Racegoers in the rain

Newbury abandon Friday card with inspection called ahead of Saturday action

Horse Racing

Thu October 22, 2026 · 5h ago

Newbury have been forced to abandoned Friday's six-race fixture, with an inspection to be held at 8am tomorrow ahead of Saturday's valuable meeting.

News of Friday's abandonment after Storm Austen left the course waterlogged following over 35mm of rain in the area since Tuesday.

Conditions at Newbury will be monitored and officially assessed again on Friday morning with a view to Saturday's card which is due to feature two Group 3 races and a Listed contest.

The St Simon Stakes and Horris Hill Stakes, in which title-chasing trainer Andrew Balding is represented, are scheduled to form part of ITV's weekend coverage but the seven-race programme which carries in excess of £286,000 in prize money is in real doubt.

Clerk of the course George Hill told the Racing Post: "We're trying to give it every chance and see if there's any hope for a change in the forecast, but we're assessing conditions early on Friday to keep everyone informed.

"Saturday afternoon also looks pretty wet, and it doesn't look like a good forecast until racing. We'll give it another 24 hours to see if there's any improvement before making a decision."

There are currently no inspections planned for Doncaster or Cheltenham, with both courses set to race on Friday and Saturday.

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