Horse Racing Ireland has shuffled its deck and emerged with all of the top races that are vital to the ongoing success of the breeding sector being saved.
All bar three of the flat races will be staged on their original dates and at their original venues with the opening Guineas Races set to be staged on the first weekend back after the resumption of racing on June 8th.
The Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby, also at the Curragh at the end of June, and the Longines Champions Weekend in September will also take place on their scheduled dates.
Racing will resume behind closed doors and with strict health guidelines in place, on June 8th having missed 87 fixtures since bringing the curtain down on March 24th.
The major National Hunt fixtures at Punchestown and Fairyhouse were both lost and, coming towards the end of that season have not been rescheduled though a number of key races are expected to be accommodated later in the year.
“Apart from the three Group 1 races normally run on Guineas weekend, all other Group 1 races in Ireland will be run on their originally scheduled dates and venues,” said Horse Racing Ireland CEO Brian Kavanagh.
“The two-year-old Group race programme will start about six weeks later than normal, in early July, but again the full complement of opportunities will be run between then and season end.”
“2020 will be anything but a normal year, but in the circumstances, we have tried to preserve the opportunities which the Irish race programme offers to the better horse.”
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