Saturday outlook: Veterans' Handicap Chase rescheduled for waterlogged Warwick while Wetherby prospects 'slimmer than me' says clerk

The Unibet Veterans’ Handicap Chase has been rescheduled for Warwick on Saturday after last weekend’s fixture at Sandown was cancelled due to the weather.

The race, which will be worth £75,000 rather than the £100,000 it would have been run for at Sandown, will form part of a fixture that features the Classic Chase and the Grade 2 Hampton Novices’ Chase.

The going at Warwick was described on Tuesday as heavy, soft in places with areas of waterlogging. According to the Met Office, the forecast is for temperatures to drop below freezing overnight until the weekend.

Nine horses were set to contest last week’s Veterans’ Handicap Chase but new entries will be required by noon on Wednesday, with declarations taking place the following day.

Amy Starkey, managing director of Jockey Club Racecourses, owner of Warwick, said: "We were eager to find an appropriate alternative for the Unibet Veterans' Chase which is suitable for connections and we're grateful to everyone involved in helping to reschedule at the earliest possible opportunity.

“While the weather forecast for Warwick over the next few days remains challenging, we wanted to give the race every chance of taking place and hope that conditions allow it to go ahead.”

Weather latest:

• Saturday jumps fixtures could be moved as BHA considers schedule changes in face of severe winter weather 
• Catterick off and Newbury and Taunton midweek fixtures under threat as wintry weather continues to disrupt

Kempton: course is waterlogged in placesCredit: Edward Whitaker

Kempton remains waterlogged in places in advance of Saturday's jumps fixture, but conditions have improved since the weekend according to clerk of the course Barney Clifford.

"We still have standing water on the lake bend which is after 50mm of rain in the last seven days," Clifford said on Tuesday. "It’s improved since yesterday and has improved again since Sunday when there was about six inches of water there. 

"Snow is forecast tomorrow afternoon then a minus three [degrees] into a plus two, a minus four and then a plus two again after that. So that forecast doesn’t particularly help, but we’re going to give it every chance. The forecasts aren’t always correct and if we can keep some of the cloud cover then that is going to help keep those temperatures in. 

"I think it’ll be a case that horses are declared on Thursday and then it’s going to be a case of seeing how things are day by day from there."

The weather has been causing havoc for the racing schedule in Britain and Ireland since the end of last week, with a number of meetings cancelled in advance and on the day of racing.

In anticipation of further cancellations at the weekend, and to avoid a repeat of last Saturday’s blank day for ITV Racing, the BHA is preparing to make changes to the schedule.

The process of inspections and cancelling meetings has come under scrutiny since last weekend in light of Musselburgh calling off its fixture six minutes before racing started, while both Plumpton and Chepstow were unable to fulfil their meetings having initially passed checks.

Calls have been made to standardise when meetings are called off, but David Armstrong, chief executive of the Racecourse Association, said such a move would be a challenge due to the differing reasons for fixtures being cancelled.

He said: "The decision to abandon is never taken lightly and, should it be required, is done so with the safety of humans and equines firmly in mind. The methodology behind abandoning is multi-layered and is directed to us by cross-industry agreed protocol, which recognises that there can be unique circumstances behind each abandonment. In such circumstances, it is difficult to achieve genuine standardisation across all racecourses.

"The financial implications of abandoning a fixture are felt by multiple stakeholders: the racecourse, participants, fans, the local economy, bookmakers, broadcasters. The list goes on – clearly it is in nobody’s interest not to race, but the safety of any human or equine on the racecourse we will always be the industry’s priority."

The picture is looking bleak at Wetherby, where the track is scheduled to host a Saturday card featuring the William Hill Towton Novices' Chase. 

But clerk of the course Jonjo Sanderson is keeping his sense of humour about the situation, describing the meeting's prospects as "slimmer than me" in an update on Racing Admin.

It read: "Course still covered in snow, but also extensively flooded and frozen! Internal dykes have burst their banks, so the back straight is mostly under water, along with several other areas. Prospects are slimmer than me!"

Weather prospects at a glance

Tuesday
Hereford ABANDONED
Leicester ABANDONED
Wolverhampton Going standard

Wednesday
Taunton Going soft; inspection 7.30am Wednesday
Newcastle Going standard to slow
Kempton Going standard to slow

Thursday
Lingfield Going standard to slow
Newbury Going chase, soft, hurdles, heavy, soft in places; inspection 8.30am Wednesday
Chelmsford Going standard to slow
Catterick ABANDONED
Clonmel ABANDONED

Friday
Lingfield Going standard to slow
Huntingdon Going soft; inspection 8.30am Wednesday
Doncaster Track unraceable; inspection 8am Wednesday
Newcastle Going standard
Dundalk Going standard

Saturday
Warwick Going heavy, soft in places, waterlogged in areas
Wetherby Course covered in snow, but also extensively flooded and frozen
Kempton Course waterlogged in places
Fairyhouse Unfit for racing with parts of the track frozen
Newcastle Going standard
Wolverhampton Going standard

Read these next:

Saturday jumps fixtures could be moved as BHA considers schedule changes in face of severe winter weather  

No ITV Racing broadcast this afternoon as Sandown and Wincanton called off with Cork also lost to the weather 

Catterick off on Thursday; Newbury’s meeting on same day faces inspection on Wednesday when Taunton holds raceday check 

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