The Ayr Gold Cup is one on the oldest horse races in the UK calendar with and was originally established in 1804. It was initially run over a distance of 2 miles but has since 1908 been run as a sprint over 6 furlongs.
The 2015 Ayr Gold Cup is due to be run on the 19 September at Ayr racecourse. It is a handicap race with the field limited to the 27 highest rated horses entered for the race. Eliminated horses are now offered the chance to compete in the Ayr Silver Cup, a consolation race established in 1992. In 2009 a further event for horses excluded from the Ayr Silver Cup , the Ayr Bronze Cup, was introduced.
Captain Ramius gave trainer Kevin Ryan his third win since 2007 in 2012. Dandy Nicholls is another trainer to respect in sprint handicaps and has saddled the winner of three in the last 13 . It is a competitive race with no winner priced below 10-1 since 2002.
Ayr Gold Cup winners 2002-2014
| Year | Winner | Jockey | Trainer | Age | Wt | OR | SP |
| 2014 | Louis The Pious | Doyle James | O’Meara D | 5 | 9-4 | 104 | 10-1 |
| 2013 | Highland Colari | Murphy Oisin | Balding AM | 4 | 9-4 | 99 | 20-1 |
| 2012 | Captain Ramius | Smullen, Pat | Ryan, K A | 6 | 9-0 | 100 | 16-1 |
| 2011 | Our Jonathan | Norton, F | Ryan, K A | 4 | 9-6 | 105 | 11-1 |
| 2010 | Redford (IRE) | Dettori, L | Nicholls, D | 5 | 9-2 | 97 | 14-1 |
| 2009 | Jimmy Styles | Dettori, L | Cox, C G | 5 | 9-2 | 100 | 14-1 |
| 2008 | Regal Parade | Carson, W | Nicholls, D | 4 | 8-10 | 99 | 18-1 |
| 2007 | Advanced | Spencer, J | Ryan, K A | 4 | 9-12 | 109 | 20-1 |
| 2006 | Fonthill Road (IRE) | Hanagan, P | Fahey, R A | 6 | 9-2 | 97 | 16-1 |
| 2005 | Presto Shinko (IRE) | Sanders, S | Hannon, R | 4 | 9-2 | 98 | 12-1 |
| 2004 | Funfair Wane | Doe, P | Nicholls, D | 5 | 8-6 | 90 | 33-1 |
| 2003 | Quito (IRE) | Culhane, T | Chapman, D W | 6 | 8-6 | 92 | 20-1 |
| 2002 | Funfair Wane | Nicholls, A | Nicholls, D | 3 | 9-3 | 100 | 16-1 |
