Leopardstown hope watering will improve conditions for Christmas festival

Watering will continue at Leopardstown ahead of the Christmas festival to try to make sure ground conditions do not become an issue. The state of the going at Leopardstown, particularly on the steeplechase course, has been the subject of controversy in recent years.

Day two of the 2019 Dublin Racing Festival was decimated with non-runners after 22 horses were taken out due to ground conditions getting quick. It included six of the 10 declared horses for the featured Irish Gold Cup.

The question of unseasonably quick mid-winter ground arose too at the 2019 Christmas festival when over half the runners for a Grade 1 on the final day were taken out due to the going on the chase course.

Earlier this year Leopardstown engaged the turf consultancy firm STRI to try to get the best conditions for the current National Hunt season. Getting the famously quick-draining track to retain more water has been the goal.

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STRI has moved to increase aeration and irrigation of the chase track, aiming to maximise grass growth to provide a greater cushioned surface. Vehicles have also been upgraded to reduce wheel marking and compaction.

Watering programmes have been put in place too and the latest one will start on Wednesday on ground that is currently “yielding” on the hurdles course but “good to yielding” on the chase track.

The forecast on the run-in to Christmas is for mainly dry and settled weather.

"We've been doing that [watering] regularly to make sure that there is much more sufficient water and moisture retention so when we come to major meetings there is much less angst about it," Leopardstown's chief executive Tim Husbands said on Tuesday.

“They [STRI] are very comfortable with where the ground is, together with our own team, to make sure we do achieve the best ground possible for National Hunt,” he added.

The task was helped by extensive rainfall at the Co. Dublin course last week but the taps are going to have to be turned on now.

“It’s an 18-month programme so it’s not like a quick fix. We’ve had very good ground over the course of the last 12 months across all the flat meetings, and we hope to produce equally appropriate ground for National Hunt.

“Last week we had the guts of 45ml which is always nice to get. Over the course of the next week there will be a watering programme on probably a couple of days, with probably another 30ml put on over that time and we will review it again next week and see where we are.

“But certainly the conversations I had this morning with the clerk of the course and my track foreman, they’re very comfortable with where it is,” Husbands said.

He also confirmed the four days of the Christmas festival, which will have an attendance limit of 6,000 each day, are now sold out.

Gold Cup hero

In other news the Gold Cup hero Minella Indo has been confirmed on course for the King George VI Chase at Kempton, and is closing in on favouritism for the St Stephen’s Day cross-channel highlight with some firms.

Minella Indo, who is set to be ridden by Rachael Blackmore, was cut to 100-30 with one firm on Tuesday, a fraction behind the former dual-King George winner Clan Des Obeaux. No Irish trained horse has won the King George since Kicking King was successful back to back in 2004-05.

The other big cross-channel contest over the holiday period is the Welsh Grand National in which The Big Dog, trained by Peter Fahey, will try to join an exclusive club. Notre Pere in 2008 was the first Irish-trained horse to win the Chepstow marathon. The veteran Raz De Maree also emerged on top in the 2017 renewal for trainer Gavin Cromwell.

Thursday's Naas card will see the dual-Grade 1 winner Gaillard Du Mesnil make his debut over fences for Willie Mullins.

Successful at Punchestown and the Dublin Racing Festival last season – as well as finishing runner-up to Bob Olinger at Cheltenham in between – Gaillard Du Mesnil will have 15 opponents when lining up for a Beginners Chase.

Gillard Du Mesnil is a 16-1 shot in some lists for the Festival Novices Chase at Cheltenham in March.