The 2024 fixture list is set for a shake up after the British Horseracing Authority board approved a number of changes, with a ‘premier’ racing tier to be introduced, along with restricted action at a peak period on most Saturday afternoons and a trial of Sunday evening meetings.
Several “core principles” established as part of British racing’s cross industry strategy are at the heart of the planned reforms, with the aim to grow “the sport’s reach, appeal to new fanbases and better engage existing customers”, with the changes representing the “vital first step in longer-term improvements to the structure, funding and promotion of the racing product”.
Adjustments will be implemented and assessed over an initial two-year period.
A new ‘premier’ tier will be introduced, boasting higher prize-money and top-quality racing, with a two-hour “shop window” period – usually 2-4pm – established on most Saturday afternoons. That period will be restricted to three meetings, including up to two ‘premier’ cards, with other Saturday fixtures scheduled to start after the window ends or, on occasions, before it opens.
Sunday racing has also come under the microscope, with plans to create new ‘premier’ fixtures on Sunday afternoons as well as trialling six evening floodlit fixtures between January and March next year, during a time of the week where “betting activity tends to be strong”.
Those six fixtures will be spread between Kempton, Southwell, Chelmsford, Newcastle and Wolverhampton – the five floodlit UK tracks – with meetings moved from midweek slots.
The BHA is also keen to boost the “core racing” product, which involves moving fixtures to later in the day and “making the most of our core fixtures during major festivals and supporting summer jumping”.
A total of 300 jumps races – equating to around 20 meetings – will be removed across the year, with the summer jumping break increased from 12 to 19 days. There will be no reduction in Flat races, but around 200 races will be moved into the autumn and early winter period from other points of the year.
Joe Saumarez Smith, chair of the BHA, said: “The BHA board endorsed and approved these recommendations because it was clear to us that they were necessary and in the best interests of the sport.
“The information that was presented by the sport’s commercial committee included detailed consideration of both the upside and downside of all proposals. This allowed the board to make its decisions based on the complete picture.
“It is inevitable that not all parties agree with all proposals. But it was for this reason that the new governance structure was agreed by the industry, so that difficult decisions can be made and there can be progress in the best interests of the whole sport.
“The changes will be tested over an initial two-year period and will be closely evaluated to see how well they work, with the aim of permanently adopting the things that have been a success.
“I would like to thank the commercial committee, and everyone who has been involved in this process, for their work to date. It has been a truly collaborative, cross-industry effort.”
Julie Harrington, chief executive of the BHA, added: “When the industry’s leaders came together in autumn last year, we agreed unanimously that innovation in the way the sport is presented is an absolute necessity.
“The core principles approved by the BHA Board were identified as the most time sensitive area and the foundation of our wider approach.
“There is still a huge amount to do as we seek to grow and future-proof British racing, but the development of a fixture list that seeks to attract new fans and grow the appeal of our sport to existing customers represents an important first step.”
Arrest expected to make his mark as a four-year-old
Kieran Shoemark is relishing stepping into the boots of Frankie Dettori aboard Arrest, as the St Leger runner-up makes his return in the Dubai Duty Free Finest Surprise Stakes at Newbury.
Arrest played a key role in Dettori’s UK swansong last season and was a beaten favourite for the Italian’s final Derby ride at Epsom, before just failing to send the 53-year-old off in a blaze of Classic glory when second to Continuous at Doncaster in September.
Shoemark was three places behind Arrest with Gregory on Town Moor, but having taken the reins aboard many of John and Thady Gosden’s star Clarehaven inmates since the relocation of Dettori to California, he will get the leg-up aboard Arrest for the first time on Saturday afternoon.
The 28-year-old hopes the soft-ground loving colt can build on his positive finish to last season and feels there is plenty of improvement to be seen during his four-year-old campaign.
“He’s obviously a big horse and hopefully he’s going to improve with age,” said Shoemark.
“Hopefully the ground is not going to dry out too much at Newbury and we know he wants soft ground.
“His run in the Leger was brilliant – the ground went against me on Gregory, but he enjoyed it. He’s a proper mile-and-a-half horse, not short of speed by all means, and the softer the better for him.
“He’s a big, strapping horse and I honestly believe he will get better with age. He’s entitled to, so there will be plenty to look forward to for the year ahead.”
As well as winning the Chester Vase, Arrest’s other victory last term came at Newbury in the Geoffrey Freer Stakes and joint-trainer Thady Gosden is confident the race more commonly known as the John Porter is the ideal spot to kick-start the son of Frankel’s season.
“He’s a very talented horse, he ran great last year and was second in a Classic,” he said.
“He’s developed very well over the winter and is a horse of great size and quality and he’s really filled into his frame and has been really pleasing leading into this race.
“He doesn’t mind getting his toe in at all and the track and trip should suit.”
Arrest will be in receipt of 3lb from William Haggas’ Hamish, who went through 2023 unbeaten, winning on four occasions, all at Group Three level.
Hamish is one of two in the race for the Somerville Lodge handler alongside Mujtaba, but main hopes lie with the stable stalwart, who is owned by the trainer’s father, Brian, and got the better of Karl Burke’s Al Qareem on his final start of last year in the rearranged St Simon Stakes.
