RACING:It may be midsummer but the Curragh's classic Oaks weekend has been torn apart due to an adverse weather forecast which has forced the authorities to abandon tomorrow's fixture.
An estimated six inches of rain in the last fortnight has pounded the racecourse to such an extent that the clerk of the course, Joe Collins, yesterday decided it can only cope with one day's racing this weekend.
Sunday's Darley Irish Oaks card will now have the Group Three International Stakes and the Rockingham Handicap added to it, but it will still be an eight-race programme with the 10-furlong handicap and the Nursery dropped.
"It's a brave decision and we will probably get some flak, but a call had to be made before declaration time," explained Curragh manager Paul Hensey yesterday. "The course is raceable at the moment and the ground is soft to heavy. But with the weather forecast that we have, Joe Collins believes there is only one day's racing in it and we have to prioritise the classic day."
No inspection is currently planned ahead of Sunday, and Hensey said: "I would be confident about Sunday's meeting going ahead."
The running order of Sunday's fixture has been changed, with the Rockingham run first, followed by the Group Three Anglesey Stakes and the Group Three Minstrel Stakes.
The Oaks will be run fourth at 3.30pm. The transferred International Stakes will be run off at 5.05pm.
