British Horseracing Authority chief executive Julie Harrington has urged British racing not to rush to “snap judgements” on Premier and Sunday evening racing after both initiatives were met with mixed reactions.
It is the second time in little more than a week that Harrington has sought to reassure the sport about the introduction of Premier racing, a cross-industry initiative aimed at growing interest in racing through increased betting, spectator levels, and horse ownership.
During the first fixture on New Year’s Day at Cheltenham, Harrington stressed that the potential benefits of the plan would not happen “overnight” and that increased promotion and on-track enhancements would “develop over the course of 2024” in response to concerns about the muted start to the two-year trial.
On Jan. 9, Harrington said it was “heartening to see the positive initial response to Premier racing from the public, racecourse and participants” and that the 170 Premier fixtures scheduled to take place during 2024 “reflect a significant investment by the sport” into the initiative. However, questions have been raised at the volume of Premier meetings scheduled for the year.
Among those to query the number was Peter Savill, the owner of Plumpton, which staged the second Premier meeting of 2024 on Sunday. He had initially proposed a two-tier racing structure that was subsequently developed independently by the sport into the Premier and core racing trial.
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Speaking on Sunday, Savill said: “The whole idea of Premier racing is to generate more money, and the only way to do that is to have a different product. I’m disappointed that hasn’t materialized in the way it probably should have done.”
In a statement released on Tuesday, Harrington said: “We should be encouraged that so many racecourses want to invest in and stage these Premier events. We will also see more promotional work and, we hope, a (Levy Board)-funded national campaign to support the work already being done by (Great British Racing) and the racecourses.
“Time and experience will help us determine the optimum number of Premier racedays with regards to racecourses and the horse population. This is the start of a two-year pilot and so we should resist the temptation to make snap judgements on its success based on limited experience.”
Concerns have also been raised by participants about the trial of six Sunday evening meetings on the all-weather and the extra strains it is potentially putting on the likes of jockeys, trainers, and stable staff. This is despite the enhanced prize-money on offer and prospect of increased funding for racing by extra money going into the levy from betting.
Harrington added: “Clearly there are a range of views regarding this pilot and we respect those opinions. For this reason, the financial performance of these fixtures will be far from the only measure of their viability. We will continue to seek the views of all those involved in servicing such meetings and this feedback will form a core part of the ultimate assessment of the pilot.”
