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A 6F Conditions Race (£250k guaranteed with no penalties) will now start the day off (entries to be made Monday) – is this the BHA’s opening salvo to test the waters for perhaps switching something like the Middle Park or even today’s Dewhurst onto the card further down the line?
I doubt anyone ever thought that the Champion Stakes would ever be moved away from HQ (before it actually was), so should Newmarket be concerned about this new developement going forward?
Well, sandwiched between the Dewhurst and the Doncaster Trophy they couldn’t put in a 7f/8f one. There is a 3 week gap from the Middle Park and nothing comparable at Longchamp or Irish Champions weekend so it looks like a well thought out play. It might affect the Redcar trophy race but again a 2 week gap so trainers could go for both. I’d prefer a group race to all these overvalued sales/auction pots , which are admittedly great for owners but rarely produce a horse above G3 level.
Really looking forward to QCD this year. The Champion Stakes looks vastly superior to a very ordinary Arc so that should shut idiots like Forristal up for a while.The sales races give smaller owners the chance of landing a decent pot, which is important when they stand virtually no chance against Coolmore, Godolphin, Juddmonte, etc, in the group races.
I’d agree with that Gladders to an extent but it certainly doesn’t fit in with “Champions day” another confusion for those they are trying to attract to the sport. If Champions day is for Champions and they put on a two year old race it should be for the champions
Gaelic Warrior Gold Cup Winner 2026
Indeed we already have a Future Champions Day I see no reason to include a 2yo race.
The more I know the less I understand.
Champions day should be for champions and it should never have been moved from Newmarket in my opinion.
I've stumbled on the side of twelve misty mountains
I've walked and I crawled on six crooked highwaysThe Champion Stakes should have definitely been kept at Newmarket that is the HQ of flat racing.
The more I know the less I understand.
It was a forced/manufactured event with a ‘narrative’ which wasn’t needed and was placed at the wrong time of year (they could have just rejigged the Festival of British racing that was held in September).
As a consequence of that placement they quite often have to run the main event on the non watered NH course because it has better ground than the flat course which can be virtually unraceable (due to wet weather and the over watering throughout the year), they crown a champion jockey/trainer/owner and then the following week you have the final G1 race of the season (the Futurity for 2 yr olds), which doesn’t count towards those totals.
Unless some of the top horses are mud lovers they tend to swerve the meeting for the Arc and/or Breeders Cup, Calandagan is only there because he is barred from running in his own country’s top race and if it wasn’t for Coolmore having the firepower they have the races by and large are usually contested by horses that are considered more supporting cast rather than the headline stars.
They had the great fortune to not only have Frankel for the first two years but also for the first year ground conditions were very quick to the point where Cirrus des Aigles broke the track record when winning the Champion Stakes (which in terms of quality even puts this year’s race to shame) as it included multiple G1 winners like So You Think, Snow Fairy, Midday, Nathaniel and Twice Over.
In principle the meeting should have the top 2yr olds clashing to live up to the moniker of Champions Day but the BHA have already taken a massive dump on the pattern (and Newmarket in particular) by creating Future Champions Day as compensation for nicking the Champion Stakes from HQ.
Interestingly, the race itself, the British Champions Day Two-Year-Old Conditions Stakes (£128k to the winner) has attracted 19 entries today with the most notable being Brussels (Middle Park and Cornwallis runner up) and Words of Truth (Mill Reef Stakes winner) who along with four other horses are the only ones on 100 or above on Racing Post ratings…….so Coolmore/Godolphin’s back-ups mostly.
This 2yo race is now moved to 2nd race of the day, probably due to small field in Long Distance Cup.
But should this 2yo race a just build-up race for Champions Day?
I don’t understand why the 1m 4f race is restricted to fillies and mares where is the champions option at that distance for colts and geldings.
The more I know the less I understand.
The whole of this period has been ‘messed up’ thanks to Ascot’s Champions Day……..races moved/ swapped, meetings moved and I still find it slightly confusing.
We used to have a settled calendar from late September at Ascot with QE2, Fillies Mile, Royal Lodge et al then a week later at Newmarket with the Middle/ Cheveley Park, the Sun Chariot and Cambridgeshire…..and the same weekend Chepstow’s opening NH on BBC (another meeting changed in the name of progress), plus the Arc weekend.
Then another week back at Ascot for the Autumn Stakes, Cornwallis & Princess Royal Stakes – and York’s final meeting of the year.
Another week later, the 3 day Newmarket meeting; the Challenge Stks, the Dewhurst, Rockfel, Champion Stks, Caesarewitch, Jockey Club Cup……(and Kempton had a decent 2m Hdle, and the Charisma Gold Cup on the same day).
Progress, eh? If it’s not broken, then don’t fix it – but horse racing continually does it…….when will they learn?
Remember those days well…….with Doncaster always being both the start of the flat season (with the Lincoln) and the end of the season (with the November Handicap) and everything seemed to fit in naturally in between. By creating this new meeting they have as a consequence of all the musical chairs to get here, left the flat season (particularly the end of it) a rather disjointed mess.
No doubt this 2yr old race will likely attract a number of runners and 13 of the original 19 have stood their ground (although might that be good ground related???) with all looking for a very decent pay day but (baring one or two) it is very much a cast of the chorus line horses with the 13 runners amassing a total of 72 runs between them this season, with only two of the field currently at single digit prices with one being odds on.
With this latest addition to the card, it does make the £200k Balmoral Handicap look increasingly more out of place in the line up especially when you consider it is the last race of the meeting and run immediately after the Champion Stakes, which you would have thought would be the last race of the day in building to the natural climax of the meeting!
It’s all ended up being a bit of a hodgepodge of a raceday to be honest.
Then we have the flat must finish this week narrative carrying on next week with the low key showcase meeting on the same day of the group one at Doncaster.
At least this is the once in a decade decent ground Champions day at Ascot,just leaves the issue of top horses being over the top.
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