It's Boat Race day!

The big one. And while yesterday's Veterans and Lightweights gave us our first taste of Fixture Series action, today the stakes are higher, the crowds are bigger, the winds are stronger and the predictions are...

Let's just say the Fantasy Rowing community has some very strong opinions.

The Cambridge Steamroller 🩵

There's no polite way to say this: Fantasy Rowing players think Cambridge are going to clean up.

97.28% of you have backed the Cambridge Men's Blue Boat.

That's not a prediction, that's a consensus.

Oxford's Men are sitting on just 2.72%, the lowest popularity of any crew across both Boat Race events. If you're one of the ten players who picked Oxford Men, you're either very brave or you know something the rest of us don't. (or are the crew, cox + coach!)

Either way, if they pull it off, your leaderboard position is going to look very healthy. 📈

The Men's Reserves tell a similar story: Cambridge Goldie at 92.36% vs Oxford Isis at 7.64%. Another predicted landslide in the Light Blues' favour.

The Women's Race: Actually Competitive 👀

Here's where it gets interesting. The Women's Blue Boat race is the closest call of the day:

  • Cambridge Women: 51.04%
  • Oxford Women: 48.96%

That's essentially a coin toss. This is the race where points will be won and lost - if you've gone against the grain here, this is your chance to make up ground.

(It wouldn't be the first time that 51% of people voted for the wrong thing)

The Women's Reserves lean more heavily towards Cambridge — Blondie at 82.17% vs Osiris at 17.83% - but nowhere near as dramatically as the men's races.

The Upset Opportunity 🚀

As we saw with yesterday's racing, the favourites don't always win. And when they DO win, everyone gets the same points. The real leaderboard movers are the upsets.

With the Men's Blue Boat at 97.28%, a Cambridge win gives almost everyone the points. But an Oxford win? That 2.72% who backed the Dark Blues would rocket up the leaderboard while 97% of players get nothing.

The Women's race at 51/49 is a genuine knife-edge - no matter what happens, roughly half the field will be celebrating.

How to Watch

Unlike yesterday's Vets and Lightweights, today's races are the full broadcast experience - live on Channel 4 from Putney to Mortlake. The broadcast starts at 1:30pm.

In the US and much of the rest of the world you'll be able to find the race somewhere - Overnght is the best option for a lot of you.

You can also follow along in the app — open the Race Feed for live scoring updates, and don't forget to react to the races as they happen!

Good luck everyone. May the best crews (and the smartest pickers) win! 🏆