'We're still in recovery mode' - Julie Harrington outlines 2022 fixture plans

BHA chief executive Julie Harrington has said the 2022 fixture list, which is due to be published this coming week, will be similar in size to this year.

The pandemic caused a delay in the publication of this year's list, but when it was confirmed in February it contained 1,486 meetings, a total that has topped 1,500 in some years.

Speaking on Luck On Sunday, Harrington said: "In terms of 2022, we're still in recovery mode and we shouldn't forget that. We're recovering from a pandemic and we'll be putting on a fixture list, in terms of numbers, that is much as we are this year.

"Fixtures are only half of the story, the next challenge is to work with our constituency, the racecourses and the horseman, in terms of the race programme that sits within those fixtures."

The issue of small fields was brought into sharp focus last month when an analysis of BHA data revealed more races with five runners or fewer have been contested this year than at any point in the last quarter of a century.

"We're seeing underperforming races and it's about understanding why that is," said Harrington. "It's not all year, it's certain times of the year. There have been some innovations this year with the investment in the Racing League and some big Sunday races. That inevitably is taking up some of the horse population and available runners and we might be seeing underperforming races in the week that follows."

Everyone's a winner: but Racing League's inclusion in the 2022 fixture list is still to be confirmedCredit: Andrew Parker (Grossick Racing)

The first edition of the £2 million Racing League came to a close after six weeks this month and Harrington revealed its inclusion in next year's fixture list has not been rubber-stamped.

"We're still having conversations [with the Racing League]," she said. "The fixture dates are going to be published next week, but there are still some details around what's going to be happening within those dates."

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