ascot, haydock and the dearth of early-season compeition.

​B.H.A. we have a problem. Any chance you can get it sorted?
Staging the Ascot Chase and the Betfair Chase on the same day, when both races attract a similar type of horse, is worse than ridiculous, it is stupidly ridiculous. And don’t say, with premierisation this will not happen in the future, because it will as the B.H.A., racing’s governing body, cannot see the wood for the trees.
Shishkin and Bravemansgame are the two top 3-mile chasers in beleaguered Britain at this moment in time, each trained by our top two National Hunt trainers. It should be a clash to savour, though we cannot be sure it will happen until 24-hours before either the Ascot Chase or the Betfair is due to be run. Shishkin is entered in both races. If the ground is heavy at Haydock, he will be re-routed to Ascot, even if the ground is similar in Berkshire. Haydock heavy can resemble ground conditions at the Battle of the Somme and Nicky Henderson will not subject Shishkin to that sort of test, not first time out, if ever. In conjunction with my own thoughts, Henderson is not a fan of the Betfair. With the King George on the horizon, neither will Paul Nicholls want to run Bravemansgame under such stamina-sapping conditions. The fact that Nicholls has instructed Harry Cobden to ride at Ascot, leaving Daryl Jacob to pick up the potentially spare ride on Bravemansgame, tells you all you need to know about the lack of certainty of his horse setting-out for Lancashire pre-dawn on Saturday morning.
For the sake of competitive racing, one of these two races should either be staged later in the season or one of them should have its conditions altered so that it becomes a race for second-season chasers.
As anyone with any interest in my thoughts on the subject, will know it is pretty easy to guess which of the two I would ditch in a heartbeat. The Betfair Chase was inaugurated to establish a 3-mile Triple Crown, with a huge bonus for the owner of any horse to win all three races. The bonus is long gone and the use of the term ‘the first leg of the Triple Crown’ has long past into history. It is has become an unnecessary race. The Irish virtually boycott the race, with even Henry de Bromhead, who it could be argued has three top-class 3-mile chasers in his stable, giving it no thought this season.
The Ascot Chase, on the other hand, can attract middle-distance horses as well as 3-mile chasers and does not subtract from the quality of horse in the upcoming Coral Gold Cup at Newbury. Protektorat, you see, might be aimed at that race if there were no Betfair Chase to gobble-up.
The Betfair might have a place in the calendar if the conditions were restricted to second-season chasers, horses that had not won a chase prior to the previous season. It might even tempt Willie Mullins to enter a horse as he starts every season with half-a-dozen potentially top-class, second-season 3-mile chasers. Wishful thinking, I know, as it’s the maestro’s policy not to bring any of his good horse to Britain before the New Year, finding it easy to forego even the King George on St. Stephen’s Day. There is also a place in the calendar, I believe, for a top-class 2-mile handicap chase as a supporting race at Haydock. 2-mile handicap chasers are woefully neglected in this country, I suggest. I would prefer one of the two early big Cheltenham middle-distance chases to be changed to 2-miles.
It’s a good bet that if the ground is heavy at Haydock, neither Shishkin nor Bravemansgame will run, though we might see the former at Ascot. I hope we do, as I am looking forward to Shishkin setting out on a season which will lead him to Gold Cup glory.