Fontwell Park was founded by Alfred Day who trained racehorses at The Hermitage, by the Chichester to Arundel road, from 1887.

Day returned the name Fontwell to common use after researching the history of the area, and by 1924 he had purchased enough land to open the racecourse.

The feature race of the season at Fontwell Park is the Grade Two National Spirit Hurdle run over a distance of two miles and four furlongs in February.

My Way de Solzen, trained by Alan King, won the race in 2006 before winning the World Hurdle.

A new £6.5m Grandstand opened in the Premier Enclosure in August 2010 sponsored by events and plant hire company Winner Group.