While the flat racing season continues, many of the top meetings are already in the record books. That leaves racegoers with a host of National Hunt renewals to look forward to when the campaign begins again in October.
The drama over the jumps cannot be matched, and the most important races continue to attract the biggest crowds. Here are some of the most highly-anticipated National Hunt meetings from the start of the season through to the end of the year.
Showcasing at Cheltenham
As the name might suggest, the Showcase Meeting at Cheltenham is a curtain-raiser for the new National Hunt season. In 2023, it will be run on October 27th and 28th. The event is important in its own right, but it also gives the racing world a chance to look ahead.
Horse ownership can take many forms in the current landscape. There are the established stables that will always target the big events, while racehorse syndicates offer a more cost-effective way to get involved. It’s a sport for everyone, but those syndicates open up racing to a wider platform.
For trainers, jockeys and anyone owning shares in a racehorse, the Cheltenham Festival in March is the pinnacle of jump racing. The showcase event in October offers the opportunity to see how the runners fare on the same course. Those who perform well will undoubtedly make the cut for the main Cheltenham meeting next year.
It all starts with the Ballymore Novice’s Hurdle, which is the very first race of an important Showcase weekend.
National Hunt at Haydock
November brings us another set of important jump races, but the biggest of these is The Chase. Held at the Haydock Park racecourse, this will take place on ‘Chase Day’ on Saturday, November 25th.
The race itself is one of the more recent entries on the calendar. It was first held in 2005 and is open to horses aged five and over. The Chase features significant distance at over three miles of the Haydock Park course, and it’s seen as an indicator for big future races including the Grand National and the Cheltenham Gold Cup.
Festive Racing Fun
There are some interesting preliminary meetings, but the National Hunt season really starts to take off in December. Cheltenham plays a big part once again, with The International which will be held on the 15th and the 16th of the month.
Horse racing takes a very brief break on Christmas Day, but racegoers won’t have to wait too long for the action to return. On December 26th, one of the most important renewals of the National Hunt season takes place at Kempton Park.
Serious racing fans consider the King George VI Gold Cup to be the second most prestigious event of the season, behind the Cheltenham Gold Cup. First held in 1937, it has been won by some of the legendary names in racing, including the incomparable Kauto Star who claimed five titles between 2006 and 2011.
A day later on December 27th, the Welsh Grand National is held at Chepstow, before the curtain comes down on another racing year. Clearly, there is plenty left to look forward to as 2023 rolls on.
