Elo Ratings

Your new secret weapon on AmWager

A quicker read on every race. A smarter way to spot value. Powered by the same math that ranks chess legends like Garry Kasparov, determines Olympic seedings, and fuels the Matchmaking Rating (MMR) ladders of today’s biggest esports—yet rebuilt for horse racing, even a 14-horse field.

What is an Elo Rating?

Back in 1970 world chess switched to a fresh idea from professor Arpad Elo. Every game adjusted the two players’ ratings: beat someone higher-ranked, jump forward; lose to an underdog, slide back. That single number soon became a badge of honor—Kasparov’s peak of 2851 made headlines worldwide because everyone knew it meant “best on Earth.” Esports later borrowed the concept and called it Matchmaking Rating (MMR); win tough matches and your ladder points soar.

Applying Elo Ratings to Racing

Racing isn’t one-on-one—everyone is against everyone else. We kept the heart of the ELO idea (“reward surprises, trim disappointments”) and taught it to grade an entire field at once. After each race has been made official, our system:

Measures expectation — what the odds board hinted each runner should do.

Scores reality — where each actually finished, giving a shared middle score to all those “unplaced” runners.

Moves the needle — bumps up the over-achievers, nips back the under-achievers.

Blends the ratings — each horse, trainer, jockey/driver and owner gets its own private rating. We then blend those numbers into the single Elo you see on-screen.

Elo Ratings on AmWager

To the left of the Morning Line you’ll see one figure:

Rating starts at 1200 – the neutral rookie level.

Higher is better – 1400 beats 1300, simple as that.

Refreshes every night – yesterday’s results are baked in before you pour your morning coffee.

*Elo ratings are currently only available on desktop devices

How to Put Elo to Work

Quick form guide – scan the column and spot who ranks above whom.

Hype filter – one flashy win won’t rocket a rating unless the horse beat legitimate, higher-rated rivals.

A trusted system with a racing twist! The same rating logic that once crowned Kasparov, seeds Olympic brackets, and balances esports lobbies now speaks the language of Thoroughbreds, Standardbreds and greyhounds. It’s objective, self-correcting and immune to buzz.