O’BRIEN’S ICY BHA BLAST

FERGAL O’BRIEN has accused racing of “shooting itself in the foot” for staging meetings while Britain remains plunged in weather chaos.

While the ‘Beast from the East’ and ‘Storm Emma’ continued to cause severe disruption, Southwell staged an additional card that featured just 28 runners.

“There has to be a point at which the risks outweigh the benefits — racing loves shooting itself in the foot,” argued the Gloucestershire based trainer (right).

“If a single emergency crew is diverted from the genuinely needy to a stranded horsebox or other vehicle on the absolutely unnecessary journey to or from Southwell then we should, as an industry, be completely ashamed.” The BHA’s Robin Mounsey responded: “It is entirely a decision for the racecourse as to whether a fixture should be abandoned, based on wider issues such as travel safety problems.”