milkshaking, simple past and past participle milkshaked)

milkshakes (present singular third-person)
milkshaking (participle present)
milkshaked (participle past)
milkshaked (past)

(transitive, slang, horse racing) To administer an alkaline supplement to (a horse) to improve its racing performance.


circuit

From Middle English circuit, from Old French circuit, from Latin circuitus (“a going round”), from circuire (“go round”), from circum (“around”) + ire. As a Chinese administrative division, a calque of Chinese 道 (dào) or 路 (lù).

piiri

Methodist Church: district in which an itinerant preacher labors

dao

Imperial Chinese administrative divisions

Interlagos is the 24th track Hamilton has won at in F1, which is more than any other driver in history. The only circuit on the current calendar that Hamilton hasn’t won at is Baku, which only joined the schedule this year.

(motor racing) A track on which a race in held; a racetrack


Christmas tree

Then, after a smoky-burnout to warm up the tires, you're lined up next to another competitor and the Christmas tree lights blink down... yellow, yellow, yellow, green!

1990 January, Popular Mechanics, volume 167, number 1, page 96:

(motor racing) A pole with lights, similar to a traffic signal, used for signalling the start of an automobile race.


pot

From Middle English pot, potte, from Old English pott (“pot”) and Old French pot (“pot”) (probably from Frankish *pott); both Old English and Frankish from Proto-Germanic *puttaz (“pot”), from Proto-Indo-European *budnós (“a type of vessel”).
Cognate with Saterland Frisian Pot (“pot”), Dutch pot (“pot”), German Low German Pott (“pot”), German Pott (“pot”), Swedish potta (“chamber pot”), Icelandic pottur (“tub, pot”), Old Armenian պոյտն (poytn, “pot, earthen pot”). Also, Old Norse pottr (“pot, tub, basin”).
The sense of ruin or deterioration was originally a general allusion to "being chopped up and tossed in a (normally fiery) pot, like a piece of meat" (i.e. to get wasted or done with (by someone)). The 'clean' slang term which was used in reference to toilet rooms and lavatories apparently derives from English chamberpots, although now usually encountered as potty in the context of children's toilet training.

pussitus

cue sports: act of causing a ball to fall into a pocket

not have a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of

(UK, horse-racing, slang) A favorite: a heavily-backed horse.


pilot

→ Dari: پیلوت (pilot)

→ Hindi: पायलट (pāylaṭ)

→ Japanese: パイロット (pairotto)

→ Korean: 파일럿 (pailleot)

→ Northern Kurdish: pîlot

From Middle French pilot, pillot, from Italian pilota, piloto, older also pedotta, pedot(t)o (the form in pil- is probably influenced by pileggiare (“to sail, navigate”)); ultimately from unattested Byzantine Greek *πηδώτης (*pēdṓtēs, “helmsman”), from Ancient Greek πηδόν (pēdón, “blade of an oar, oar”), hence also Ancient and Modern Greek πηδάλιον (pēdálion, “rudder”).


prototype

/ˈpɹəʊtətʌɪp/

From French prototype or Late Latin prototypon, from Ancient Greek πρωτότυπος (prōtótupos, “original; prototype”), from πρωτο- (prōto-, “first”) (from πρῶτος (prôtos, “first; earliest”)) + τῠ́πος (túpos, “blow, pressing; sort, type”) (from τύπτω (túptō, “to beat, strike”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)tewp- (“to push; to stick”)). The word is analysable as proto- + -type.

(motor racing) A type of race car, a racing sports car not based on a production car. A 4-wheeled cockpit-seating car built especially for racing on sports car circuits, that does not use the silhouette related to a consumer road car.


grid

Back-formation or clipping of griddle or gridiron.

McLaren's Lewis Hamilton fought up from the back of the grid to eighth, with team-mate Jenson Button taking ninth.

2012 May 13, Andrew Benson, “Williams's Pastor Maldonado takes landmark Spanish Grand Prix win”, in BBC Sport:

(motor racing) The pattern of starting positions of the drivers for a race.

graella de sortida

motor racing: the pattern of starting positions of the drivers for a race


beach

→ Japanese: ビーチ

→ Punjabi: ਬੀਚ (bīc)

→ Zulu: ibhishi

From Middle English bache, bæcche (“bank, sandbank”), from Old English beċe (“beck, brook, stream”), from Proto-West Germanic *baki, from Proto-Germanic *bakiz (“brook”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeg- (“flowing water”).
Cognate with Dutch beek (“brook, stream”), German Bach (“brook, stream”), Swedish bäck (“stream, brook, creek”). More at batch, beck.

der

(motor racing, euphemistic) Synonym of gravel trap


length

en-noun

length (countable and uncountable, plural lengths)

From Middle English lengthe, from Old English lengþ, lengþu, from Proto-West Germanic *langiþu, from Proto-Germanic *langiþō, equivalent to long + -th. Cognate with Scots lenth, lainth (“length”), Saterland Frisian Loangte (“length”), West Frisian lingte, langte (“length”), Dutch lengte (“length”), German Low German Längde, Längd, Längte, Längt (“length”), Danish længde (“length”), Swedish längd (“length”), Icelandic lengd (“length”).

(horse racing) The length of a horse, used to indicate the distance between horses at the end of a race.


heater

→ Japanese: ヒーター (hītā)

(horse racing) A dead heat; a race in which two or more competitors reach the finish line simultaneously.


pole

From Middle English pole, pal, from Old English pāl (“a pole, stake, post; a kind of hoe or spade”), from Proto-West Germanic *pāl (“pole”), from Latin pālus (“stake, pale, prop, stay”), perhaps from Old Latin *paxlos, from Proto-Italic *pākslos, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂ǵ- (“to nail, fasten”). Doublet of peel, pale, and palus.
Cognates
 Cognate with Scots pale, paill (“stake, pale”), North Frisian pul, pil (“stake, pale”), Saterland Frisian Pool (“pole”), West Frisian poal (“pole”), Dutch paal (“pole”), German Pfahl (“pile, stake, post, pole”), Danish pæl (“pole”), Swedish påle (“pole”), Icelandic páll (“hoe, spade, pale”), Old English fæc (“space of time, while, division, interval; lustrum”).

cog

not touch something with a ten-foot pole

paalu

motor racing: pole position — see also pole position


lug

en-verb

lug (third-person singular simple present lugs, present participle lugging, simple past and past participle lugged)

lugs (present singular third-person)
lugging (participle present)
lugged (participle past)
lugged (past)

From Middle English luggen, possibly from Scandinavian source, (compare Swedish lugga, Norwegian lugge); also in English dialectal as lig (“to lug”). Noun is via Scots lugge, probably from Old Norse (compare Norwegian and Swedish lugg). Probably related to slug (“lazy, slow-moving”), which may be from similar source(s). See slow.

(intransitive, horse-racing) To pull toward the inside rail ("lugging in") or the outside rail ("lugging out") during a race.


bar

From Middle English barren, from Old French barrer, from Medieval Latin barrare (“to bar”), from the noun. Cognate to Occitan barrar, Spanish barrar, Portuguese barrar.
Preposition properly imperative of the verb. Compare barring.

Leg At Each Corner is at 3/1, Lost My Shirt 5/1, and it's 10/1 bar.

(horse racing) Denotes the minimum odds offered on other horses not mentioned by name.


steward

From Middle English steward, stiward, from Old English stīweard, stiġweard (“steward, housekeeper, one who has the superintendence of household affairs, guardian”), from stiġ (“a wooden enclosure; house, hall”) + weard (“ward, guard, guardian, keeper”), equivalent to sty + ward. Compare Icelandic stívarður (“steward”). More at sty, ward.

управител

any administrator of the property or affairs of another

(motor racing) Person responsible for the arbitration of incidents at a motor racing event and whether or not fines/penalties should be issued for such incidents.


allowance

en-noun

allowance (countable and uncountable, plural allowances)

→ Cebuano: alawans

→ Malay: élaun

From Middle English allouance, from Old French alouance.
Morphologically allow + -ance.

On the Flat, an apprentice jockey starts with an allowance of 7 lb.

