How the Triumphs of Famous Jockeys Inspire Online Casino Slots
Some sporting moments can elevate an athlete from being a great to being a legend. The day that jockey Frankie Dettori rode all seven winners on the card at Ascot in 1996 is a perfect example. It was one extraordinary day that remains one of the most celebrated achievements in racing.
Then there is the eight-time champion jockey Peter Scudamore, one of the most remarkable men to ever hop into the saddle. One of the great highlights of Scudamore’s long and successful career was when he rode a record 221 winners in the 1988-89 season. It was an exceptional achievement from an exceptional jockey, and that racing history lives on in slots.
Legendary Inspiration
Legendary sporting events and achievements influence loads of different areas of social life, from the movies to online casinos. Many slots are inspired by sports, and some celebrate an individual athlete. Both Dettori and Scudamore, for example, have branded slot machines bearing their names.
These games can be found on many UK platforms, including sites with flexible deposit limits. For example, the legal options listed at https://legalcasino.uk/casinos/minimum-deposit/5-pounds/ allow you to make £5 top-ups and explore different sports-themed slots by placing small bets. These, like casinos with less flexible deposit limits, offer games dedicated to these horse racing legends. But just as those leading jockeys were different in their styles, the slots inspired by them also exhibit significant differences.
Scudamore’s Super Stakes (NetEnt)
Scudamore’s Super Stakes is a 5-reel, 3-row video slot developed by leading game provider NetEnt. The game got under starter orders in 2019 and it carries a 96.99% Return to Player percentage (RTP), which indicates how much of every 100 units of stakes that go in, are expected to be paid out.
A 96-97% RTP is a good standard for a machine, but Scudamore’s Super Stakes comes with high volatility, a metric that indicates how often a machine is expected to pay out. Higher volatility means that the machine will pay out less frequently, but will typically return higher payouts when it does.
It’s a bit like backing horses from the middle of betting markets to win races. You get better odds, but the wins will be less frequent than from backing favourites for lower payouts. High volatility machines generally require bigger bankrolls to get back substantial payouts, so the balance of RTP and volatility is OK on Scudamore’s Super Stakes, but not out-of-this-world.
Features of the Game
In Scudamore’s Super Stakes, there are Random Wilds, represented by a horseshoe. They land on the reels and will turn the existing symbol there into a Wild, boosting the chance of a win, and up to five can appear on a single spin.
Triggering Peter’s Classic Cup takes the game to a new level, because it expands the game to a 5-reel, 4-row slot with a total of 32 fixed pay lines, compared to the 20 fixed pay lines on the standard game. In Peter’s Classic, four horses are presented and you try to select which will be the winner. A correct selection will guarantee a big win and adds a great racing element to the title.
The game has another engaging feature called Bet Slip which is a challenge which needs to be purchased to be active. The Bet Slip is linked to a particular symbol and a selected number of spins. With it activated, the Bet Slip will keep a tally of the symbols that appear and will equate to a multiplier payout.
Frankie Dettori’s Magic Seven (Playtech)
Frankie Dettori’s Magnificent 7 was a stunning day in racing history and inspired this 5-reel, 25 paylines slot. The game by Playtech, is naturally heavily racing-themed, with horseshoes, and trophies among the symbols. It’s not as wildly animated as Scudamore’s Super Stakes, but it does feature some clips of Dettori in his racing prime.
Tying things nicely into the theme is the 7,777x jackpot that can be landed on the game by striking five Frankie Dettori icons. It’s not a spectacular jackpot but decent enough considering the game is medium volatility with an average 95.99% RTP.
One of the main bonus features is the Free Games Race which is triggered by getting the racetrack bonus symbol on reels 1 and 5 simultaneously. Doing so will direct players to a virtual horse race, where the finishing position of the horse that you chose will determine how many free spins are paid out.
Another bonus feature is where prizes are revealed from a grid of 20 racetrack squares and you can keep going until the “collect” tile is revealed. Overall, the graphics look a bit dated, but capture the racing ethos well.
Where to Find the Games
These are very popular games from leading game developers, so they are widely available on online casino platforms. Keep an eye out for jackpot pools as well for Frankie Dettori’s Magic Seven which some providers run.