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It is only since I have experienced the frustration of having runners consistently ballotted out of races that I’ve paid any attention to this issue.
I hadn’t realised that on the flat only maidens can divide and it has led me to question why this should be the case.
The theory, I suppose, is that a horse shouldn’t be denied a run when it hasn’t had the opportunity of being given a handicap mark but it strikes me that handicaps are the races that are consistently over-subscribed and should be given the chance to be split into two divisions.
They are certainly more interesting from a betting perspective and I’m not convinced that there is a real difficulty in getting a run at the moment if you have an unraced horse.
I’d be interested to hear from anyone who has had runners ballotted out of maidens and handicaps as a bit of a straw poll of where the real problem lies in getting a run.
Handicaps are divided from time to time but it always seems to be maidens that get priority for division and they are more often than not less likely to get a full field.
This is the rule for race division:
Division of Races
If the time for declaration has passed and the number of horses in a race exceeds the Safety Factor the race will divide. However, if this number is less than 20, then the race will NOT divide. The following races will be permitted to divide (Instruction B1):
a) Open Maiden, Rating Related Maiden, Maiden Median Auction, Maiden Auction, Novice Auction, Novice Median Auction and Novice Flat races with Total Prize Fund of £10,000 or less;
b) Weight-for-Age Hurdle races in which the Total Prize Fund is £7,000 or less, other than Classified Stakes, Selling or Claiming races;
c) Weight-for-Age Steeple Chases in which the Total Prize Fund is £8,000 or less, other than Classified Stakes, Selling or Claiming races or Hunter Chases.
d) National Hunt Flat Races of £5,000 or less;
e) Any Flat race with a Total Prize Fund of £10,000 or less run at an AWT outside the period when Flat racing on Turf takes place, other than Selling races.– From 1 January 2008, the deduction for all races value £2,750 or above will be £750 for each division and for those races below £2,750 the prize money will be reduced to £2,000 each.
– Although a Class 7 race is not permitted to divide, if a Racecourse wishes to wholly finance such a race division itself, it is permitted to do so following consultation with the Racing Department. The budget for 2008 is £855,000.In other words, flat handicaps (other than AW races in the winter season) are not permitted to divide which just makes no sense to me.
How would you allocate weights in a handicap if it was divided?
I assume it would work in the same way as for the Ayr Gold Cup where the field is selected from the top of the handicap down and once the field size limit is reached the next horse starts at the top of the handicap for the consolation race.
Can’t work as that would mean that horses would enter say a 0-140 race and end up being top weight in a 0-120!!
Thats the reason that the races permitted to divide are those run at level weights – they lend themselves better to dividing.
Can’t work as that would mean that horses would enter say a 0-140 race and end up being top weight in a 0-120!!
Thats the reason that the races permitted to divide are those run at level weights – they lend themselves better to dividing.
Handicaps on the AW are permitted to divide when there is no turf racing. Does anyone know how they are divided?
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