(horse racing) A permitted reduction in the weight that a racehorse must carry.


aid

aid (countable and uncountable, plural aids)

From Middle English aide, eide, ayde, from Old French eide, aide, from aidier, from Latin adiūtō, adiūtāre (“to assist, help”). Cognates include Spanish ayuda, Portuguese ajuda and Italian aiuto.

aide

aide-de-camp; obsolete except in sense of

(countable, chiefly in the plural, horse racing) The rider's use of hands, legs, voice, etc. to control the horse.


tow

en-verb

tow (third-person singular simple present tows, present participle towing, simple past and past participle towed)

tows (present singular third-person)
towing (participle present)
towed (participle past)
towed (past)

→ Welsh: towio

From Middle English towen, from Old English togian, from Proto-West Germanic *togōn, from Proto-Germanic *tugōną, from Proto-Indo-European *dewk-.
See also Middle High German zogen, German ziehen, Dutch tijgen, Old Norse toga.

(running, cycling, motor racing, etc.) To aid someone behind by shielding them from wind resistance.


tow

On Saturday, Vettel was very unhappy with Leclerc's failure to work out a way through the traffic and give him a tow for the second runs in qualifying, as had been agreed.

2019 September 8, Andrew Benson, BBC Sport:

(motor racing) A speed increase given by driving in front of another car on a straight, which causes a slipstream for the car behind.


bubble position

en-noun

bubble position (plural bubble positions)

Smith is in the bubble position, having barely beaten out Jones for the last spot.

(motor racing) The bottom qualifying position in a race, on the outside of the last row at the starting line.


qualifying position

qualifying position (plural qualifying positions)

(motor racing) The position given at the start of a race, ranked from most favorable to least favorable, awarded according to the times achieved during qualification.

poziție de calificare

in auto racing: the position given at the start of a race


on the bubble

US, late 20th century, from Indiana motor racing.

Smith was on the bubble but lost out when Jones was faster by a tenth of a second.

(motor racing) Holding the last qualifying position with qualification still in progress, and thus liable to lose that position.


pole position

pole position (countable and uncountable, plural pole positions)

See pole position § Origin on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

pedia

Smith once again enjoys the pole position.

(motor racing) The top qualifying position for a race, on the inside of the front row at the starting line.


nerf

en-verb

nerf (third-person singular simple present nerfs, present participle nerfing, simple past and past participle nerfed)

nerfs (present singular third-person)
nerfing (participle present)
nerfed (participle past)
nerfed (past)

A racer will often nerf another as a psychological tactic.

"The crazy fool!" Ricky exclaimed. "Nerfing me!"

1953, Henry Gregor Felsen, Street Rod, Random House, page 129:

(motor racing, transitive) To bump lightly, whether accidentally or purposefully.


pit stop

Alonso and Ferrari may well privately regret the decision to delay their second pit stop until two laps after Maldonado made his on the 24th of 66 laps.

(motor racing) A stop made during an automobile race at the pit to refuel and perform other periodic maintenance on the vehicle.


up

down

antonym(s) of “traveling towards a major terminus”

From Middle English up, from Old English upp, from Proto-Germanic *upp, see more there.

(horse-racing) Riding the horse; mounted.


touring car

(motor racing) A type of race car based on a modified production car, that is a sedan or saloon car.


place

en-noun

place (countable and uncountable, plural places)

Pijin: ples

Tok Pisin: ples

From Middle English place, conflation of Old English plæċe (“place, an open space, street”) and Old French place (“place, an open space”), both from Latin platea (“plaza, wide street”), from Ancient Greek πλατεῖα (plateîa), shortening of πλατεῖα ὁδός (plateîa hodós, “broad way”), from Proto-Indo-European *pleth₂- (“to spread”), extended form of *pleh₂- (“flat”). Displaced native Old English stōw, stede, and -ern. Compare also English pleck (“plot of ground”), West Frisian plak (“place, spot, location”), Dutch plek (“place, spot, patch”). Doublet of piatza, piazza, and plaza.

pleace

some English dialects: 18th–19th centuries; Scots: until the 17th century

all over the place like a mad woman's custard

lightning does not strike twice in the same place

lightning doesn't strike twice in the same place

lightning never strikes twice in the same place

there is a place and time for everything

there is a time and place for everything

there's a time and a place for everything

to win a bet on a horse for place

(social) A responsibility or position in an organization.

(horse racing) The position of first, second, or third at the finish, especially the second position.


place

en-verb

place (third-person singular simple present places, present participle placing, simple past and past participle placed)

places (present singular third-person)
placing (participle present)
placed (participle past)
placed (past)
place (infinitive)

From Middle English placen, from the noun (see above).

classificar-se

passive: to rank at (a certain position)

In the third race: Aces Up won, paying eight dollars; Blarney Stone placed, paying three dollars; and Cinnamon showed, paying five dollars.

(ergative) To earn a given spot in a competition; to rank at a certain position ((often followed by an ordinal)).

(intransitive, motor racing) To finish second, especially of horses or dogs.


stripe

From Middle English stripe, strype, from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German strîpe, from Proto-West Germanic *strīpā, *strīpō, from Proto-Germanic *strīpô. Cognate with Saterland Frisian Striepe (“stripe, strip”), West Frisian stripe (“stripe”), Dutch streep (“stripe”), German Low German Striepe, Striep, Streep (“stripe”), German Streifen (“stripe, strip, band”).

cog

(motor racing, slang) The start/finish line.


silk

en-noun

silk (countable and uncountable, plural silks)

From Middle English silk, sylk, selk, selc, from Old English sioloc, seoloc, seolc (“silk”). The immediate source is uncertain; it probably reached English via the Baltic trade routes (cognates in Old Norse silki (> Danish silke, Swedish silke (“silk”)), Russian шёлк (šolk), obsolete Lithuanian zilkaĩ), all ultimately from Late Latin sēricus, from Ancient Greek σηρικός (sērikós), ultimately from an Oriental language (represented now by e.g. Chinese 絲／丝 (sī, “silk”)). Compare Seres. Doublet of seric and serge.

you can't make a silk purse of a sow's ear

(horse racing, usually in the plural) The garments worn by a jockey displaying the colors of the horse's owner.


jail

jail (countable and uncountable, plural jails)

→ Hindustani:

Hindi: जेल (jel)

Urdu: جیل (jel)

→ Punjabi: ਜੇਲ੍ਹ (jelh)

→ Welsh: jêl, jael

From Middle English gayole, gaylle, gaille, gayle, gaile, via Old French gaiole, gayolle, gaole, from Medieval Latin gabiola, for Late Latin caveola, a diminutive of Latin cavea (“cavity, coop, cage”). Doublet of caveola and related to cage. More at cajole.

(horse racing, uncountable) The condition created by the requirement that a horse claimed in a claiming race not be run at another track for some period of time (usually 30 days).

horse racing: condition of not being able to run at another track for some period of time

väliaikainen kilpailurajoitus myynnin jälkeen


stretch

Esperanto: streĉi

From Middle English strecchen, from Old English streċċan (“to stretch, hold out, extend, spread out, prostrate”), from Proto-West Germanic *strakkjan (“to stretch, make taut or tight”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)treg-, *streg-, *treg- (“stiff, rigid”). Cognate with West Frisian strekke, Dutch strekken (“to stretch, straighten”), German strecken (“to stretch, straighten, elongate”), Danish strække (“to stretch”), Swedish sträcka (“to stretch”), Dutch strak (“taut, tight”), Albanian shtriqem (“to stretch”). More at stark.

cog

time stretch analog-to-digital converter

(horse racing) The homestretch, the final straight section of the track leading to the finish.


soft

From Middle English softe, from Old English sōfte, alteration of earlier sēfte (“soft”), from Proto-West Germanic *samft(ī) (“level, even, smooth, soft, gentle”) (compare *sōmiz (“agreeable, fitting”)), from Proto-Indo-European *semptio-, *semtio-, from *sem- (“one, whole”). Cognate with West Frisian sêft (“gentle; soft”), Dutch zacht (“soft”), German Low German sacht (“soft”), German sanft (“soft, yielding”), Old Norse sœmr (“agreeable, fitting”), samr (“same”). More at seem, same.

inh

(motor racing) Ellipsis of soft tyre. (A tyre whose compound is softer than mediums, and harder than supersofts.)


tight

en-adj

tight (comparative tighter, superlative tightest)

tighter (comparative)
tightest (superlative)

baggy

firmly held together; of clothing or other material

slack

antonym(s) of “well-rehearsed and accurate”