The Spigot Lodge-trained five-year-old is another slated to concede weight to Arrest and his trainer is excited to get Al Qareem back on track.
Burke said: “I’m looking forward to seeing him run and he’s been ready to run for the last month.
“He’s working well, a mile and a half is his minimum trip, but on this ground I’m happy to start him off there.
“He’ll step up and be a good one-mile-six and two-mile horse later in the year. It’ll be a tough race, but I think he’ll run really well.
“We were lucky to keep him and he got travel sickness coming back (from Dubai). He’s hard work at home, Danielle Mooney rides him every day and he pulls her arms out every day, but he’s a lovely horse to have.”
Simon and Ed Crisford’s Chesspiece was behind Arrest when sixth in the Leger before finishing off his season with a silver medal in the Listed Noel Murless Stakes at Ascot.
He makes his first start after being gelded in the royal blue of Godolphin, while Andrew Balding’s Alsakib steps out of handicap company after finishing last year on a real high on home soil.
Max Vega won this in 2022 and having finished third last season, returns for a third crack, while trainer Ralph Beckett is also represented by Salt Bay.
Last year’s Irish Derby fourth Peking Opera makes his first Flat outing for Gary Moore, having been seen juvenile hurdling this winter, with Jack Channon’s Certain Lad completing the line-up.
Maximus respect for Grand National hero at homecoming parade
It is likely to be the Cheltenham Gold Cup rather than a Grand National repeat that is on the agenda for I Am Maximus next season, as Willie Mullins sees his Aintree hero as the perfect candidate for the Cheltenham Festival blue riband.
It is barely a month since Galopin Des Champs enjoyed receiving the adulation of the locals after providing the master of Closutton with his fourth Gold Cup triumph and I Am Maximus appears set to be trained with the Cotswolds in mind as it was his turn to be paraded through the streets of Leighlinbridge in County Carlow on Tuesday evening.
The eight-year-old was sent off the 7-1 joint favourite for the Aintree showpiece after impressing in the Bobbyjo Chase in February and provided the perennial Irish champion with his second victory in the world’s most famous steeplechase, 19 years after he triumphed with Hedgehunter in 2005.
However, it may have to be one of his stablemates who bids to mark the 20th anniversary of that first National success with another win in Liverpool, as I Am Maximus is set to join Mullins’ swelling Gold Cup hand that includes the likes of dual winner Galopin Des Champs and high-class novice Fact To File.
“I Am Maximus is definitely a Gold Cup horse and I couldn’t see much point in going back to Aintree again,” said Mullins.
“I’ll be training him for the Gold Cup anyway.”
Mullins also gave his seal of approval to the array of alterations to the Merseyside race, which led to no fallers and the highest number of finishers since 2005 – with all of the handler’s eight-strong team leaving Aintree unscathed.
“We live in different times and nothing stays the same, everything changes,” continued Mullins.
“When you go back many years ago, the National was dead on its feet and Aintree was going to be sold and it was saved.
“You have to change and go with the present day. Today, we have a £1million National and there was a huge amount of people going to Aintree over the three days and it was special what they did – and there will be the odd tweaks and turns every now and then.”
I Am Maximus was given a masterful ride by Paul Townend, who became the first man in 94 years to win the Champion Hurdle, Cheltenham Gold Cup and Grand National in the same season.
However, the son of Authorized’s seven-and-a-half-length romp over Delta Work also put Mullins in pole position to create his own piece of history and become the first Irish-based handler since the great Vincent O’Brien in the 1950s to claim the UK jumps trainers’ championship.
The 67-year-old has got a multitude of entries for Ayr’s two-day Scottish Grand National meeting, as he attempts to beat Dan Skelton and Paul Nicholls to the title, and is set to be mob-handed in the £200,000 feature after confirming a possible six runners for the four-mile marathon.
“It’s never been an ambition because one does not have those ambitions, they are not real,” he said of his tittle bid.
“We find ourselves in this position and hopefully we will go close and I suppose now that we are so near, you want it more when you are so near.
“We’ve done lots of entries and I would say Mr Incredible will run and Macdermott will run in the big one at Ayr and hopefully we will have two or three to go with them.
“At this point in time, we’ve just got plenty of entries and we will see how the horses are during the week before we send them on their way.”
Daryl Jacob finished for the season due to injury
Daryl Jacob will not return to action for the end of the jumps season as he continues to recover from a broken collarbone.
The jockey, who is one of the most experienced in the weighing room, fell along with Henry Daly’s Moon Hunter in late March and incurred the injury.
He has since had to sit out as horses owned by Simon Munir and Isaac Souede, to whom he is a retained rider, have gone on to win in his absence.
That absence will last a little longer than initially thought and Jacob will not be able to return to the saddle before the season is out.
He told sportinglife.com: “Because of the nature of the break, and where it is, I need to go back (to the specialist) again in three weeks.
“The injury is healing but is going to take a little longer than I originally hoped.
“I’ve been working hard in the gym to try and get ready but now I need to have a quiet week and then get going again.
“It’s frustrating but I’m going to give it all the time it needs and will be raring to go once I’ve been given the green light.”
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