Newton Abbot’s Season Start Delayed as Fixture is Called Off Eight Days in Advance

The cancellation of next Tuesday’s meeting follows the loss of a fixture on March 30 as the Devon jumps track continues to be waterlogged. Experienced clerk of the course Jason Loosemore stated last month that the track conditions were caused by the “wettest times” he can remember and further rain had not improved the situation.

With a more positive forecast, it is hoped the racecourse will be raceable for its next fixture on May 8. Loosemore stated on Monday that there has been a lot of rain since Easter Monday and the track is in no different position than before.

However, the forecast seems to be turning more favorable, and there is hope that the conditions will improve by Thursday. It is an improving forecast, but there is still a long way to go.

The decision has been made to proceed as the weather outlook is better, and it is believed that by May 8, the track should be good to go. The ground is currently heavy, and there are showers forecasted in advance of raceday.

Three races from the Saturday’s abandoned Go North Finals card at Kelso have been rescheduled to the track’s future fixtures by the British Horseracing Authority (BHA). The Go North Cab On Target Hurdle Final will take place at the track’s next meeting on Monday, while the Go North Cab On Target Hurdle Final and Herring Queen Mares Novices’ Hurdle will be added to its May 8 meeting with prize-money halved to £50,000.

Conditions will be monitored to determine if Bellewstown’s Sunday jumps meeting can go ahead. In the meantime, an all-weather Flat card at Dundalk will replace the lost fixture on Saturday evening, and a turf meeting has been added to the calendar at Naas next Tuesday.

Clerk of the course Lorcan Wyer has stated that parts of the track at Bellewstown are currently unfit for racing due to a sustained period of unsettled weather and heavy rain. Where raceable, the ground is soft to heavy, heavy in places.