From Middle English tight, tyght, tyȝt, tiht, variants of thight, thiht, from Old English *þiht, *þīht (attested in meteþiht), from Proto-West Germanic *þį̄ht(ī), from Proto-Germanic *þinhtaz, from Proto-Indo-European *tenkt- (“dense, thick, tight”), from Proto-Indo-European *ten- (“to stretch, pull”).
Cognate with Scots ticht, West Frisian ticht, Danish tæt, Icelandic þéttur (“dense”), Norwegian tett, Swedish tät, Dutch dicht (“dense”), German dicht (“dense”).
The current form with t- /t/ rather than etymologically-expected th- /θ/ arose in Middle English under the influence of the etymologically-unrelated verbs tighten and tight.

der

(US, slang, motor racing) A car with understeer, primarily used to describe NASCAR stock cars.


hod

Probably an alteration of hot (“(Northern England, Scotland) large basket for carrying earth, etc.”), from Middle English hott, hote, hotte (“large basket or pannier for carrying earth, etc.; unit of measure for grain; hut or shed (perhaps originally of wattlework); lump of dirt (?)”) [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman and Old French hote, hotte (“large basket carried on the back”) (modern French hotte (“carrying basket”)), from Frankish *hotta (“basket”), perhaps from Proto-Germanic *hud- (“to shake”) (see further at etymology 1), ultimately an onomatopoeia of the swaying movement of such a basket (compare Middle Dutch hotten (“to jolt; shake”)).
cognates
* German Hotte (“wooden basket carried on the back; (specifically) basket for collecting grapes from a vineyard”) (Rhineland, Swabia), Hutte (“basket for collecting grapes from a vineyard”) (Alsace, Switzerland)
* Late Latin hotta, hottus (“hod”)

cog

'Clerking' is perhaps the most difficult and most admired job on a racecourse. The next time you see a bookmaker at his hod, waving his ticket-filled hands, shouting the odds, look to his left, just back a bit—out of the limelight. The bloke sitting there with his head buried deep in a ledger is the clerk.

2006, Tommy Steele, chapter 6, in Bermondsey Boy: Memories of a Forgotten World, large print edition, Bath, Somerset: Windsor Paragon; BBC Audiobooks, published 2007, →ISBN, page 64:


jigger

→ Catalan: gigre

From jig + -er (agent suffix). Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary suggests a possible link to Old High German gīga (“fiddle”).

(horse racing) An illicit electric shock device used to urge on a horse during a race.


compound

en-verb

compound (third-person singular simple present compounds, present participle compounding, simple past and past participle compounded)

compounds (present singular third-person)
compounding (participle present)
compounded (participle past)
compounded (past)

From Middle English compounen, from Middle French componre, compondre (“to put together”), from Latin componō, from Latin com- (“together”) + ponō (“to put”).

At the hill, the Warrior must have been at least ten lengths in front of Wild Dayrell; but he compounded about 200 yards on the T. Y. C. side of the Red House.

1855, The Sporting Review, volume 34, page 240:

(horse racing, intransitive) Of a horse: to fail to maintain speed.


gap

gap (third-person singular simple present gaps, present participle gapping, simple past and past participle gapped)

gaps (present singular third-person)
gapping (participle present)
gapped (participle past)
gapped (past)

From Middle English gap, gappe, from Old Norse gap (“an empty space, gap, chasm”), from gapa (“to gape, scream”), from Proto-Germanic *gapōną, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰeh₂- (“to open wide, gape”). Related to Danish gab (“an expanse, space, gap”), Old English ġeap (“open space, expanse”); compare English gape.

cog

Honestly K&C could release today with like a bit more SOT buffs and they'd probably still gap a lot of the game

2022 May 4, u/jhawk1117, “Two units that were really ahead of their time”, in Reddit, r/DBZDokkanBattle, archived from the original on 2024-07-18:

sometimes dril gets absolutely gapped by average ukraine war reddit comments

2023 May 23, @slime_machine, Twitter, archived from the original on 2024-07-18:

Imagine street racing someone then suddenly both of you get gapped by a slammed tiger tank 😂 AKA der "Drippenwagen"

2023 December 19, @kommanderkarl, Twitter, archived from the original on 2024-07-18:

"Not really the reason his team lost" is still not showing up by Chovy's standarts. Like in a way you're downplaying how good this guy has been domestically the last 3-4 years. He is comfortably the best player in the league and is utterly gapping every other midlaner in the league series after series, year after year.

2024 March 9, u/djpain20, “T1 vs. Gen.G / LCK 2024 Spring - Week 7 / Post-Match Discussion”, in Reddit, r/leagueoflegends, archived from the original on 2024-07-18:

My sports car gets gapped by families of 5 in these all the time and they don't even know we're racing

2024 May 14, u/DM-Me-Your_Titties, “Kia reveals mid-life update to EV6.”, in Reddit, r/cars, archived from the original on 2024-07-18:

When you avoid getting buffed next patch due to your players gapping

2024 July 6, @Rubiflorid, Twitter, archived from the original on 2024-07-18:

(transitive, intransitive, slang, especially video games, motor racing) To surpass (someone or something) by a considerable margin.


stagger

From Middle English stageren, stakeren, from Old Norse stakra (“to push, stagger”). Cognate with dialectal Danish stagre.

(motor racing) The difference in circumference between the left and right tires on a racing vehicle. It is used on oval tracks to make the car turn better in the corners.


rally

From Middle French rallier (French rallier), from Old French ralier, from Latin prefix re- + ad + ligare (“to bind; to ally”).

LL-Q1860 (eng)-I learned some phrases-rally.wav

(motor racing) An event in which competitors drive through a series of timed special stages at intervals. The winner is the driver who completes all stages with the shortest cumulative time.


route

From Middle English route, from Old French route, from Latin [rupta] via (literally “a path made by force”). Compare Modern French route.

der

(horse racing) A race longer than one mile.


IRL

(motor racing) Initialism of Indy Racing League.


ringer

Some senses may derive from ring the changes (“run through variations; enliven; pass counterfeit money; trick a shopkeeper into giving too much change”).

(horse racing) A horse fraudulently entered in a race using the name of another horse.


SF

Super Formula
w:en:Super Formula Championship

(motor racing) Initialism of Super Formula.


lap

en-verb

lap (third-person singular simple present laps, present participle lapping, simple past and past participle lapped or (archaic) lapt)

laps (present singular third-person)
lapping (participle present)
lapped (participle past)
lapped (past)
lapt (archaic participle past)
lapt (archaic past)

From Middle English lappen (“to fold, wrap”) from earlier wlappen (“to fold, wrap”), from Old English *wlappan, *wlæppan, *wlappian (“to wrap”), from Proto-Germanic *wlapp-, *wrapp- (“to wrap, fold, roll up, turn”), from Proto-Indo-European *werb- (“to bend, turn”).
Cognate with Middle Dutch lappen (“to wrap up, embrace”), dialectal Danish vravle (“to wind”), Old Italian goluppare (“to wrap, fold up”) (from Germanic). Doublet of wrap. Also related to envelop, develop.
The sense of "to get a lap ahead (of someone) on a track" is from 1847, on notion of "overlapping." The noun meaning "a turn around a track" (1861) is from this sense.

cog

en:overtake race competitors substantially

(transitive, sports, motor racing) To overtake a straggler in a race by completing one more whole lap than the straggler.

ohittaa kierroksella

sports, motor racing: to overtake a straggler in a race


deg

en-noun

deg (countable and uncountable, plural degs)

(motor racing, uncountable) Clipping of degradation.


bumper

Dutch: bumper

Japanese: バンパー (banpā)

Korean: 범퍼 (beompeo)

Russian: ба́мпер (bámper)

(horse racing) In National Hunt racing, a flat race for horses that have not yet competed either in flat racing or over obstacles.


aero

aero (countable and uncountable, plural aeros)

Back-formation from aero- (prefix), from Ancient Greek ἀέρος (aéros).

"The biggest difference is aero, which is a really big cut."

2009 February 12, Paul Gover, “Australian Grand Prix sleep-in suits Robert Kubica,”, in Herald Sun:

(slang, uncountable, motor racing) Aerodynamics.


halo

From Latin halōs, from Ancient Greek ἅλως (hálōs, “threshing floor; disk; disk of the sun or moon; ring of light around the sun or moon”), of unknown origin. The threshing floor's circular threshold or oxen walking on it in a circle gave rise to the other meanings. Used in English since 1563; the sense of light around someone’s head since 1646.

der

massive astronomical compact halo object

massive astrophysical compact halo object

(motor racing) A rollbar placed in front of the driver, used to protect the cockpit of an open cockpit racecar.


kitty litter

en-noun

kitty litter (usually uncountable, plural kitty litters)

[ˈkʰɪɾi ˈlɪɾɚ]

(motor racing, informal) A gravel trap (a large area of gravel used to slow cars that leave the track)


grand slam

(motor racing) The situation in which a racer starts from pole position, then wins first place while leading during the entire race, while also recording the fastest lap of the race.


