Racing disrupted by adverse weather conditions

Wet conditions throughout the country look set to disrupt jump racing for the rest of the week at least.

Today’s fixture at Hereford was called off due to waterlogging this morning and tomorrow’s two National Hunt fixtures at Newcastle and Exeter are subject to precautionary inspections at 7.30am.

Lingfield’s meeting on Thursday is already in doubt with an inspection called for 3pm on Tuesday, while Sandown need an improvement for their Friday and Saturday cards to go ahead.

Racing at Stratford next Monday is also under threat after the River Avon burst its banks, putting the course under a foot of water in places.

“Every building on the course has been affected and the track is completely unraceable at present,” said clerk of the course Stephen Lambert.

“There will be an official announcement within the next 24 hours.”

Newcastle officials remain optimistic about Tuesday’s card after the course dried out a little – but rain is forecast overnight.

“We could get anything between three and six millimetres between 10pm and 6am tomorrow,” said clerk of the course James Armstrong.

“We are optimistic and can move things around to miss out the last hurdle down the back straight, the cross hurdle and fence nine to go around the wettest ground.”

The going at Gosforth Park is described as heavy, soft in places.

The going at Exeter is heavy and clerk of the course Barry Johnson is concerned by the threat of more rain.

He said: “We had 23 millimetres of rain on Sunday but it was dry overnight and we were raceable on Monday.

“The worry is the forecast for more rain tonight, with anywhere between half an inch and an inch.

“We can take half an inch but I wouldn’t really want to see any more than that.”

Should racing take place, two hurdles and the open ditch in the back straight will be omitted.

The going at both of Wednesday’s jumps meetings at Catterick and Fontwell is described as soft, heavy in places but prospects for Lingfield on Thursday are not good.

Neil MacKenzie-Ross, clerk of the course at the Surrey venue, said: “After the 28 millimetres of rain we’ve had since last Thursday and with a further 20 millimetres forecast tonight and tomorrow, it’s difficult to be optimistic.

“It’s best to take a view as early as possible and we’ll give it every chance, as ever.

“But to be totally honest, it’s hard to be optimistic about our prospects with this forecast.”

Sandown was not raceable today with parts of the track waterlogged following three-quarters of an inch of rain over the weekend and the forecast for racing on Friday and Saturday is “not encouraging”.

“You wouldn’t be racing with us at the moment, frankly,” said clerk of the course Andrew Cooper.

“We had about three-quarters of an inch of rain over the weekend. Sunday was very wet and you can count on the fingers of one hand the amount of dry days we’ve had in the last 10 days.

“We’ve had getting on for three inches of rain as a whole in that period.

“We have waterlogging in several areas and it has the makings of an unsettled week with further spells of rain, most notably tonight, so we’re not in brilliant shape to be honest.

“A couple of dry days and we could be raceable but the trouble is there is no encouragement that we are going to see that this week.

“It’s not an encouraging forecast for the week as a whole. Almost any day apart from Thursday appears to have the threat of rain, some of which could be heavy, amongst it.

“Although we are hoping to see some sort of dry spell this week, it doesn’t look likely.”

The going is described as soft, heavy in places on the chase course and heavy, soft in places on the hurdle course and waterlogged in places.

The meeting features the Grand Military Gold Cup on Friday and the Sunderlands Imperial Cup on Saturday.