FEARS are mounting over the first day of the Flat season – with Doncaster bosses admitting the racecourse is ‘not where we want it to be’.
William Haggas’ 4-1 Al Mubhir is the favourite for the £150,000 Lincoln – the traditional start of the Flat action.
Large portions of turf look like they will be missing from the Doncaster racecourse for the season-opening Lincoln on Saturday
But after a challenging winter with little rain and freezing temperatures, the usually immaculate racecourse is said to be looking a little scruffy ahead of the season-opener.
While ‘perfectly raceable’, the track will be missing large portions of grass.
The going update on Thursday read: “Soft, heavy (in places). The ground is safe and perfectly raceable given it is soft, heavy in places.
“But, sadly, the grass covering is not as uniform or where we want it to be aesthetically in all areas of the track.”
With Flat racing normally taking place on good ground throughout the summer, one punter moaned: “Can we push the Lincoln back two weeks for better ground?
“What a travesty.”
Another wrote: “I know it is tradition but given Doncaster has struggled in recent years to provide ground with a decent covering of grass for the Lincoln meeting, does it make sense for them to host the last turf meeting of the year and the first?
“Something is not working.”
Clerk of the course Paul Barker insists the turf is ready for racing, even though it might not look like it.
He said: “There is nothing at all wrong with the ground and it is perfectly raceable, but the grass covering is sadly not where we’d want it to be aesthetically in all areas of the track.
“Since the November Handicap, which closed the 2022 Flat season at Doncaster, we have experienced 33 nights below 0C, which is over 50 per cent more than the same period the year before.
“To compound this issue, the freeze stuck around for much longer than previously – we had 11 consecutive freezing nights in December and another nine in January.”
Despite that, punters look like being in for a treat with stacked fields and competitive markets.
A total of 117 runners will contest eight races with four contests including the Lincoln being shown live on ITV.
Lincoln odds via Coral
4-1 Al Mubhir
5-1 Awaal
8-1 Wanees
10-1 Baradar, Majestic
11-1 Atrium
12-1 Montassib
14-1 Jimi Hendrix
16-1 Empirestateofmind
18-1 Bopedro
20-1 Croupier, Toshizou
25-1 Bar
