Lingfield Sunday

A lovely track with well made fences and undulations akin to a kinder version of Cheltenham.

Usually the heavy ground that ruins the racing though imo.

Yes stewarts rise, I always associate Lingfield NH as a mudlarks paradise….rightly or wrongly!

Doubt it will beat the freeze

shd be ok

Poundland frost covers if it does not beat the freeze.

I'm in the North, it was literally freezing when I went for a pint at 6.00, much warmer when I left. The thaw is on.

Just shows the effect what a good pint can have.

Or two maybe.

inspect again 8-00am sunday, could have raced today.

Meeting moved to Windsor next year.

Agree Saxon best card in donkeys years I would say you would have to go back to the days when oh so risky won there in his triumph hurdle season

Strontium

Windsor next year ?

Lingfield's high-quality Winter Million jumps card has been given the green light after the track passed its morning inspection.

Sub-zero temperatures have scuppered the week's jumping programme with Lingfield's opening day of the Winter Million on Friday among notable cancellations due to frozen ground along with Saturday's Premier fixtures at Ascot and Haydock.

Yet it has been significantly warmer this weekend meaning racing on turf will return for the first time since Wednesday and the jumps action returns in style with L'Homme Presse and Protektorat clashing in the Fleur de Lys Chase (3.00), the feature on the eight-race card.

It was the second inspection for this fixture after a decision was delayed when first assessed on Saturday afternoon.

Lingfield's clerk of the course Stephanie Wethered said: "We felt the track was showing all the right signs so it's good to go. We're really pleased and looking forward to it.

"Huge credit to not only the Lingfield team but all of those who have come to support us and help us get today on – we've had teams from our sister tracks at Windsor, Brighton, Fontwell, Ffos Las, Worcester and Bath. We've had a few from different tracks and they've been a huge help with getting the fleece off and preparing.

The ground at Lingfield eased to soft, good to soft in places following light rain overnight.

Jimnast, it was announced yesterday that the Winter Million jumps cards will be run at Windsor next season, as part of a "Berkshire Racing Festival".

Somebody at ARC seems to really hate Lingfield.

Thanks strontium away at the moment so wasn’t aware of that ,so that’s the winter million and aw finals taken away

Regards Berkshire festival what will that be ?

Something in my water is telling me Laskalin might return to form in the Surrey National.

Winter Derby also gone
Lingfield is becoming a greyhound track for classs 6 and classified horses

Winter Million 'jumps', and first race on the sand. A total nonsense.

Lingfield is an excellent jumps track and a much underrated AW surface. What ARC is doing is criminal, maybe we'll end up at the same place as Folkestone by the way they are running the place down. Windsor's viewing is crap and the going is more than likely to be bottomless in Winter.

Jimnast- Berkshire Racing Festival (or whatever they're calling it) will be Friday & Sunday of the Winter Million run at Windsor + the Ascot Clarence House card on the Saturday.

Funnily enough, I had a similar idea (fantasy) myself for a Berkshire jumps festival a couple of years ago, but by combining Newbury's Betfair Hurdle card on Sat with the Ascot Chase card on Sun.

Jan 21, 2024 -- 11:15AM, barstool wrote:

Something in my water is telling me Laskalin might return to form in the Surrey National.

Calvin has tipped him "He probably ran a bit better than the bare form suggests when a 15-length fifth in this race on heavy ground last year and he went up to 135 in the weights after a good second over 3m at Sandown last February.

He hasn't been doing anything flash since then, and in fact he ran dismally on his first two starts this season, but he showed a little bit more (admittedly not a lot, as Paul Daniels may have said if he was still with us) at Newbury last time and finds himself off just 125 here.

Again, the form of the Williams yard is a slight concern - some have been running very badly, but a couple have been beaten under a length and you have to think she would have targeted this valuable meeting with her runners - but the price is in this instance is adequate compensation."

Nice to see First Flow win.

Not if you had a decent bet on Saint Segal I.S

Yes, that was a good race

Bailey and Bass are a pair of gents.
Nice interviews.

Good morning strontium

My fantasy was a 3 day Christmas festival racing Boxing Day at kempton a 7 race card mixing the two current days ,then two days at ascot taking racing from there pre Christmas meeting plus the challow hurdle and the tolworth hurdle which has since gone to aintree ,also bringing the Clarence House forward a few weeks ,obviously the welsh national would stay at Chepstow but the finale juvenile hurdle would be run at ascot ,add two valuable high grade handicaps along with the old Ladbroke which would come from ascots pre Christmas meeting and we have a great Christmas fixture like leopardstown which to be honest would be stronger if only 3 day,

I did actually produce a running order some of the reasons I was given against it were hospitality at ascot at the pre Christmas meeting was very good ,Newbury’s members wouldn’t like losing the challow the same with sandowns tolworth as stated earlier it’s gone to aintree.

I’m surprised the leading national hunt trainers aren’t pushing for something like this or your fantasy in early February as it would help justify there lack of ambition taking horses to leopardstown.

Of course we know it won’t happen and we will continue to fall behind the Irish in the national hunt game ,I have absolutely no doubt this years festival will end in the biggest blood bath yet.

Yes mr c winter derby also,reminds of the belfry it was fine when nobody else anted the Ryder cup

Good morning Jimnast.

I certainly think Ascot & Newbury could do something together, but likely they won't.

We badly need a couple of big betting handicaps on Boxing Day. I assumed that would be part of the new Aintree card, but it wasn't.

I'm a jumps member at Newbury, but I rarely go to the Challow. That race aside, it's a poor card, and I'd rather spend that time between Christmas and New year with family. It really irks me that a horse as great as Mandarin is "honoured" with a 0-135 handicap.

I question if the Clarence House Chase is needed at all. It's a small division in terms of strength in depth, and has been for years. They already have the Tingle Creek mid-season and the Game Spirit as a prep for Cheltenham.

... goodness, that was all very negative

Gone are the days when the likes of night nurse are winning the mandarin.


Fair point about the Clarence House but as with the Dublin festival you would need some classy races to go with the tough high grade handicaps.

Either way ascot needs to get a strong national hunt programme and Newbury itself needs to strengthen the Hennessy fixture.

Perhaps it’s just the way it is at the moment

I feel sorry for Ascot with their NH program, because they clearly try hard - they have several handicaps that are worth as much as, or more than, their equivalents at the Cheltenham Festival, but that regularly get small fields. The Hurst Park Chase and the handicap hurdle before Christmas being examples this season. It seems to me that the Ascot Chase is a little too late in the season to fulfil it's potential - maybe better to run that when the Clarence House is now?

At Newbury, I think they've done a good job strengthening the Hennessey meeting recently, but they aren't quite there yet. Epatante winning the Gerry Fielden has raised the profile of that race again. There is a superb maiden hurdle at the meeting, and the graded novice chase and 3 m hurdle are important races. But some of the supporting races could be better.

Yes ascot do try and deserve better

Rock on riuby also won the Gerry fielden in his champion hurdle season