Live racing coverage was blanked out in the majority of Britain’s betting shops on Monday as the result of an ongoing dispute over media rights payments between bookmakers and racecourses. The situation is unlikely to be resolved in time to prevent another blank day in the shops on Tuesday , while the Racing Post on Monday led its front page on the (not entirely unexpected) news that ITV Racing’s audience figures on ITV4 on Saturday had fallen “well short” of its debut numbers on the main channel.
Add in an ongoing controversy over Rule 4 deductions which kicked off at Cheltenham on 1 January and racing seems to have lurched into the new year in the same, somewhat uncertain fashion in which it staggered out of the old one. Since 2017 has the potential to be a historic year for Britain’s second‑biggest spectator sport, this does not feel like an auspicious way to begin.
Related: Horse racing tips: Tuesday 10 January
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