Is the mares' programme delivering results or just diluting the Cheltenham Festival?

One of the low points of this month's Cheltenham Festival for me was seeing yet another high-class mare sidestep a mouthwatering clash in a championship race in order to trounce inferior opposition in the Mares' Hurdle. Hopefully Lossiemouth won't try to emulate Quevega, who won the race six years on the bounce rather than challenging Big Buck's in the Stayers' Hurdle.

Prior to the meeting, there had been strong arguments made on both sides about whether the Cheltenham Festival ought to include mares' races. Lossiemouth's victory meant that the fears of all those against these races came to pass – her presence in the Mares’ Hurdle meant we had yet another one-sided Grade 1 and her absence from the Champion took away greatly from what proved to be a most disappointing running (the worst on Racing Post Ratings in more than 30 years).

On the other hand, I've read good cases for the inclusion of the mares' races because of their role in achieving the BHA's stated aims of increasing the number of mares in training in Britain, and incentivising and encouraging a more positive approach to the breeding, buying, owning and training of jumps mares.