Cheltenham must move with times to stay special . . .
THE clock is ticking and my excitement is building. We are just over a week away from the best four days in sport. The Cheltenham Festival is an event like no other and will be sensational once again. There is a glorious madness to this time of year. I know Cheltenham is close when my friends pepper me with messages, asking for info and tips. The only other time they do that is ahead of the Grand National. I’m on James Martin’s Saturday Morning today purely to talk about the Festival. Yes, it’s that big — and I make no apology for being so enthusiastic about watching the drama unfold in that incredible amphitheatre. Someone, somewhere will go this year and be so smitten with what they see that they will come back again, again and again. Yet you hear constant murmurings of unhappiness within racing. How can the place where everyone wants to win be alienating ardent racing fans? Big sporting events need three elements to succeed: a top-notch product, a connection with the local community and buy-in from the core audience. It’s why Cheltenham is at a crossroads. I will make a comparison with Manchester United. It’s all very well being a financial juggernaut but if you take your eye off the product and become complacent, you have a major problem. The Glazers watched with glee as the balance sheet got better and their dividends got fatter, but the team declined and Old Trafford became tatty. The biggest club in the world have been overtaken by domestic rivals, all of whom now have multi-purpose, 21st century stadiums. Jim Ratcliffe has an almighty job on to restore order, on and off the pitch. Cheltenham is in rude health but the warning signs are there. Once Everton move to their new home in August 2025,
Cheltenham will be one of the few great sporting arenas to still have pillars in its main seating area. Nowadays, spectators should not go to top events and face obstructed views. So a new main stand is required. To move with the times, an on-site hotel and better transport connections are needed, too. Train journeys to and from the Festival aren’t pleasant and one day I envisage a fast line to London, departing from the current steam train station by the north car park. Cost is Cheltenham’s biggest enemy. That’s why ticket sales have been slow this year. These are tough financial times and people want value for money. Even Cheltenham fanatics are baulking at the cost of entry and food and drink on site. The price of a pint of Guinness (more than £7) is bound to be plastered all over social media. That’s before you consider the ludicrous cost of accommodation in town (some chains are disgracefully charging £650 for a night), which the Jockey Club can do little about. They can, however, show they care. Imagine the goodwill a free racecard with a complimentary drinks voucher would garner? It’s vital to be seen to be listening to the customer and to care. They shouldn’t be taking sandwiches and fruit off spectators in bag searches. Then there is the product: it has to remain the best. Cheltenham is becoming a victim of its own success, as a victory in any race — for some — will do. It has led to horses being re-routed to the most winnable contest rather than the one they should be in. There are too many options, enabling trainers to duck and dive. The novice chase division is a prime example this season, as it’s rammed with quality animals. There should be mouthwatering clashes — imagine Fact To File taking on Ginny’s Destiny, Grey Dawning, Corbetts Cross et al? Yet the modern-day dilution means they can try to avoid each other with four options — the Arkle, Turners, Brown Advisory and National Hunt Chase. Small fields are inevitable, which is the biggest turn-off for all fans, who are fretting about Constitution Hill’s possible no-show due to a virus. Tweaks could be made: a two-mile and three-mile championship race, plus the return of a two-and-a-half-mile Novice Handicap Chase, would solve this problem at a stroke. We need to react to there being too many races and too few good horses before the product loses its appeal. Manchester United sat still for too long. Cheltenham is flying high but must move with the times. Lose your core audience: turn out the lights.