Horseracing Betting Briefing January 10 to January 16: Thank heavens for Polytrack

General / Andrew Hughes / 09 January 2010 / Leave a Comment

The parade ring at Ascot

"The jumps courses at Kempton, Warwick and Wetherby are all currently afflicted by snow and ice, but if they can get underway, there is some interesting racing in prospect for Saturday."

With most of the country turned into a giant skating rink, racing prospects for the next seven days are looking rather thin, with only the all-weather tracks offering respite for race-starved punters. Andrew Hughes talks us through what is left of the racing calendar for the week ahead.

There are some rather chunky snowflakes falling past my window as I write this and it does not appear that the weather gods have quite finished with us yet, with many racing fixtures for next week already written off and most courses reporting a generous covering of the white stuff. This week's racing preview therefore contains a fair dollop of optimism amongst the meteorological information, but frustrated punters can always have a dabble in Betfair's 'Will Racing Go Ahead?' markets, where, for example, you can find odds of [23.0] that Doncaster's Wednesday meeting will go ahead.

Sunday January 10

Hereford's card has already been lost so it is down to Southwell to keep the racing show on the road. Though the action today is only modest fare, the Nottinghamshire course deserve a lot of credit for getting last Tuesday's meeting underway in extremely difficult conditions.

Monday January 11

Ayr and Taunton have been abandoned so only Kempton and Wolverhampton are scheduled to race, though the latter course was forced to abandon Friday's meeting due to ice, so fingers crossed that they can get underway.

Tuesday January 12

Newcastle has already been lost, which leaves us with Lingfield, Southwell and possibly Leicester. The Midlands course is due to hold an inspection on Saturday afternoon, though prospects are not good. If by some miracle, racing were to go ahead, it would be worth checking out the Jelson Homes Quality House Builders Since 1889 Chase, a race that might feature Herecomesthetruth, Paul Nicholls' promising youngster, who made such a good start to his chasing career at Down Royal before coming a cropper in the Peterborough last time.

Wednesday January 13

Kelso has been abandoned and Doncaster is somewhat icebound, though they are due to hold an inspection on Monday lunchtime. If they do race, the Powell Engineering Handicap Chase is worth a look. Amongst the entries are Donaldson, Jonjo O'Neill's progressive chaser and Leo's Lucky Star from the David Pipe stable, an impressive winner on chase debut at Warwick.

Elsewhere today, there is racing at Kempton, Lingfield and Southwell, where the meeting is given over to National Hunt Flat races, something of a novelty but an excellent idea that might help reduce over-subscription for such races when the weather finally relents.

Thursday January 14

Towcester is currently under five inches of snow, but Catterick can top that with eight inches and they are due to inspect at Monday lunchtime. If racing does take place at the Yorkshire course, their best race is the North Yorkshire Grand National Handicap Chase, an event that should be a real slog for some out and out stayers.

Thursday's all-weather action comes from Lingfield, Southwell and Wolverhampton, where the Bet Masters Snooker Conditions Stakes over one-mile-and-half-a-furlong is worth a look. Amongst the entries is Tom Tate's interesting horse Balcarce Nov, who impressed in a couple of decent handicaps in late summer.

Friday January 15

Southwell, Wolverhampton and Lingfield are all racing today and if some of the ice has receded, there might be action from Huntingdon, where the current going description is the unusual good to soft (frozen in places). Pick of the Huntingdon action is probably the Brampton Novices' Chase over two-and-a-half-miles. Musselburgh are also due to race and host an interesting contest for juveniles, the Scottish Triumph Hurdle Trial.

Saturday January 16

The jumps courses at Kempton, Warwick and Wetherby are all currently afflicted by snow and ice, but if they can get underway, there is some interesting racing in prospect for Saturday. Warwick host their best card of the year, headlined by the Leamington Novices' Hurdle, a Grade Two event that may not attract a big field but is sure to include one or two highly promising young animals. There is also the Pertemps Handicap Hurdle, a staying handicap that should be keenly fought and the last heat of the day, Listed National Hunt Flat race, one of the better such contests in the calendar.

Kempton's card also looks a solid affair, with the pick of the racing undoubtedly the Lanzarote Hurdle, a long established betting event that is sure to be highly competitive and feature the usual mix of hardened handicappers and progressive younger types from the top stables.