Racing is set to return to Haydock Park on Friday, August 7, following extensive work to identify the cause of a hole which appeared in the track back in May. The Temple Stakes meeting on May 23 went ahead after sprint races were moved to the inner course, but fixtures scheduled for July 2, 3 and 4 were relocated as investigations began.
Impact on July Fixtures
To facilitate the August comeback, the meetings due on July 17 and 18 were also called off. The July 18 fixture moved to Nottingham, while plans for the July 17 meeting are yet to be finalised. A post-racing Madness concert scheduled for July 18 will still go ahead at Haydock as planned.
Root Cause Identified
Having identified what they believe to be the root cause of the hole on the outer track, officials are now confident they can welcome racegoers back for the two-day fixture in early August, with racing set to take place on the inner course.
Clerk of the course Daniel Cooper said: "While it is disappointing to cancel our fixtures in July, we are confident this is the right decision to allow us to work with the relevant experts to complete further investigations and carry out the recommended repair to the outer track."
Cooper added: "Our investigations have narrowed down the cause of the issue to a fissure associated with historic mining activity in the area and that elements of a previous repair deteriorated, which created a pocket of instability beneath the turf, which led to the hole that appeared in May."
Repair and Safety Measures
Working with independent structural engineers and experts, officials traced the fissure and will replace the previous repair with a more robust solution involving a membrane and modern materials. A Ground Penetration Radar Survey across the entire course identified anomalies, which were checked, and the results will produce an updated map to support an enhanced maintenance programme.
Cooper explained: "We have always been of the view that, in the interests of safety, it would not be appropriate to race on the inner course while the excavated area remained exposed on the adjacent outer course. However, having spent considerable time investigating and analysing the results we are now confident that once we have repaired and filled in the excavated areas of the outer course, we will be able to race on the inner course."
While the outer course recovers, the team will ensure the inner course is in the best condition possible to stage all racing in the meantime.