RAF

(motor racing) Abbreviation of Russian Automobile Federation.

The national identifier for Russians in international motorsport while Russia is under ban by the ruling of the Court of Arbitration for Sport supporting the ban enacted by the World Anti-Doping Agency.


sweeper

From Middle English swepere, swepare, equivalent to sweep + -er. Cognate with Middle Low German swēpære, swēper (“broom for sweeping up debris”).

(motor racing, slang) A large-radius, or high/medium speed corner in a racing circuit, named as such because of the ability of someone to trace the corner profile via "sweeping" motion of the arm.


Mario

From Italian and Spanish Mario, both of which coming from Latin Marius.

(automotive, motor racing, figurative) Ellipsis of Mario Andretti (“one who drives fast or recklessly”).


souped-up

en-adj

souped-up (comparative more souped-up, superlative most souped-up)

more souped-up (comparative)
most souped-up (superlative)

Uncertain; the fact that the earlier senses seem to be the horse racing cant and United States Navy slang ones suggests a derivation from soup (“liquid food item”), connoting a horse or a person being filled with a liquid.
Alternatively, it has been suggested that the term is a modified clipping of supe(r), with reference to an aeroplane or automobile engine being supercharged: see, for example, the 1925 quotation. This sense appears to post-date the horse-racing and navy slang senses.

(horse racing, cant) Of a racehorse: injected with a substance to make it run faster or to change its temperament.

napumpan

of a racehorse: injected with a substance to make it run faster


wrong 'un

(horse-racing) A horse deliberately held back in order to lose a race.


impost

Borrowed from Middle French impost, itself borrowed or adapted from Latin impōsitus, past participle of impōnō (“I impose”).

(horse racing, slang) The weight that must be carried by a horse in a race, the handicap.


undercut

From Middle English undercutten, equivalent to under- + cut.

(motor racing) A pit stop strategy in which a driver seeks to gain an advantage over someone by pitting before them and using fresh tyres to make up time.


under wraps

(horse-racing) Of a horse: restrained from performing at its best in a race, so as to mislead others regarding its potential.


under the wire

Lying forward flattened along Sunfish's hard-muscled shoulders, Bud was gaining and gaining—one length, then two lengths as he shot under the wire, slowed and rode back to find a silent crowd watching him.

1921, B. M. Bower, chapter 15, in Cow-Country:


WRC

(motor racing) Initialism of World Rally Championship.


groove

From Middle English grov, grove, groof, grofe (“cave; pit; mining shaft”), from Old English grōf (“trench, furrow, something dug”), from Proto-West Germanic *grōbu, from Proto-Germanic *grōbō (“groove, furrow”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰrebʰ- (“to dig, scrape, bury”). Cognate with Dutch groef, groeve (“groove; pit, grave”), German Grube (“ditch, pit”), Norwegian grov (“brook, riverbed”), Serbo-Croatian grèbati (“scratch, dig”). Directly descended from Old English grafan (“to dig”). More at grave.

der

(motor racing) A racing line, a path across the racing circuit's surface that a racecar will usually track on. (Note: There may be multiple grooves on any particular circuit or segment of circuit)


privateer

/ˌpɹaɪ.vəˈtɪə/

/ˌpɹaɪ.vəˈtɪɚ/

From private + -eer, probably after volunteer.

(motor racing, chiefly Canada, US) A private individual entrant into a race or competition who does not have the backing of a large, professional team.

yksityiskuski

motor racing: private individual entrant

(motor racing, elite championships) A racing team that is not a subsidiary of a large conglomerate, or automotive/vehicle manufacturer.


chicane

en-noun

chicane (countable and uncountable, plural chicanes)

On lap 23, Hamilton got a run on Leclerc into the second chicane after the two had overtaken Nico Hulkenberg's out-of-stop-sequence Renault down the main straight.

(motor racing) A sharp double bend on a racecourse, designed to prevent unsafe speeds; an obstacle creating a curve.

xicana

motor racing: double bend or obstacle designed to prevent unsafe speeds


napoleon

napoleon (countable and uncountable, plural napoleons)

/nəˈpəʊlɪən/

Borrowed from French Napoléon (“given name, usually in reference to Napoleon Bonaparte”). In reference to coins, via French napoléon (“(slang) a coin that originally had the appearance of Napoleon's face in the obverse”). In reference to guns and possibly cards, in reference to Napoleon III.

bor

(rare UK horse racing slang, obsolete) Alternative form of nap: a horse to go nap on, a sure thing, a certain winner; a prediction of such a horse; a bet on such a horse.


EP

(motor racing) Abbreviation of electric prix; ePrix.; from electric grand prix.


DP

en-noun

DP (countable and uncountable, plural DPs)

Daytona prototype
Daytona prototype#English

(motor racing) Abbreviation of Daytona prototype.


CMS

Charlotte Motor Speedway
w:en:Charlotte Motor Speedway

(US, motor racing) Initialism of Charlotte Motor Speedway.


ROC

Translingual: ROC

Coordinate term: IROC

(motor racing) Abbreviation of Race of Champions.


sector

Sector (Star Trek)
Sector (instrument)
sector

(motor racing) A fixed, continuous section of the track, such that sectors do not overlap but all sectors make up the whole track.


bus stop

bus stop chicane
bus stop chicane#English

(motor racing) Ellipsis of bus stop chicane.


steamer

From steam + -er. The steamer duck or steamer (sense 6.2) is apparently named for its resemblance to a paddle steamer when swimming rapidly.

(horse racing) A racehorse the odds of which are becoming shorter (that is, decreasing) because bettors are backing it.


cadence

cadence (countable and uncountable, plural cadences)

Borrowed from Middle French cadence, from Old Italian cadenza (“conclusion of a phrase of music”), from Latin *cadentia (literally “a falling”), form of cadēns, the present participle of cadō (“I fall, I cease”). The Latin verb is inherited, via Proto-Italic *kadō, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱad-e- (“to fall”, thematic present). Doublet of cadenza and chance.

der

(horseracing) The number of strides per second of a racehorse, measured when the same foot/hoof strikes the ground


sticks

It was a maiden race over the "sticks," and the trainer's instructions were to slip off and make the running throughout.

1902, Outing: Sport, Adventure, Travel, Fiction, volume 40, page 469:

Do they prefer flat or 'over the sticks' (jump races)? Does the group know what the races with jumps are called?

2009, Anni Bowden, Nancy Lewthwaite, The Activity Year Book, page 124:

(horse racing) Hurdles or other obstacles to be jumped over.


welter-weight

Originally “heavyweight horseman” (1832), from welter (“heavyweight horseman”) + weight. Boxing sense 1896.

compound

(horse racing) A weight of 28 pounds (or 40 pounds: a heavy welterweight), sometimes imposed in addition to weight for age, chiefly in steeplechases and hurdle races.


sophomore

From earlier sophumer, from the obsolete sophom, sophum (“sophism or dialectical exercise”), from Ancient Greek σόφισμα (sóphisma). Likely influenced by Ancient Greek σοφός (sophós, “wise”) + μωρός (mōrós, “fool”). Compare oxymoron (literally “sharp-dull”), a similar contradiction.

The filly had looked promising as a sophomore, but concerns over her health had prompted the owner to pull her from the season’s early races.

(US, horse-racing) A three-year-old horse.


marbles

Some corners are littered with marbles, off the racing line.

2014, Amen Zwa, Going Nowhere Fast In Assetto Corsa (2015-05-01), →ISBN, page 395:

(motor racing) Bits of rolled-up rubber shed by the tires of race cars that accumulate at the edges of the track, especially at the corners.


