Cheltenham decided to postpone the cross-country race at the Open meeting in November until Trials Day in January, as a result of the prevailing fast ground on a circuit which is, by its very nature, extremely difficult to water to any great effect.
They can’t run two cross-country events on Trials Day, however, and the Glenfarclas Cross-Country Chase, a handicap on today’s card, will go ahead as scheduled with just seven runners going to post following the scratching of Auvergnat, the likely second favourite. It is not a historically low turnout for this race – there were seven runner two years ago, although that was staged as a conditions event – but it will not quite offer the spectacle that fans of this unusual circuit like to see.
Related: Horse racing tips: Friday 9 December
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