Jumps Racing Season Action
The Haydock Park Racecourse is located in Merseyside, England and is the venue for numerous flat horse racing events, as well as National Hunt racing. They offer spectators great facilities and wonderful horse racing action, hosting twenty nine days of racing. And with the National Hunt racing season kicking off on 6 November 2008, jumps racing enthusiasts can look forward to upcoming events such as the Berfair Chase, Red Square Vodka Gold Cup, Champion Hurdle Trial, Swinton Handicap Hurdle, Peter Marsh Chase and the Rendlesham Hurdle. Starting off relatively relaxed, the Racing Welfare Raceday is merely a warm up of what is to come.
As mentioned, the jumps racing season begins with the Racing Welfare Raceday and as the name suggests, it is held to raise funds for those within the horse racing industry, who could do with a little financial support. It is a day of fun and support and Haydock Park Racecourse host this racing day, to begin the season on a positive and uplifting note. But it is the weekend of the 22nd of November that will really shift the season into gear, as it will be time for the prestigious Betfair Chase.
The Betfair Chase is a Grade 1 event that has a purse of £225,000 and is the first race in the £1 million Betfair Challenge. Run over a distance of three miles, it has been an event that many of the best jumps racing horses enter into and there is no doubt that Kauto Star will be back to try and win the race for the third time. On 20 December 2008, the Sodexo Prestige Tommy Whittle Chase will be taking place and fans can look forward to the Peter Marsh Chase that is being run on 17 January 2009. On the fourteenth of February, there will be no love lost between contenders in the Haydock Park Gold Cup and the final day of racing for the season will take place on 11 April 2009. Racecourse manager, Dickon White, is very excited about the coming jumps racing season, saying: “We are serving up a veritable feast of brilliant jump racing action between now and next spring. Betfair Chase day will, once again, be an occasion to savor and we are looking forward to welcoming a big crowd.”
