Kempton is not yet saved from development but campaigners to keep it as a racecourse got some more good news on Wednesday. The local council has not included the track among sites proposed for development in a consultation launched this week.
Despite the Jockey Club offering the site for building almost three years ago Spelthorne Borough Council’s planning officers now say: “The racecourse is a historic and established asset in the area and it should be explored whether its loss is inevitable on viability grounds or if a large housing scheme is simply more economically appealing to the landowner.”
But this story has some chapters left in it, according to those on both sides of the argument. The Jockey Club has said on Thursday that it will “continue to respond through the ongoing consultation process”. Alan Doyle of Keep Kempton Green says: “It’s not the end, by any means. It’s a good bridgehead but we await the counter-attack.
“Our chances must have gone up,” Doyle continued. “Six months ago, I’d have put them no higher than 50-50, but we’ve had support from bodies that I didn’t expect at this stage, like Surrey Highways. They’ve run their models on a 3,000-house development in the area and the traffic chaos on the road to the south will be permanent. And you can’t build more roads there unless you’re going to expropriate 150 properties.”
Doyle says the next critical stage will be an examination in public of the council’s development plan, before a planning inspector with power to swing things back towards development of Kempton. “We’re expecting a bun-fight of immense proportions,” he said. “The Jockey Club could still get their way. We haven’t seen the whites of anyone’s eyes yet.”
Thursday’s best bets
Champ is the big name at Newbury today and I’d expect him to make a winning debut over fences, without being at all interested in backing him. He has all that excellent novice hurdle form, of course, and looks like he should make a chaser. He comes from the Nicky Henderson yard that so often fares well at this track, which is just down the road from Seven Barrows.
On the other hand, taking odds-on about a horse that has never jumped a fence in public is not my idea of a good time and it’s worth noting that this is much more competitive than any beginners chase has a right to be. In the three years that this race has been going, the favourite has yet to win and the beaten horses include Lostintranslation and Topofthegame.
Henderson’s Diablo De Rouhet (3.10) makes more betting appeal at 3-1 in the Pertemps qualifier. This youngster is two from three over fences since joining the yard in the summer and this looks like a canny attempt to exploit a handicap mark which looks pretty beatable in light of the improvement he’s been showing. That said, Venetia Williams has the second-favourite in Geordie B and she seems in good form suddenly.
You can get 7-1 about Air Navigator (3.40) in the following handicap chase, which isn’t bad, considering he won on his reappearance last year. He was well treated for his chasing debut that time, of course, but he has since suggested several times that this rating would be beatable when things fall right. Tom George’s yard is going well and this one had a wind op over the summer.
At similar odds, I’ll give a chance to Oxwich Bay (3.50) at the end of Market Rasen’s card. He’s dropped to a handy rating and ran well until failing to stay three miles last time.
Starplex (1.15) is interesting in the Sedgefield opener, his rating having crashed during his time with another yard. Now that he’s back with Keith Dalgleish and all the sharper for a run on the Flat, he could be ready for his first hurdles win since April 2017. Everyone seems to know this, however, as he is 6-4 from the opening 3s.
Newbury
12.55 Our Merlin 1.30 Sir Valentine 2.05 Champ 2.35 Floressa 3.10 Diablo De Rouhet 3.40 Air Navigator 4.15 Cadzand
Market Rasen
1.05 Notre Pari 1.40 Who’s The Boss 2.15 The Bay Birch 2.45 Ballyhome 3.20 Ask Paddy 3.50 Oxwich Bay
Sedgefield
1.15 Starplex (nb) 1.50 Beechwood Jude 2.25 Late Date 2.55 New Frontier 3.30 Mah Mate Bob 4.00 Darlyn
Chelmsford
4.25 Bullfinch 4.55 Great Image (nap) 5.25 Silver Machine 5.55 Dubai Warrior 6.25 Omran 6.55 The Gill Brothers 7.25 Three Little Birds 7.55 Flora Tristan
Southwell
4.40 Ventura Destiny 5.10 Filbert Street 5.40 Royal Context 6.10 Erissimus Maximus 6.40 I’ll Be Good 7.10 Al Erayg 7.40 Geography Teacher 8.10 Blyton Lass