Aintree Grand National could be a race in a million
The Aintree spectacular next April will be worth £600,000 - £100,000 more than last year - on a Saturday card worth £935,000.
‘‘We are well on our way to achieving our objective of a £1 million National which, all being well, we will achieve by 2007 at the latest,’’ Aintree’s managing director Charles Barnett announced yesterday.
Nigel Twiston-Davies, whose Bindaree has sights set on a repeat of his memorable 2002 triumph, said: ‘‘This is fantastic news for owners and trainers alike and Aintree must be congratulated on the great race programme.
‘‘A £1 million National is something we could never have envisaged and this prize money level is bound to attract even more and more top class horses to the meeting.’’
There will be a record prize money of £1,930,000 at the three-day Aintree meeting - an increase of 17 per cent on last year.
Said Barnett: ‘‘We are delighted to announce that we now have five races, in addition to the Martell Grand National, where the total prize fund exceeds £100,000 and these include the Martell Cup, the Martell Melling Chase and the Martell Aintree Hurdle which are all increased by £30,000 to £150,000.’’
The Aintree executive have decided against revising conditions for the Grand national despite controversy last spring when Ian Balding’s Moor Lane and Ginger McCain’s Amberleigh House were unable to run having been allocated insufficient weight in February. ‘‘We have considered several options. These included the introduction of wild cards, penalties for victories following the publication of the weights, automatic entry for placed horses in the Tote Becher Chase and a possible later entry and weights date.
‘‘We have concluded that to introduce revised conditions just to ensure a particular horse or perhaps two horses get a run is not the best way forward.”
Debate also surrounded the fairness of the balloting procedures when over 40 horses stood their ground at the 48-hour declaration stage this April.
After discussion within the industry, it has been decided that when more than one horse has been allocated the same weight in February (there being no penalties applicable for the National), the rating of the horse at the time of the 48-hour declaration stage will be the deciding factor.
This will ensure that the higher rated horses will be allowed to run in the race if the ballot comes into play.
Meanwhile, Bindaree returns to the scene of his famous triumph this weekend when he tackles the giant fences once again by contesting the Tote Becher Chase at Aintree on Sunday.
The nine-year-old looked a picture this morning as he galloped up trainer Nigel Twiston-Davies’s stiff all-weather gallop in front of the eagle-eyed of hoards of journalists who descended on the trainer’s yard at the launch of this season’s Aintree spectacular.
He was joined by former stable mate Earth Summit who won the big race in 1998 before following up in the Becher, together with big race jockeys Jim Culloty and Carl Llewellyn.
Bindaree had a hurdles pipe opener at Wetherby earlier this month and is pleasing his trainer in the build-up to Sunday’s race.
‘‘He’s in good form,’’ the trainer smiled.
‘‘Sunday might be his day and I’m very hopeful.’’
‘‘After Sunday, he’ll go for the Welsh National, then the De Vere at Haydock before the National. However, if he wins everything by miles we might have to have a rethink.’’
Lavinia Taylor is optimistic that Gingembre will still make the line-up for the Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup on Saturday week despite scoping badly yesterday.
The eight-year-old made a most encouraging reappearance when third to Marlborough at Wetherby earlier this month after 19 months on the sidelines.
Gingembre, a 14-1 shot with Coral, was runner-up to Kings Road in the Newbury feature two years ago and went on to lift the Gala Group Scottish Grand National the following spring.
This news came shortly after Hughie Morrison revealed that Frenchman’s Creek was out for the season because of a strained tendon.
The eight-year-old had been one of the 10-1 co-favourites with Coral for the Hennessy.
Elsewhere, the British Horseracing Board has expressed disappointment that British newspapers are threatening to axe racecards after the proposed massive increases in charges for the data.
‘‘We have stressed repeatedly that the proposed rates we have circulated represent only our view of the value of the data we provide, that we want to talk to the newspapers and that we are open to negotiation,’’ said BHB communications manager Alan Delmonte .
‘‘The Board reaffirmed this policy at its monthly meeting last week and we are now holding meetings with newspapers. We are only at the start of what we intend to be a positive process.
‘‘Against this background, it will be very disappointing if newspapers - bearing in mind that they aren’t being asked to pay anything more until next year - choose to drop racecards now, which would be against the interests of their readers who value this information highly.’’
The Sun yesterday omitted the names of race sponsors and are considering leaving out racecards on tomorrow.
‘‘The increase in charge from £3,000 to £340,000 is ridiculous and something we are not certainly prepared to pay,’’ said The Sun’s racing editor Damian Walker.
Tomorrow's meeting at Gowran Park was abandoned following a morning inspection yesterday.
