Irish Derby Day must be more about promotion of the sport than betting turnover

The Curragh Racecourse finally got a change of luck as the sun shone down on the Kildare track for the Irish Derby on Sunday. A relatively decent crowd of 11,200 turned up to see Lambourn complete the Derby-double in the 160th running of the race.

It is always good for the sport when horses prove themselves to be the best in their division by backing up one top notch performance with another high quality display.

A winner of the calibre of Lambourn adds hugely to the day out for those in attendance at the Curragh, despite his prohibitive betting odds.

As the season progresses and Lambourn reappears in other top class races such as the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot, or the Doncaster St Leger, or Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp, those that saw him in the flesh at the Curragh will be able regale their friends and family with their personal experience of the day they witnessed him win his second Classic.

Even in the years ahead when Lambourn’s progeny are strutting their stuff on the racecourses of the world, those Curragh patrons from last Sunday will probably still feel a personal connection. This is what makes events like Irish Derby Day so important for the future promotion of the sport.

Railway Stakes Removed From Traditional Derby Day Slot

The Curragh Racecourse came in for a significant amount of flak on the run up to this year’s Derby over their decision to remove the Group 2 Railway Stakes from its traditional spot as the main supporting race on Irish Derby Day.

The six furlong contest for two-year-olds has a long and distinguished history at the Curragh and has been won in the past by the likes of Nijinsky, El Gran Senor and Rock Of Gibraltar, and even last year’s winner Henri Matisse has since gone on to win the French 2000 Guineas this season.

This year the Railway Stakes will instead be run on Irish Oaks Day next month. The race was previously switched to Oaks Day in 2020, but on that occasion the Irish Derby Day card had two Group 3 contests added and the remainder of the card included just two handicap races. Winners on that Derby Day at the Curragh included the reigning Melbourne Cup winner Twilight Payment, who won the Vintage Crop Stakes, and future Epsom Derby winner Serpentine, who landed a Maiden.

Last Sunday’s Derby Day card included no less than six handicap races as part of its marathon nine race offering and, aside from the Irish Derby itself, there were no other Group races on the day.

Tote World Pool Drives 'Watering Down' of undercard

The reason for the watering down of the quality of the supporting races on Irish Derby Day is that this fixture is included in the Tote World Pool. This means that punters from around the world (though mainly in Hong Kong) can bet into massive Tote pools on all the races at the Curragh.

Tote World Pool days are extremely lucrative for the racecourses where they take place. In the case of the Curragh, the racecourse will receive in excess of €600,000 in additional media rights money for this one day, but in order to fulfill the criteria for a World Pool Day there needs to be double-figure field sizes throughout the card, ideally races with 14 runners or more.

The Railway Stakes rarely met that criteria in previous years, which is why it was axed from Sunday’s card. Group races by their nature are prone to small fields. The four Group races held at the Curragh last Saturday had field sizes of 6,5,6 and 7 respectively, which doesn’t suit the far east organisers of the Tote World Pool.

It is understandable that the Curragh Racecourse would want to maximise revenue from its highest profile day of the year, but the obvious question is how far should racecourses such as the Curragh be allowed to go to facilitate the wishes of the Tote World Pool on days that have wider significance for the promotion of the sport?

Obviously, a racecourse like the Curragh will always strive to do what is best for their own business. If they want to charge €45 at the turnstiles and €5 for a race card, that is up to them and I wouldn’t expect Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) to intervene. But if the actions of an individual racecourse stray from the industry’s prime objective, I would certainly think HRI has an obligation to get involved.

HRI's Role and Conflicting Interests

It is the responsibility of HRI to promote and develop the sport of horse racing and Irish Derby Day is one of the flagship events that helps them to achieve those objectives for the greater good of all.

Watering down the quality of the supporting races on such an important day as Irish Derby Day doesn’t appear to serve the best interests of the sport, or for that matter the best interests of the Irish taxpayers who ultimately fund the sport.

The chief beneficiaries of these changes to the Irish Derby Day card are the Curragh Racecourse and the Hong Kong Jockey Club’s betting operation.

One common misconception is that the local Tote is a major beneficiary of the World Pool. HRI’s website states: “The 2021 (Epsom) Derby was a World Pool event for the first time and saw the pool grow from £1.7 million to over £26 million.” While the overall pools grow significantly, the local Tote only gets a share of the bets placed by its own customers.

So why did HRI sanction these changes in the first place? Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that HRI owns a 37% stake in the company that operates the racecourse, Curragh Racecourse Limited.

The racecourse has been a drain on HRI’s finances since its rebuild and maybe the additional Media Rights money the track earns from Tote World Pool days is seen by HRI to have a positive impact on its own balance sheet.

Whatever rationale HRI had for agreeing to the Curragh’s requests to alter the Derby Day schedule, it must be remembered that HRI’s statutory function is “to provide for the overall administration, governance, development and promotion of the Irish horseracing industry, including promoting and increasing attendance at authorised racecourses” and one thing these changes will not achieve is any increase in attendance.

None of the once-a-year racegoers that attended the Curragh on Sunday will remember the names of any of the winners on the day, with the exception of Lambourn. None of the other performances will stand out. There was only one high quality race on the nine-race programme.

The industry cannot rely solely on the Irish Derby to produce lasting memories year after year. It is extremely rare for the first three horses home in the Epsom Derby to turn up at the Curragh and Lambourn was only the 20th horse to complete the Epsom-Curragh double in the history of the sport.

A day as important for Flat racing on this island as Irish Derby Day should strive to showcase the very best of what the game has to offer, rather than be used as a vehicle to maximise betting profits for a foreign racing power.