Racehorses carrying the No1 cloth win more races than any other nag, new figures revealed yesterday.
A detailed analysis of results from 9,500 races in the UK during 2010 revealed No1 wins on 15 per cent of occasions.
It also emerged there is no such thing as a lucky No 7, with the hapless horse accounting for 20 per cent of all disqualifications throughout the season.
And more jockeys are unseated by horses wearing the No 3 than on any other number.
The figures were produced by experts at Racing for Change, who also revealed the average field size for all races in 2010 was 9.6 horses.
A spokesman said: "If you're superstitious and bet on the basis of lucky numbers then you could be on a loser.
"It's puzzling that No 1 should do so well.
"In many races horses are listed alphabetically so names starting with 'A' carry the No 1 cloth.
"In handicaps it's different with the No 1 horse carrying the heaviest weight since he's judged to be the one with the most ability. But lumbered with top weight should slow him down.
"Backers of 'lucky number 7' would be collecting their winnings on less than one in ten occasions.
"Superstitious punters would also be wise to steer clear of horse No 13. Only six per cent of the nags that carry this number cloth win their race.
"In Chinese culture, the number 8 is thought to be the luckiest since the word also means 'prosperity' or 'wealth' in Mandarin.
"However, orientals could save themselves a small fortune by not backing this number blindly.
"The most unfortunate number for the Chinese is four because it has a similar pronunciation to the word 'death'.
"In fact, it's so unpopular that some high-rise buildings in Hong Kong omit the entire number four from their elevator buttons.
"But it's no kiss of death to back the No 4 horse, he wins on 12 per cent of the occasions that he runs.
"The wonderful uncertainty of racing is that things do go wrong, favourites get beaten and shocks happen.
"In our data, two per cent of the runners met with misfortune so never tear up your betting slip until the race is over and the result official."
The report which took six weeks to compile also found in terms of things going wrong such as falling, unseating the rider, being brought down, refusing or slipping up in a race, the No2 horse was the unluckiest during the year.
On 194 occasions No 2 suffered a fate which took away any chance of winning.
Horses carrying the No 12 number cloth seem to avoid trouble more frequently than the rest.
The spokesman added: "If you fancy a flutter but are not sure which horse to back then stick to one golden rule, go for the low numbers and particularly No 1, No 2 or No 3. Between them, they account for over 40 per cent of all the winners.
"In contrast, horses carrying the No 20 number cloth get beaten on 97 per cent of the occasions that they race."
RUNNERS, RIDERS AND FALLERS
- Most likely to win: 1
- Most likely to be disqualified: 7
- Most likely to fall: 2
- Number of horse most likely to unseat its rider: 3
- Most likely to avoid trouble: 12