FOM

(motor racing) Acronym of Formula One Management.


paddock

The noun is almost certainly a variant of dialectal British parrock (“enclosure; park; croft, small field, paddock”), from Middle English parrok, parrock (“enclosed pasture, paddock; coop; feeding stall; cabin, hut”) [and other forms], from Old English pearroc, pearruc (“fence used to enclose a space; area enclosed by such a fence, enclosure”), from Proto-West Germanic *parruk (“enclosure; pen for animals”), from Proto-Germanic *parrukaz (“fence; enclosure”); further etymology uncertain, perhaps related to Proto-Germanic *barō (“bar, beam; barrier”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *bʰerH- (“to pierce; to strike”). Doublet of park.
The verb is derived from the noun.
cognates
* Danish park (“pond”)
* Dutch perk (“flowerbed; garden; pen”)
* German Pferch (“sheepfold, sheep-pen”)

cog

We left the carriage, bought programmes, and walked across the infield and then across the smooth thick turf of the course to the paddock. […] The paddock was fairly well filled with people and they were walking the horses around in a ring under the trees behind the grand stand.

1929 May–October, Ernest Hemingway, chapter 20, in A Farewell to Arms, 1st British edition, London: Jonathan Cape […], published 1929, →OCLC, book II, page 138:

You remind me of a two-year-old, Dinny—one of those whipcordy chestnuts that kick up their heels in the paddock, get left at the post, and come in first after all.

1931 November, John Galsworthy, chapter XXIV, in Maid in Waiting, 1st Canadian edition, Toronto, Ont.: The Ryerson Press, published 1931, →OCLC, page 211:

(horse racing) An enclosure next to a racecourse where horses are paraded and mounted before a race and unsaddled after a race.

haka

(motor racing) An area at a racing circuit where the racing vehicles are parked and worked on before and between races.


ICS

(motor racing) Initialism of Indy Car Series, the premier open-wheel racing series in the United States.


spotter

contrasted with the Übungsleiter m meaning “trainer”

(motor racing) A team member responsible for communication with the driver to keep them up-to-date about on-track events, such as other nearby cars.


indy

From Indianapolis (“location of major car race”).

(motor racing, automotive) A car designed to meet the rules on the Indianapolis 500 car race.

(by extension, motor racing, automotive) An open-wheel open-cockpit single-seat racecar

Coordinate term: grand prix

(by extension, motor racing) A motorcar race that uses this type of car


off like a bride's nightie

en-adj

off like a bride's nightie (not comparable)

A reference to the supposed eagerness of just-married couples to have sexual intercourse on the night of their wedding. Australian from 1960.

(Australia, slang, simile) Making a rapid departure; away.

(Australia, horse racing) Moving quickly and resolutely.

Making a rapid departure; away.
Moving quickly and resolutely.


cut up

en-verb

cut up (third-person singular simple present cuts up, present participle cutting up, simple past and past participle cut up)

cuts up (present singular third-person)
cutting up (participle present)
cut up (participle past)
cut up (past)

The race has cut up badly with no real opposition to "Serendipity".

(informal, motor racing) Comprise a particular selection of runners.


time trial

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-time trial.wav

(cycling, motor racing) An unpaced race in which riders or teams leaving at regular intervals are timed over a preset course or distance, the winner being the rider or team to finish in the fastest time.


bull ring

(US, horse racing) An unusually short track, typically six furlongs or less for one lap.


red flag

Typically, a red flag is used when it rains or when the safety of the clean-up crews is in danger because there is too much debris or oil on the track.

2005, James A. Vlasich, Horsehide, Pigskin, Oval Tracks and Apple Pie, →ISBN, page 177:

A red flag may be waved after a bad start or if a rider is injured. If you see a red flag, stop immediately and return to the starting line.

2017, Jill Sherman, Racing Personal Watercraft (Sea-Doos), →ISBN, page 37:

The race was punctuated by two red flags, the first caused by a pile-up on the pit straight, the second by a high-speed crash for Lance Stroll.

2020 September 13, Andrew Benson, “Tuscan Grand Prix: Lewis Hamilton claims 90th win after incredible race”, in BBC News, archived from the original on 2023-04-03:

(literally) A flag that is red, especially associated with leftist revolutionary ideologies.

(motor racing) Used as a signal that the race must be stopped immediately (and possibly restarted).


pull up

pull up (third-person singular simple present pulls up, present participle pulling up, simple past and past participle pulled up)

pulls up (present singular third-person)
pulling up (participle present)
pulled up (participle past)
pulled up (past)

In this May 20, 2006, Barbaro is steadied[sic, "by" is missing] a track worker as jockey Edgar Prado looks on after he pulled up the horse with a fractured right rear leg during the 131st running of the Preakness Stakes horse race at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore.

2016 May 19, Paul Vigna, “Barbaro's ill-fated run 10 years ago in the Preakness: A look back”, in PennLive:

(transitive, horse racing) To intentionally take a racehorse out of a race, usually as a result of the horse's tiredness or concerns of potential injury (in reference to the act of pulling up the reins).


shoo-in

From a sense of the verb shoo, where racehorses would fall back and allow a chosen rider to win a fixed race. See 1910 quotation.

Little Pete was a member of the delegation that were in on the "shoo" in the third race. He had several commissioners placing his coin on Model. If the race was to have been a "shoo-in" for Model, there must have been one or two owners that were not in on the deal.

1895, “Pointers from the Paddock”, in The San Francisco Call:

Most of the "regulars" are deeply suspicious of all steeplechase races of late years, and, whenever the favorite falls at one of the obstacles and a long priced leaper wins the race, they loudly call the race a "shoo-in" (a fixed affair, that is, in which the steeplechase racers have arranged to drop to the rear of the "meant" jumper and "shoo" him to the wire, they previously, of course, having got their money down on the horse thus generously treated).

1910, “Vernacular of the Race Track”, in New-York Tribune:

[it was] wondered whether Chris Chenery's Virginia flyer would be a shoo-in for the Belmont Stakes […]

(horse racing) The winner of a fixed race, a fixed race.


take the field

take the field (third-person singular simple present takes the field, present participle taking the field, simple past took the field, past participle taken the field)

takes the field (present singular third-person)
taking the field (participle present)
took the field (past)
taken the field (participle past)

(horse racing) To stake one's money against the favourite, taking the chances of the field against the chance of one horse.


quinella

From American Spanish quiniela (“sporting bet or pool”); US from 1942.

bor

1954, Michigan Department of State Compilation Commission, 1954 Michigan Administrative Code, page 38,
All tickets on the quinella will be calculated in an entirely separate pool.

A few tracks offer exactas and quinallas on the same races.

1989, Charles S. Romanelli, How to Make Money in One Day at the Track, page 166:

The track quinella paid $38.00 for a $2 wager, the track exacta paid $70.60 for a $2 wager.

2004, Jim Kilby, Jim Fox, Anthony F. Lucas, Casino Operations Management, page 355:

(gambling, horse racing) A form of bet in which the bettor predicts the first two finishers in a race, without concern for the order of finishing.


drawmaster

(horse racing) The person who determines the post positions for races.


dark horse

Originally an allusion to an unknown horse with a dark coat winning a race, as used in the 1831 novel The Young Duke by Benjamin Disraeli (1804–1881).

(horse racing) A horse whose capabilities are not known.


flat out

The circuit is very well endowed with corners of all sorts from hairpins to flat-outs, has a 1,540-yd. straight and measures 5.2 miles, partly on an airfield, partly through a built-up area.

1952, Motor, volume 102, number 2654, page 31:

(motor racing, horse racing) A uncambered corner of racetrack; a racetrack whose corners are uncambered.


drifting

en-noun

drifting (countable and uncountable, plural driftings)

(motor racing) A driving technique where the driver intentionally oversteers, causing loss of traction in the rear wheels, while maintaining control from entry to exit of a corner.


gruelling

/ˈɡɹu.əl.ɪŋ/

From present particle of gruel (“to exhaust, punish”), from gruel (noun).

The expenses are considerably reduced, and one or two men are prevented from carrying off nearly all the races ; for though " the spirit" may be ever so " willing," the " flesh is weak," and cannot stand more than five or six gruellings in a single day.

1869, John William Carleton, The Sporting review, ed. by 'Craven'., page 394:

Miss Harriet just got there first from Vauban, the latter being leg weary from his previous gruellings ; the bitch scored four more before giving way to the dog, who made some nice driving points ; Miss Harriet, coming again, finished a good trial an easy winner.

1871, The COURSING CALENDAR For The AUTUMN SEASON 1870, page 229:

The course was given to the black puppy, but his chance was generally considered to have been utterly destroyed by the two gruellings he had received.

