How Racing Payouts Work in ZED Champions

In ZED Champions, racing isn’t just about crossing the finish line first, it’s about playing the economy, understanding risk and reward, and knowing when a 'win' doesn't mean profit. Here’s how race payouts work, and what every player needs to know to race smarter.

Every race in ZED Champions features eight horses, matched automatically by their current standing on the Matchmaking Leaderboard. When the dust settles, finish points are awarded as follows: 1st gets 55 points, 2nd gets 17, 3rd gets 8, 4th loses 6, 5th loses 14, 6th loses 17, 7th loses 20, and 8th loses 23.

These points affect your horse’s leaderboard position, which in turn impacts matchmaking and progression. So even if you’re not placing top three, every race still matters.

Every horse starts with a Racing Balance set at 50% of its breeding price. Up to 10% of that balance is automatically staked in each race. Win races, and the balance grows. Lose races, and it shrinks.

You don’t need to manage staking manually. Each time your horse races, up to 10% of its current Racing Balance is automatically staked.
Those stakes are pooled, but not equally. Horses with higher balances risk more and that’s where side pots come in.

To keep things fair, ZED Champions groups horses into side pots based on how much they’ve staked. Each side pot acts as its mini-race.

If two horses are in a pot, it’s winner-takes-all.
In a pot of three, the top two are paid.
With four or more, the top three finishers earn a payout.

Your horse can be in more than one pot, and it’s your position within those pots, not the overall race, that determines your payout.

Yes, and that’s one of the most important dynamics in ZED Champions.

Because each pot pays independently, a horse finishing fifth overall could still walk away with a profit if it ranked high in a valuable side pot. On the flip side, a horse finishing second overall might lose money if it underperformed in its key pots. The overall race position doesn’t always tell the full story.

It’s not just where you finish, it’s what you staked and who you were up against.

Winning is only part of the equation. The real gains come from winning the right pots.. Your Racing Balance determines your stake, your stake determines which pots you’re in, and your standing in each pot determines your return.

Higher-balance horses have access to larger pots but they’re also taking bigger risks. If you want to climb the leaderboard and grow your Racing Balance, you’ll need more than speed. You’ll need strategy.

Race smart. Stake wisely. And always, always know your pots.