A quinella wheel bet allows bettors to select one horse they believe will finish first or second and pair it with multiple other horses to fill in the other winning position. The description may sound complicated to newer bettors, but the quinella wheel is a simple bet in practice.

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How Quinella Wheel Bets Work

To understand the quinella wheel bet, consider a straight quinella. In a straight quinella, the bettor picks exactly two horses, and the wager wins if those horses place first and second place in any order.

A quinella wheel takes the same concept one step further by letting the bettor select one key horse and pairing it with several other horses (a part wheel) or the entire field (full wheel).

Quinella wheels pay when the key horse finishes in first or second place, and any of the other selections finish alongside the key horse in the top two spots.

Alternatively, bettors can create quinella wheels with multiple key horses. For example, a bettor may key horses 1 and 2 with horses 7, 8, and 9. This wager would win if horse 1 or 2 finishes in the top two places alongside horse 7, 8, or 9 in any order.

How to Place Quinella Wheel Bets Online

Bettors can place horse racing quinella wheels online fairly easily through most licensed racebooks. The first step is to identify a track that offers quinellas, which are typically only available at non-US racetracks. Once you’ve found a track that offers quinellas, creating and submitting the wager is straightforward.

First, visit the race you want to bet on and select the quinella wager option from the betting menu. Next, open the secondary menu to choose the “wheel” modifier (circled in red below). Now, the list of runners will break into two columns representing two keys. You can add as many horses as you want to each key, but to keep it simple, we’ve selected our favorite horse (#7) to be our “key” horse with horses 2, 3, and 4:

quinella wheel bet

This $2 quinella wheel will cost us $6 because it covers three winning outcomes: horses 7-2, 7-3, or 7-4 in any order.

Quinella Wheel Betting Examples

The quinella wheel is a good play when the bettor is sure one particular horse is the best selection in a race or a good value bet but has little insight into which horse is likely to finish second.

For example, imagine a race in which Horse #8 seems to be the overwhelming favorite, but none of the other horses in the field stand out. In this case, the bettor could place a full quinella wheel on Horse #8 paired with every other horse in the field.

The wager in this example would win in every outcome in which Horse #8 finishes the race in first or second place – similar to a place bet but with different betting pools and potentially a higher payout. The full wheel is generally not a good idea if the race features several strong, low-odds runners. In that case, the cost of the bet may end up exceeding the payout, and the bettor should consider a part-wheel.

If the full quinella wheel is too expensive, or the bettor believes there is no point in backing some of the runners in the field, they can use a quinella part-wheel to narrow down the selections and reduce the cost of the wager.

With a part-wheel, the bettor chooses one main horse to place first or second and several others to finish in the top-two next to that selection. For example, if Horse #8 stands out as the strongest runner while horses #2, #3, #5, and #7 look like quality contenders, the bettor can place a $2 quinella part-wheel covering all five runners.

In this case, the bettor would place a $2 quinella wheel on 8 with 2, 3, 5, and 7. This bet would cost $8 and win with any of the following finishes:

  • 8-2, 2-8
  • 8-3, 3-8
  • 8-5, 5-8
  • 8-8, 7-8

Quinella Wheel Vs. Quinella Box

The quinella wheel and quinella box function similarly, but the wheel is the better option for bettors with a particular horse in mind.

When bettors have identified one horse as the best candidate to finish first or second, the wheel is the better option because it is cheaper and still covers all or most outcomes involving that one horse.

Referring back to the example above, the quinella wheel on 8 with 2,3,5, and 7 involved five horses and cost a total of $8 because it was limited to outcomes involving horse #8. By comparison, a quinella box covering those same five horses would have cost $20 but covered more winning combinations.

A quinella box is the better choice for when bettors have identified multiple strong contenders but are unable to narrow it down much further than that. The quinella box covers more winning combinations, but it is also a more expensive wager.

A quinella wheel bet involves selecting a “key” horse to finish in one of the top two spots and combining it with additional runners. The quinella wheel bet wins when the key horse and one of the other selections finish in first and second place in any order. For example a quinella wheel on horse 1 with horses 2, 3, and 4 would win if horse 1 finishes in first or second and any of the other three horses finish in the remaining place.

A quinella wheel bet is cheaper than a quinella box but covers fewer winning combinations.

For example, a $2 quinella wheel on horse number 5 with horses 6, 7, and 8 would cost $6 and cover three possible winning combinations: 5-6, 5-7, or 5-8 taking first and second place in any order. In contrast, a $2 quinella box bet on horses 5, 6, 7, and 8 would cost $12 and cover six possible winning combinations: 5-6, 5-7, 5-8, 6-7, 6-8, and 7-8 in any order.

If a bettor likes a horse to place but does not have a feel for other runners, they might place a quinella wheel bet. This way, the backer has several outcomes involving their favorite horse that can give them an extra win above what a standard place bet pays. Additionally, a quinella wheel costs less than a quinella box because it covers fewer combinations.

Yes. Any dog or horse racing track that offers quinellas also offers quinella wheels. Fans can place quinella wheel bets online through licensed racebooks or in person at racetracks and off-track betting parlors.