1907, James Blyth, The irrevocable, and other stories, page 230:

When "Red Robin's" other great son, "Dee Rock", was retired to stud in 1935 I recollect, too, the pessimistic prophecies of those sceptics that a dog that had endured so many gruellings in the field would never accomplish much at stud.

1949, H. Edwards Clarke, The modern greyhound, page 66:

(motor racing) A race in which the animal being raced finishes in a state of physical exhaustion.


scratch

scratch (countable and uncountable, plural scratches)

From Middle English scracchen, of uncertain origin. Probably a blend of Middle English scratten (“to scratch”) and cracchen (“to scratch”). More at scrat and cratch.

There were two scratches in race 8, which reduced the field from nine horses to seven.

(horse racing) A horse withdrawn from a race prior to the start.


lock up

en-verb

lock up (third-person singular simple present locks up, present participle locking up, simple past and past participle locked up)

locks up (present singular third-person)
locking up (participle present)
locked up (participle past)
locked up (past)

Twelve laps later, Leclerc locked up at the first chicane and clattered over the run-off area. Again, Hamilton got a run on him, and this time Leclerc defended robustly through the flat-out Curva Grande, moving very late to block Hamilton to the Ferrari's left.

2019 September 8, Andrew Benson, BBC Sport:

(intransitive, motor racing) To (mistakenly) cause or have one of one's wheels to lock up (stop spinning).


play the field

play the field (third-person singular simple present plays the field, present participle playing the field, simple past and past participle played the field)

plays the field (present singular third-person)
playing the field (participle present)
played the field (participle past)
played the field (past)

(UK, horseracing) To cut one's losses by betting on every racehorse other than the crowd favorite.


clag

From Middle English claggen, probably of Scandinavian origin. Compare Swedish klägg and Old English clǣġ.

He ran wide in the corner, hit the clag and spun off.

(motor racing slang) Bits of rubber which are shed from tires during a race and collect off the racing line, especially on the outside of corners (cf. marbles).


back straight

He got boxed in amongst four African runners in the back straight of the last lap, and was only able to get out into the clear coming into the home straight.

(athletics, horse racing) The straight part of a racetrack, running track, etc., opposite the finishing line; the backstretch.


one-two

(motor racing) A race victory such that two (often both) cars of a constructor or team finish first and second in the race.


whoop-de-doo

When Shoemaker wins or loses by a nose, it is an odds-on bet that a whoop-de-doo rider would have lost by lengths, having wasted the horse prematurely.

1988, Tom Ainslie, Ainslie's Complete Guide to Thoroughbred Racing, →ISBN, page 203:

(horse racing) A style of racing in which the jockey establishes an early lead and then runs as fast as possible.


chequered flag

[Alt: Checkered flag]
*(flag): From the pattern found on the flag signalling the end of a race.
*(victory): In motor racing, an official waves a black and white chequered flag to signify the end of the race, starting with waving at the leading vehicle.

(motor racing) A black-and-white chequered flag which signifies the end of a race.

As well as the livery Perkins had when claiming three chequered flags at Mount Panorama, Russel Ingall's 'Silver Bullet' and the #6 Castrol Edge Ford Performance Racing Falcon driven by Mark Winterbottom are also on the short list.

2019, Anya Whitelaw, “Rick Kelly's fans can vote on the livery he will use in the Bathurst 1000”, in Western Advocate:


run-off

en-noun

run-off (countable and uncountable, plural run-offs)

(motor racing) A run-off area; a paved area around the track at a spot that drivers are likely to go off, as opposed to a gravel trap, grass or a barrier.


oaks

(horse racing) A stakes race in which entry is restricted to 3-year-old fillies.


backstretch

At the time appointed to start [2 1 2 P.M.], the horses made their appearance on the track, and were soon after called up by the judges for the race. They were startd at six minutes before three o'clock, the pacer having the pole, and leading round the first turn. On the backstretch he waited for the trotter, and let him take sides with him, it being apparent at this early stage that [George] Spicer did not intend to go any faster than the trotter would make him, at the same time keeping the trotter on the ouside all the way round, thereby making him go a greater distance in the race.

1853 November 26, “Ten Mile Race in Centreville, L.I.”, in Gleason’s Pictorial Drawing-room Companion, volume V, number 22 (number 126 from the start), Boston, Mass.: F[rederick] Gleason, corner of Tremont and Bromfield Sts., →OCLC, page 340, column 1:

This was a day almost fifty years since the time I was supposed to run in the 4 by 100-meter Olympic relay. I was standing on the track in the imposing, empty Olympic Stadium in Berlin. […] I walked down into the well of the vast, brooding stadium, and then along the backstretch of the red clay running oval.

1996, Marty Glickman, Stan Isaacs, “Prologue”, in The Fastest Kid on the Block: The Marty Glickman Story (Sports and Entertainment), Syracuse, N.Y.: Syracuse University Press, →ISBN, page 2:

(athletics, horse racing, car racing) Synonym of back straight (“straight part of a racetrack, running track, etc., opposite the finishing line”).

back straight

Dominic Gatto liked to have someone at the track to represent him when one of his horses raced at Arlington Park or Belmont or Prescott Downs. Someone to relay a word to the jockey, keep a sharp eye on the trainer, distribute tips to the backstretch workers who were made to understand that Mr Dominic appreciated their services.

1997, Cary Fagan, chapter 9, in Sleeping Weather, Erin, Ont.: The Porcupine's Quill, →ISBN, page 71:

When I was a kid here, growing up in the Palouse River, we never met people from other cultures or countries. There on the racetracks and backstretches in England I met people from all over the world. Everyone came together to own the horses, to work the horses and to watch them race.

2012, Krista Michelle Breen, “Quicksand”, in Quicksand: The Mysterious Disappearance of Dakotaroo, 4th edition, Rockwood, Ont.: Groundskeeper's Cottage Press, →ISBN, page 130:

(horse racing) An area next to a racetrack used to stable the racehorses and house employees.


parc fermé

(motor racing) A secure car park where competing cars must be left, and where no maintenance, repairs, or enhancements may be performed, for example during rest periods.

(motor racing) A car configuration race condition, where no or severely limited modifications may be made on a racing car, while the race condition is active.


inside track

(sports, chiefly motor racing) The lane or track nearest to the interior.


pari-mutuel

pari-mutuel (plural pari-mutuels or paris-mutuels)

pari-mutuels (plural)
paris-mutuels (plural)

There is also a pari-mutuel option. You and a friend can wager that you will each lose 15 pounds over the next two months. If you both succeed, the money is returned. But if one fails while the other succeeds, then the loser pays the winner. If you both fail, then the one who loses the most is the winner.

2008, Avinash K. Dixit and Barry J. Nalebuff, The Art of Strategy: A Game Theorist's Guide to Success in Business and Life, W.W Norton & Company, p. 208

(horse racing) Any betting system in which all bets of a particular type are placed together in a pool; taxes and a house take are removed, and payoff odds are calculated by sharing the pool among all placed bets.


quali

quali (usually uncountable, plural qualis or qualies)

(motor racing, slang) Clipping of qualifying.


factory team

(motor racing) A team that is wholly or substantially owned and run by (or on behalf of) a car manufacturer, either by an in house organization or an associated company.


auto racing

(motor racing) Any of various sports in which automobiles (motor cars) are raced, either around a track, on roads or across country


pit lane

(motor racing) A lane adjacent (usually on the inner curve) to a racetrack where the competing teams' garages are situated.


sack race

There's something for the whole family with events including cow pat throwing, sack races, three-legged races and more.

2021 December 5, The Road Ahead, Brisbane, page 27, column 3:

(games, motor racing) A race in which competitors stand in sacks or similar items and try to be the first to jump to the finish line.


racing car

[A] grey racing car drew up with a grinding of brakes and a sputter of gravel in front of the main entrance of Belpher Castle.

1919, P. G. Wodehouse, chapter 6, in A Damsel in Distress:

Like some fine-tuned racing car, it kicks up a lot of its own dust.

1987 September 14, Jay Cocks, “Music: The Badder They Come”, in Time:

(UK, automotive, motor racing) A race car.


TCR

TCR (countable and uncountable, plural TCRs)

Coordinate term: GT

(motor racing, uncountable) Abbreviation of touring car racing.


safety car

After a car crashed, the safety car was sent out to lead the remaining drivers safely past the site of the accident.

