RACING:THE REAL drama of the Grade Two three-mile Woodies Christmas Hurdle – where Voler La Vedette beat odds-on favourite Mourad – was off-course as astonishing "in-running" betting patterns on the Betfair exchange saw the 13 to 8 second favourite Voler La Vedette matched for about €2 million at odds of 28 to 1 in what theoretically would result in a payout of almost €27.5 million.

At one stage over €25 million was offered in running which would have resulted in a near €717 million payout.

The market was quickly suspended and after an investigation, Betfair announced they had voided all in-running bets due to a technical failure that allowed a customer to exceed their exposure limit.