Dismal Newcastle prize-money adds fuel to a fire - and BHA chair race takes unexpected twist
It is hard to believe any sport has participants who engage more with the politics of their sport than racing. We learned on Saturday one high-profile trainer wants a certain former Westminster politician to lead the sport. That is not going to happen – and based on Saturday's Newcastle card, racing's participants are not going to be any less animated in their quest for greater transparency.
The Saturday just gone was different to any other in the calendar. As part of the two-year premierisation trial, only three meetings are permitted to be staged between 2pm and 4pm on the majority of Saturdays. The rule has been applied to all Saturdays on which a Group 1 race is programmed, the single exception being King George day. When owners and trainers looked at the prize-money available at the Arena Racing Company-owned Newcastle, the break from the norm must have looked unfathomably strange.
Ascot's card was worth a total of £1.77 million. York, the afternoon's second ITV fixture, offered £336,000 for its seven races, while Chester's purse pot reached £145,000. In stark contrast, Newcastle paid out just £51,000.
Read the full story
Read award-winning journalism from the best writers in racing, with exclusive news, interviews, columns, investigations, stable tours and subscriber-only emails.
Subscribe to unlock
- Racing Post digital newspaper (worth over £100 per month)
- Award-winning journalism from the best writers in racing
- Expert tips from the likes of Tom Segal and Paul Kealy
- Replays and results analysis from all UK and Irish racecourses
- Form study tools including the Pro Card and Horse Tracker
- Extensive archive of statistics covering horses, trainers, jockeys, owners, pedigree and sales data
Already a subscriber?Log in
Published on inLee Mottershead
Last updated
Copy- Racing's failure to promote Premier racedays is embarrassing - and underlines why help from bookmakers is needed
- JP McManus was right to raise the subject of transparency - and here's my solution to his worry about weights
- No-one has ever emerged from the womb wearing a trilby - racing's future survival hangs on pursuing a young audience
- Restrictions and the black market: surely the time has come for bookmakers to confront the link between them
- Plummeting betting turnover leaves British racing in a precarious state - whatever the sales numbers might suggest
- Racing's failure to promote Premier racedays is embarrassing - and underlines why help from bookmakers is needed
- JP McManus was right to raise the subject of transparency - and here's my solution to his worry about weights
- No-one has ever emerged from the womb wearing a trilby - racing's future survival hangs on pursuing a young audience
- Restrictions and the black market: surely the time has come for bookmakers to confront the link between them
- Plummeting betting turnover leaves British racing in a precarious state - whatever the sales numbers might suggest