Trainer to support Sunday evening race meeting despite ‘****ing hating’ the idea

03 January 2024 , 17:33

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Charllie Fellowes: reluctantly running horse at Wolverhampton on Sunday evening (Image: PA)

A trainer has blasted the introduction of new Sunday evening racing for ruining a time he would usually spend with his young family and putting a strain on staffing levels.

Newmarket-based Charlie Fellowes said “I ****ing hate the idea” but believes he has no choice but to have a runner at the first fixture at Wolverhampton this weekend because the prize money is three times more than for a standard meeting of similar races.

The first of six fixtures to be staged between now and March attracted over 200 entries for seven races with total prize money of £145,000.

Fellowes is set to run Smoky Mountain who he reckoned would have a favourite’s chance in a Class 4 handicap worth £26,500, but has major reservations about the project.

“We race every hour God gives us at the moment and we’ve never ever raced on a Sunday evening,” he said.

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“I have a young family. I’d love to spend a little time with them and when I am with them I’d love to not be worrying about my runners somewhere or be in a bad mood because one of them has run appallingly. I’d like to be in a good mood so we can spend some quality time together.

“Smoky Mountain is going to go on Sunday for some fantastic prize-money and he’ll be favourite and I know that if he runs badly it will put me in a foul mood because he should be going there to win.

“I’ll have to deal with upset connections and an upset trainer because we put 120 per cent into this game. If you want to be a successful trainer, you have to live, eat, sleep it and therefore every runner that runs below expectations hurts.”

Fellowes said any of his staff who go to Wolverhampton will be entitled to an afternoon off during the week potentially leaving him short at that time.

Even though he won’t attend the fixture in person he said he won’t be able to take things easy.

“There is still a lot that revolves around having a runner,” he said. “You worry if the horse is there okay, you are distracted.

“If Sunday evening racing is suddenly going to unlock this massive pool of money to come into racing, then fantastic. I would be very sceptical about whether that is going to happen.”

Jon Lees