With the publication of the official fixture list for the months of July and August, Arena Racing Company (“ARC”) can confirm that neither Worcester, Brighton nor Ffos Las Racecourses will host fixtures during this perdiod. All three racecourses are active in the 2021 BHA fixture allocation process, which is already underway, and it is hoped that Brighton and Worcester will be in a position to start racing from September onwards and for Ffos Las to return for the 2020/21 jumps season.
Over the course of the winter, both Brighton and Worcester sustained significant damage, due to storms and flooding respectively. Repair work planned for both sites had to be suspended due to the nationwide lockdown, and will be now be undertaken over the course of the coming months.
Given the proposed timings of this new fixture list, it is simply uneconomical to reopen Ffos Las for just four flat fixtures, so the decision has been taken to resume racing there from the start of the 2020/21 jump season in October.
Fixtures from all three sites will be temporarily hosted by other racecourses within the ARC group over the course of July and August, with the aim that fixtures that would usually be hosted in September will be able to take place at both Brighton and Worcester.
Managing Director of ARC’s Racing Division, Mark Spincer, said, “The suspension of racing due to the Covid-19 outbreak has had a significant impact on the whole racing industry, and many different aspects of racecourse operations, including the standard work that would take place at many sites over the course of the off season.
“Whilst we look forward to hosting race meetings behind closed doors, there is unfortunately too much work to do at both Brighton and Worcester to have them in a position to host the race meetings that they would normally in July and August. Equally, the timing is particularly unfortunate for the four flat fixtures that Ffos Las would normally host in this period, hence the decision to defer reopening until October, and the start of the jumps season.
“We are obviously well aware of the unique roles that all three tracks play within the racing world, and very much forward to having them back in full operation as soon as possible.”