(motor racing) A vehicle employed to lead the competitors in an auto race for the duration of a few laps, with the intention of restricting their speed while a hazard exists on the circuit.


pace car

(motor racing) A car that other cars drive behind before a race starts.

lähtöauto

car that others drive behind before race start

(motor racing) A car that paces the race cars to keep them running at a slower pace due to race conditions, and which the other cars cannot pass.


claiming race

In a claiming race, each horse is in a sense up for sale. That is, any owner who has raced a horse at the track during the meet in progress may put in a claim to buy any horse racing in a claiming race.

1968, Marvin B. Scott, The Racing Game, page 15:

(horse racing) A race in which the competing horse can be claimed by anyone at the specified claiming price for the race.


LLP

long lap penalty
long lap penalty#English

(motor racing) Abbreviation of long lap penalty.


transport stage

transport stage (plural transport stages)

(motor racing) In rallying, an untimed section of the event where cars are driven at relatively low speed, usually on public roads, to the next racing stage.


victory lane

(motor racing) The place where the winner of a motor race goes to celebrate victory after an event.


reweight

en-verb

reweight (third-person singular simple present reweights, present participle reweighting, simple past and past participle reweighted)

reweights (present singular third-person)
reweighting (participle present)
reweighted (participle past)
reweighted (past)

(horseracing) To adjust or reassign the handicap weight.


rallye

A car that wins such a rallye uses its victory to convince potential purchasers that it can cope with difficult driving conditions.

1969, Charles Winick, The New People: Desexualization in American Life:


drag race

Did you watch the drag race on Sunday?

(motor racing) A race in a car or on a motorcycle to be first to cross a set finish line.


drag race

drag race (third-person singular simple present drag races, present participle drag racing, simple past and past participle drag raced)

drag races (present singular third-person)
drag racing (participle present)
drag raced (participle past)
drag raced (past)

(motor racing) To participate in a drag race.


factory-backed

(motor racing, of a team) Wholly or substantially supported by financial or technical backing from a car manufacturer, but not necessarily contracted to it.


scrutineer

Those people coined the term “open source,” to stress the instrumental benefits of allowing others to scrutinize code: these scrutineers could root out defects and prevent the nefarious subversion of code to spy on or steal data from its users (there’s a saying for this, too: “with enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow”).

2020 September 7, Cory Doctorow, “IP”, in Locus Magazine:

(now chiefly motor racing) A person who scrutinises; a person responsible for scrutineering.


splash-and-dash

(motor racing) A quick stop for fuel near the end of a race, so as to be able to cross the finish line without running out of fuel.


XP

(motor racing) Abbreviation of extreme prix; xPrix (from being an extreme grand prix).


esses

(motor racing, usually in the plural) A sequence of winding turns.


ultrasoft

(motor racing) Softer than supersoft, and harder than hypersoft.


white flag

(motor racing) A flag with a white color, signifying the final lap of a race (ie. the bell lap).


come to hand

come to hand (third-person singular simple present comes to hand, present participle coming to hand, simple past came to hand, past participle come to hand)

comes to hand (present singular third-person)
coming to hand (participle present)
came to hand (past)
come to hand (participle past)

The horse came to hand, and won first prize.

(US, horse racing) To perform well, to come under control.


superspecial

The clutch of his Focus overheated in the traffic jam around the stadium and he had to nurse the car through the Saturday night superspecial, dropping five seconds to the flying Loeb.

2008 December 8, Sammy Hamill, “Champion Loeb is too hot to handle on icy roads”, in Belfast Telegraph:

(motor racing) A special spectator stage of a rally event


standardbred

From standard + bred. In this context, the word "standard" refers to the fact that in the early decades of the breed's development, all breeding stock had to meet a specific performance standard, namely ability to trot or pace a mile in no more than 2 minutes, 30 seconds.

"Jockeys waste and drivers don't and maybe the breed (standardbred) might be a bit more conducive to the conditions."

2009 January 30, Tim Habel, Matt Stewart, “Heat on VRC to delay Flemington meeting”, in Herald Sun:

(horse racing) A breed of horse bred specifically for harness racing


jumpout

The few who attended Tuesday's important Lightning Stakes jumpouts at Flemington on Tuesday may have been put off by Swick's lethargic display.

2009 January 31, Matt Stewart, “Bart Cummings ready to derail Lightning match race”, in Herald Sun, archived from the original on 2009-02-05:

I did get to ride in a couple of barrier jumpouts, but even that was sprung on me. I was riding a horse towards the track when Murty said it was going for a jumpout, a sprint about 400 metres from the barriers down the home straight.

2011, David Brasch, Peter Cook, Jockeying To The Top, unnumbered page:

(Australia, horse racing) An unofficial trial race.


trackwork

McDonald described Weekend Hussler's trackwork this preparation as "frightening".

2009 January 30, Tim Habel, “Short journey to suit Hussler”, in Herald Sun:

(horse racing) Practice in racing around a track


hit-out

(Australia, horse racing) A fast gallop.


bolter

trap

antonym(s) of “missed landing on an aircraft carrier”

(Australia, horseracing) A horse that wins at long odds.


superspeedway

Let’s run a real 500-mile race on a superspeedway, with no limits on engines, tires, oil, fuel, or vehicle weight or shape.

2007 February 25, “Letters to the Editor”, in New York Times:

(motor racing) A motor speedway at least two miles in length


unplaced

The Listed John Dillon Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield on Australia Day is an option for Rok Posta, who has only been unplaced four times in his 20 starts.

2009 January 18, Adrian Dunn, “Girls combine to Posta win at Flemington”, in Herald Sun:

(horse racing) Not among the first three horses to finish a race.


WDC

(motor racing) Initialism of World Driving/Drivers' Championship.


placegetter

2008, Mike Keenan, The Shadows of Horses, 2009 Large 24pt Edition, Read How You Want, page 96,
I was utterly unprepared for the reception I received when I trotted up towards the stall reserved for the second placegetter, in the Saddling Enclosure.

Last year's Caulfield Cup placegetter is rated a $6 chance and will be ridden by champion Irish jockey Michael Kinane.

2009 February 13, Tim Habel, “Time to put best foot forward”, in Herald Sun:

Essentially, punters who played the placecards — usually in a local pub — had to pick a placegetter in each of the four feature races on a Saturday. So, if it was races five, seven and eight, you had to correctly select just one of the three placegetters in each race to win.

2011, Nichola Garvey, Beating the Odds, unnumbered page:

(horse racing, Australia, New Zealand) A horse that finishes among the first three of a race, or in a specified place.


quaddie

From quadrella + -ie (“diminutive suffix”).

2003 March 22, Craig Sherborne, Footy′s Man of Passion, The Herald Sun, republished in 2003, Garrie Hutchinson (editor), The Best Australian Sports Writing 2003, page 82,
He was a footballer, hard-boned, smart-mouthed, with an eye on the quaddie at Flemington.

I had the quaddie in Melbourne if Alinghi won.

2004 November 21, Josh Button, “Cup tips”, in aus.sport.rugby-league (Usenet):

2006, Mike Dillon, From The Horses Mouth: The Keith Haub Story, 2010, HarperCollins Publishers (New Zealand), unnumbered page,
With only the last race to run the trio each had a $1 quaddie unit if Brent Thomson managed to get over the line in front.

For the Fourth week in a row I have had 3 live legs of the Quaddie only to be dudded by West Coast the last two!

2007 July 16, gF, “Screw Fremantle”, in aus.sport.aussie-rules (Usenet):

(Australia, gambling, horse racing, colloquial) A quadrella, a type of bet requiring the bettor to pick the winners of four nominated races at the same track; a bet requiring the selection of four winners of specified matches in a given round of a sporting competition.


holeshot

(motor racing, BMX) The position of being the first rider to pass the first turn of the course.


damn and blast

Cockney rhyming slang
Cockney rhyming slang

(British, Cockney rhyming slang, motor racing) Last.


pick six

(horse racing) A wager in which the bettor must correctly predict the winners of six consecutive races.


GTP

en-noun

GTP (countable and uncountable, plural GTPs)

Grand Touring Prototype
w:Grand Touring Prototype

(motor racing) Initialism of Grand Touring Prototype.


plater

(horse-racing) A horse that runs chiefly in selling plates; hence, an inferior racehorse.


superhard

(motor racing) A tyre whose compound is harder than a normal hard tyre.


supersoft

en-adj

supersoft (comparative more supersoft, superlative most supersoft)

more supersoft (comparative)
most supersoft (superlative)

(motor racing) Softer than soft, harder than ultrasoft and therefore harder than hypersoft.


supersoft

(motor racing) Ellipsis of supersoft tyre.


