Punchestown chief fears fixture changes could be 'very damaging' to festival

Punchestown chief executive Conor O'Neill has voiced concerns that the late staging of next year's Aintree Grand National meeting could be "very damaging" for the track's festival.

Details of the 2023 fixture calendar in Britain were released on Wednesday with the Grand National scheduled to take place on Saturday, April 15, the latest date in its history, leaving just a ten-day gap to the opening day of Punchestown – which celebrates its 200th festival next year – on Tuesday, April 25.

A similar situation occurred in 2018, when ten days also separated the two meetings, and it resulted in the number of British-trained runners at Punchestown falling to just 20, down from 57 in 2017.

The final day of the British jumps season at Sandown on Saturday, April 29 will also clash with the festival.

Conor O'Neill: Punchestown chief executive says moving the festival is not an optionCredit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

O'Neill said: "No UK involvement in the Punchestown festival would without doubt be very damaging. The UK involvement is crucial, it's always one of our key focuses, to try to attract the best of the UK horses to Ireland to renew some of those Cheltenham rivalries.

"It's rare to do all three festivals in terms of Cheltenham, Aintree and ourselves. It certainly doesn't make that any easier. Now with Sandown on the same week, and the UK trainers' and jockeys' championships up for grabs there, it's a cause for concern."

Punchestown's five-day meeting traditionally begins on the final Tuesday in April and is a fixed date in the Irish racing calendar, unlike the Irish Grand National meeting, which alters every year depending on when Easter falls, and O'Neill says moving the festival is not an option.

"That has been the date traditionally for all those years and for many factors too. If you go any later you start going into May, you make the season longer, you risk not being able to attract the same quality of horses that we endeavour to attract," he said.

"There are challenges and concerns in terms of delivering the safest possible ground too."

'We're very fortunate we get a large contingent of UK racegoers to the festival every year'Credit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

Punchestown's popularity with British racegoers has grown considerably in recent years and O'Neill believes the congestion of next year's calendar will be a disincentive for many to travel to Ireland.

He added: "We're very fortunate we get a large contingent of UK racegoers to the festival every year who add to the atmosphere. Without that UK involvement on the track, it would certainly limit the number who decide to travel.

"All in all, I would think it's not beneficial for Punchestown, Aintree or Sandown for us all to be as congested as it looks like we're going to be. We can only do what we can do to overcome this challenge and ensure the 200th festival is as good as ever."

2023 fixture list: the British racing calendar by month (PDF)

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