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Make it 5 days and add a 2m4f grade 1 hurdle and a novice handicap
6 races a day, all on terrestrial tv
I want to see the best horses running over their best trip
Without the ryanair for instance we would not have seen one of the best performances in recent memory in Allahos demolition job.
Personally I think they need to look at the fixture list
Cheltenham and Aintree are too close together
And races like the ascot chase are too close to Cheltenham
The irish do a way better job of spreading out their big meetings and consequently get better racing
Whereas we’ve had dashel drasher and riders onthe storm as the last two winners of the ascot chase
After covid the sport needs all the money it can get and the loss in revenue by reducing the festival to 3 days would be incredibly stupid
Cheltenham would be better as a 2 day festival of grade 1s of open company and novices. The best of the best.
It’s diluted too much already and is nothing more than a commercial money making exercise full of crap with some good stuff mixed in.
Of course they will never reduce the festival and increase the over all quality as there is too much money to be made by stretching it out.
For me the festival should not have handicaps and should not have pantomime races such as the cross country if you want to truly call it the pinnacle of NH racing then make it just that. It’s a commercial farce and is far too watered down already.
An intermediate Grade 1 Hurdle means long odds-on favourites becoming common place in the supposedly “Champion” Hurdle and Stayers Hurdle, FF. Just aren’t the top class hurdlers to go around.
Running a massive risk of a “Champion Hurdle” and Stayers Hurdle being of the same standard as any other Grade 1, ie Not Championship events.
There are very few 2m4f top class hurdlers who are not effective at either 2 or 3 miles.
In time you may get more horses remaining over hurdles, but that in turn is to the detriment of the chasing game. Shortening odds in that sphere too.
Value Is EverythingI quite like the idea of the Veterans Race as a Pertemps-style qualifier through the season.
I would:
– Get rid of all the mares’ races as they take away from the championship events.
– Bring back the handicap for novice chasers.
– Make the National Hunt Chase an event for professional jockeys.Wouldn’t change much else and am happy with the four days. I never get the fuss about the four days! The Flat manages to sustain a number of decent festivals of this length, and the Jumps can more than hold its own in this regard. Calling some of the existing races “crap” truly baffles me. I would love to own a horse that was “crap” enough to be competitive in any of them!
Re the mares, I have no objection with having some championship mares’ events at some other point of these season, just not at the Festival!
In terms of the Grade 1 races, I think a case could be made for the removal of the below (I know it will never happen):
Marsh Novice Chase – bring back the novice handicap chase but without the ratings limit. If you are determined to run over 2m 4f then either give weight away in that or go to Fairyhouse for the Grade 1 there. This race not only dilutes the Arkle and RSA but also the Fairyhouse race.
Ryanair – as with the above, if you are that determined to run over the intermediate trip, go to Aintree for the Melling. This would benefit the CC and GC, and also the Aintree festival. The last two renewals of the Melling only had 6 runners in each.
Albert Bartlett – I would keep the Ballymore at 2m 5f as the race for the staying novices. This is something the Dublin Racing Festival has spot on imo with 2m and 2m 6f novice hurdles.
I love Cheltenham as much as the next person but there doesn’t have to be a championship race over all distances for all divisions at Cheltenham – there are other race meetings. A reduction in the number of races at Cheltenham would not only be a positive for Cheltenham and imo improve it, but would also improve the other meetings around it.
Definitely. Racing needs to start distancing itself from the term ‘National Hunt’. Times have changed / are changing.
BUY THE SUN
So we need to stop calling it National Hunt because some snowflakes will be offended?? Ridiculous
Its more than “Snowflakes” who are appalled by a ‘hobby’ of chasing and ripping beautiful foxes to pieces. Its also illegal in England, Scotland, and Wales.
BUY THE SUN
I certainly think the dropping of the word “Foxhunters” was a wise move by Cheltenham, and agree that changing from “National Hunt” to “the Jumps” more widely would be sensible too. Aside from the hunting connotations, its meaning is not very clear unless unless you know it already. It’s too obscure.
Saying all that, the sport of course has its roots in hunting, and I don’t think we should be ignoring this or erasing the past. I’m actually in favour of keeping the hunter chase at the Festival. If the name is thought to be too unpalatable nowadays, it could be called the “point-to-pointers’ chase” or something like that.
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