London, UK -- (ReleaseWire) -- 09/07/2015 --Leading racing site CheltenhamFestival.net published their survey to hundreds of thousands of readers and using twelve vital questions they wanted to get a better understanding of the modern racing audience.

Questions on favourite racehorses, popular racecourses and exciting fixtures were all answered and there were a number of key findings.

The popularity of the Cheltenham Festival clearly continues to surge and 78% of people now say that the famous Cotswolds course is their favourite track. It's a huge amount in comparison with Ascot which attracted just 7% of the votes and it raises the question – is Ascot in crisis? Course officials will no doubt play down the results of the survey but the findings of the report are certainly a worry for the Berkshire track. With the likes of the Royal meeting, British Champions Day and more exciting fixtures all on the racing calendar, many will wonder why more people do not favour a trip to Ascot.

There have been many famous racing names that have captured the imagination of the public and there were hundreds of different answers when readers were asked who their favourite horse was. Incredibly, a massive 30% of people said that dual-Cheltenham Gold Cup hero Kauto Star was their favourite horse of all time and the popularity of the superstar is clearly as strong as ever.

The results also confirm that many more people are heading to the races for a day out and a massive 42% of people believe that having a good day with friends and family is the key to a fantastic experience. Just the 0.28% said that avoiding an argument with their partner was more important.

Nick Wilby, editor of CheltenhamFestival.net, admitted he was delighted with the survey and he commented: "We launched this survey so we could see what excites racing fans in 2015 and we were very impressed with the engagement it received.

"Some of the results are very interesting and they are sure to cause a stir in the racing world. Cheltenham racecourse and their famous festival in March certainly stole the show and course officials will be delighted with our findings.

"There were a number of 'winners' that emerge from the survey, but there were also some results that might shock the racing world. The poor performance of Ascot and their Royal meeting in our results was certainly unexpected."

The full report can be seen here CheltenhamFestival.net survey report.