Attendance numbers for this year’s Cheltenham Festival, which opens on Tuesday, are likely to be lower than last year’s disappointing figures, circuit general manager Ian Renton said on Monday.
Speaking to Racing TV’s Nick Luck, Renton admitted “we’re going to be down a bit” from last year, which saw attendances fall 14% from the 2022 four-day record of 280,267.
Possible reasons for last year’s sharp drop include the cost of living crisis and strikes by rail workers and teachers, but while Renton said 12 months ago that he was “completely confident” figures would rebound this year, the latest drop remains disappointing.
The festival is expected to open on soft ground, with an easier cross-country track in the middle of Wednesday’s Glenfarclas Chase track, currently described as heavy and soft in places.
“The track is in good condition and we’re happy with the way it looks,” course clerk Jon Pullin said Monday. “Last year we had some challenges with grass cover, but that was after a cold snap throughout the winter. This year it’s been a very different situation, obviously very wet, which has given us other challenges, but we’re happy with the conditions.
“We had an additional 7mm of rainfall last night and a further 4mm throughout the day. It’s expected to be dry today but with further showers tomorrow morning before drying out in the afternoon.”
Irish Champion Hurdle winner State Man is the heavy favorite in the opening day’s feature race Champion Hurdle after last year’s winner Constitution Hill scraped last week.
“He looks like a clear favorite and hopefully he can prove he’s a real favorite,” State coach Willie Mullins said. “He’s doing everything right so it would be great if he can win the Champion Hurdle, but when you come here nothing is taken for granted.”
The horse from Mullins Stables in County Carlow is expected to dominate this week’s racing when he will win six out of 28 starts, which will make him the first trainer to achieve 100 festival wins. Horse Master.
Mullins is 1-10 to be the trainer of the week, while his leading jockey Paul Townend is 1-3 to be named the meeting’s jockey of the week. .