VIR

(motor racing) Initialism of Virginia International Raceway.


hypersoft

(motor racing) Softer than ultrasoft, and therefore softer than supersoft.


quadrella

2003 March 22, Craig Sherborne, Footy′s Man of Passion, The Herald Sun, republished in 2003, Garrie Hutchinson (editor), The Best Australian Sports Writing 2003, page 79,
Demetriou is an inveterate punter with a miraculous instinct for picking big quadrellas.

2009, H. G. Nelson (Greig Pickhaver), Sprays: A Collection of Verbal Touch-Ups, unnumbered page,
Imagine jagging a couple of nice trifectas or the quadrella and squaring the Christmas credit-card bill, with a little extra left for a three-week holiday at Victor Harbor. Magic!

2010, Stephen Barkoczy. Australian Tax Casebook, 10th Edition, CCH Australia, page 416,
Instead, the taxpayer relied on his own intuition, placed bets mainly on the totalisator or with on-course bookmakers and was more inclined to place “higher risk” bets such as trifectas and quadrellas.

(gambling, horse racing, Australia, New Zealand) A bet where the bettor must pick the winners of four nominated races at the same track.


Triple Crown

(horse racing, US) The three greatest thoroughbred races of the year restricted to three-year-olds: the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes

(horse racing, UK) The three greatest thoroughbred races of the year restricted to three-year-olds: the 2,000 Guineas Stakes, Derby Stakes (aka "Epsom Derby"), and St. Leger Stakes

(horse racing, Canada) The three greatest thoroughbred races of the year restricted to three-year-olds: the Queen's Plate, Prince of Wales Stakes, and Breeders' Stakes

(motor racing) Victory by a driver at the three grandest car races in the world, the Indianapolis 500, 24-Hours of Le Mans, Monaco Grand Prix; usually defined as a career achievement and not a season or calendar year achievement


quadfecta

He won the Superfecta and the Quadfecta all in the same day at Hollywood Park Casino in Los Angeles.

2010, George V. Bush, Magazine Man “A Slave To The Sale”, unnumbered page:

(gambling, horse racing) A bet in which the bettor must select the winners of the first four places (i.e., first, second, third, and fourth) of a race in the correct order.


jackman

While Stewart’s team checked out the damage to his car in the pit stall, Busch pulled next to Stewart’s car, forcing the jackman Jason Lee to jump back and onto the hood.

2007 June 9, The Associated Press, “Sports Briefing”, in New York Times:

(motor racing) A member of the pit crew responsible for lifting the car with a jack.


high side

(motor racing) a type of motorcycle crash where the motorcycle tire loses, then rapidly regains traction, thus throwing the rider violently up, over, and off the motorcycle as the motorcycle spins off on its own trajectory.


low side

(motor racing) A type of motorcycle crash when both tires lose traction and the motorcycle falls onto its side and slides across the tarmac. The rider typically falls off at ground level after the machine has fallen over and begun to slide.


time attack

time + attack. Second sense is a calque of Japanese タイムアタック (taimu atakku), itself from English.

clq

Starting off in Japan, Time Attack, Super Lap and Tuner Battles were organised by the media as a proving ground to see the difference between street tuned cars, produced by the tuning industries most respected tuners.

2006, “Time Attack FAQ's”, in Time Attack - Official Website, archived from the original on 2007-09-12:

There are only eight levels but the varied game modes (including time attacks, survivals, team deathmatches, hunts, and sieges) in both single and multi-player keeps things interesting.

(motor racing, video games) Synonym of time trial


overcut

en-noun

overcut (usually uncountable, plural overcuts)

(motor racing) A pit stop strategy in which a driver seeks to gain an advantage over someone else by pitting after them and running in clean air to make up time.


chalk out

en-verb

chalk out (third-person singular simple present chalks out, present participle chalking out, simple past and past participle chalked out)

chalks out (present singular third-person)
chalking out (participle present)
chalked out (participle past)
chalked out (past)

A 25-1 shot won race 3, but the rest of the early pick 5 chalked out after that.

(US, intransitive, horse racing) In a multi-race wager, to lose to the favorite in all of the remaining races.


special stage

(motor racing) A competitive section of a rally event where the goal is to cover a stretch of closed road in the shortest time.


stall handler

(horse racing) Someone responsible for manoeuvring the horse between the gates before the start of a race.

pousseur

someone responsible for manoeuvring the horse between the gates


unlap

unlap (third-person singular simple present unlaps, present participle unlapping, simple past and past participle unlapped)

unlaps (present singular third-person)
unlapping (participle present)
unlapped (participle past)
unlapped (past)

(intransitive, usually reflexive, motor racing) To overtake the leader in a race in order to no longer be lapped (one or more complete laps behind the leader).


catchweight

They'll break from the gate in full tack with jockeys riding catchweight in silks.

1976 December 3, “Oldtimers race is well received”, in El Paso Herald-Post:

to ride catchweight

(horse racing) Without any weight restrictions; without being handicapped.


polesitter

(motor racing) A driver placed in pole position.


home and hosed

(Australia, New Zealand, horseracing, figurative) Assured of winning.


stoater

El Hakim's party won a mere trifle, but stood what poor Captain Scott was wont to term "a stoater" on Merlin, a good but uncertain horse, who had "lost" him in the trial at home.

1858, The Irish metropolitan magazine, page 117:

Owners back their horses for such “stoaters,” in short distance races, where a start is everything, that, in too many cases, woe betide the backs and pockets of the lads if they do not jump off in a twinkling.

1860, Sporting Magazine - Volume 36, page 306:

When it was known before starting the sum Lord Portsmouth stood on his filly, there was a perfect furore to back her, as a pony would be ' a perfect stoater ' for him ; and his commission, it was understood, considerably exceeded that sum.

1863, Baily's Magazine of Sports & Pastimes - Volume 5, page 96:

(Scotland, Ireland, horse racing) A horse that wins against the odds.


rubberbanding

From rubber band + -ing, referring to the fact that when two objects are connected by an elastic band then the movement of one is constrained by the other.

(video games, racing games) The speeding up of computer-controlled cars far behind the player, often as a method to increase the level of challenge provided to the player.


starting price

(horse racing) The final odds on a horse when the race starts; also used to designate a system of fixed-odds betting using such prices. Abbreviation: SP.


back the field

back the field (third-person singular simple present backs the field, present participle backing the field, simple past and past participle backed the field)

backs the field (present singular third-person)
backing the field (participle present)
backed the field (participle past)
backed the field (past)

(horse racing) To bet against a particular horse or horses, that some one of all the other horses, collectively designated "the field", will win.


roval

(slang, motor racing) A motor racecourse composed of a road course section and a portion of a banked oval track.


make a book

make a book (third-person singular simple present makes a book, present participle making a book, simple past and past participle made a book)

makes a book (present singular third-person)
making a book (participle present)
made a book (participle past)
made a book (past)

it must be acknowledged that it is impossible to make a book on any important race without the security of Play or Pay

1866, Henry John Rous, On the Laws and Practice of Horse Racing:

(horseracing, archaic) To lay bets (recorded in a pocketbook) against the success of every horse, so that the bookmaker wins on all the unsuccessful horses and loses only on the winning horse or horses.


parade lap

(motor racing) A lap before a race begins, in which the drivers go relatively slowly around the track to warm up their tyres and ensure that conditions are safe.


one-horse race

Since riding Harry Payne Whitney's Whiskery to victory in the Kentucky Derby, Jockey Linus ("Pony") McAtee has twice broken into the news in unconventional fashion. A fortnight ago, he won a one-horse race ("walkover") at Belmont Park, N. Y.

1927 June 13, “Sport: Again, McAtee”, in Time, retrieved 2014-07-26:

Sinister Minister . . . kept extending his lead and turned the stretch run into a one-horse race.

2006 April 16, Bill Finley, “Sinister Minister Joins Baffert's Derby Stable”, in New York Times, retrieved 2014-07-26:

(horse racing, informal) A horse race in which a single horse takes such a considerable lead that the other horses are no longer contenders to win.


MGUH

motor generator unit, heat
motor generator unit, heat#English

(motor racing) Alternative form of MGU-H Initialism of motor generator unit, heat.


MGUK

(motor racing) Alternative form of MGU-K Initialism of motor generator unit, kinetic.