Have you recently got into equestrian, and you are looking for top tier events to attend or watch? The biggest horse races in the world have all the excitement you can handle and more, abd we’ve outlined them below for your convenience … you can thank us later!

1) Kentucky Derby

Known as the most exciting two minutes in sports, the running of the Kentucky Derby is one of the cornerstone traditions in American horse racing circles, as it is easily the most attended and watched event of its kind in North America. Being about more than just fancy hats and properly mixed mint juleps, this series is the first leg of the Triple Crown, which is one of the most highly coveted achievements that any horse or jockey could ever hope to attain in their career.

2) The Grand National

Held at Aintree racecourse in Liverpool, England, the Grand National is Europe’s richest jump race, as it awards owners and jockeys more than one million pounds for negotiating a course of fences and water-filled ditches quicker than any of their fellow racers.

Because of the need to leap 30 obstacles over two laps, it is often considered to be the ultimate test of skill between horse and rider, and evidently, over a half a billion people agree, as these many viewers tune in to watch one of the premiere races in steeplechase that can be seen anywhere in the world.

3) The Royal Ascot

Started soon after when Queen Anne saw the potential of an unremarkable piece of flat heathland to be the site of horse racing ground in 1711, the Royal Ascot has since become one of equestrian’s most prestigious events.

The queen herself is in attendance on race day (being held this year from June 16^th through to the 20^th), as are certain members of the Royal Family, making it a truly elegant race for equestrian fans to attend.

Fashion is a big deal for those that go in person, so be sure to wear your best duds to the course. If you are watching at home, be sure to catch the Royal Ascot races on Prince of Wales’s Stakes Day, as the most exciting runs in the series are on at this time.

4) Dubai World Cup

If cash rules everything around you and you are a fan of horse racing, then attending the Dubai World Cup is an absolute must. With a prize pool set at a gobsmacking $10 million USD, the best jockeys and horses on the planet are almost always game to compete for a piece of the world’s most ludicrously big cash purse.

With a variety of seating options, private rooms and exquisite restaurants located within the Meydan Racecourse grounds, those of a variety of means can show up and enjoy race day in style that suits them best.

5) The Melbourne Cup

Down Under, horse racing is taken very seriously. So seriously in fact, that its biggest race of the year has the peculiar habit of stopping the nation right in its tracks. The Melbourne Cup, founded in 1861, had a holiday built around it in recognition of its productivity sapping properties in 1873.

This endures to this day in the state of Victoria, but many Aussies from around either get the day off from their employer or take the day off of their own volition so that they can watch some of the best horse/rider combos in the world compete for one of the richest prize pools in the world (second only to the Dubai World Cup)