Kempton to close in 2021

Kempton to close under shock Jockey Club plans

BY BILL BARBER12:31PM 10 JAN 2017

HISTORIC Kempton Park racecourse is set to be sold for housing as part of a Jockey Club plan to spend at least £500 million on British racing over the next ten years.

The Jockey Club is to build a new floodlit all-weather course should Kempton receive approval for redevelopment, with a new site at The Links in Newmarket the planned venue.

Sandown would receive major investment as part of the plans, with the King George VI Chase set to move to the course permanently.

The plans for Kempton have been developed since Spelthorne Borough Council's recent "Call To Sites". If development was permitted the Jockey Club said it would be looking to ensure it generates at least £100m. Racing would continue there until at least 2021.

The Jockey Club would also require the new all-weather track to be operational before any changes at Kempton.

More to follow...

 

From what I've heard it makes sense, an all weather track at Newmarket sounds good and I'd like to see lingfield get more nh racing. Aside from the King George meeting nh racing at kempton is a non event and sandown is to be redeveloped so yes it makes sense.

 

Well that will be major boost for racing and I'm sure that all weather racing will also receive a major boost as a result, with more class racing taking part on the AW

 

Yet another all weather track. Exactly what the sport is crying out for.

 

I've spoken to a couple of people about this today and it was on no one's radar. Apparently there were rumours about Kempton closing about 4 years ago but it then all went quiet.

Speculation is that JCR did not intend for this news to come out now, it was leaked to the Press, hence why it took BHA nearly 2 hours to put out a statement (and a very bland one at that) in response.

Full JCR press release has been put out here: http://www.thejockeyclub.co.uk/news/proposed-half-a-billion-pound-investment-in-british-racing

 

Exactly, and who in their right mind wants to be standing on the Heath at 8pm on a freezing December evening?! The Rowley Mile is cold enough in April if the wind is coming in off the Urals!

 

Rebs, you could be right but it's great for Newmarket , what with the other project for the aw gallops, HQ will do ok. Although never a fan of aw racing and kempton was never the same after they laid their track, I have warmed to it over the years and the aw championship at lingfield at Easter was a great initiative .

 

The King George anywhere but at Kempton is not the King George so may as well scrap the race as well as the track

 

Oh! And here another thing I think the jockey club should go further and.introduce a summer jumps meeting at Cheltenham that I've been campaigning for, for years.

 

If I'm correct, 1995 King George was held at Sandown Park in January 1996 which One Man won. Only racecourse I can think of which can run the race. But Kempton Park shouldn't be closed down.

 

Moving an All Weather track to Newmarket feels a bit like giving London even more public funding in a budget.

In other words- they've already got enough. Everything they could want through their summers at HQ with the calibre of racing there.

Kempton and Sandown are two very differing tests in a King George.

 

Kempton is in a lovely spot for housing though in fairness. The boom is back!

 

You have to keep in mind that in 96 years time when we are long gone, another generation of race fans will be witness to a King George being run at Sandown and when they look back they will see 96 years worth of winners on the esteemed roll of honour there and the tradition and event will be very much "alive" for them.

The KG being run at Kempton will be nothing more than a "oh look, they used to run it somewhere else before here"

 

Great burgers to be had at Fudpucker

 

I can see why they are doing it. Kempton racecourse is in a very affluent area of the country, and the track is hardly a top track. It has one good meeting a year there.

The racecourse is situated on some very valuable land just to host low grade races a couple of times a week. So it makes sense to flog it for some serious cash, and then build another AW track where land is a lot cheaper.

 

Explain the logic then of building a new AW track at Newmarket. About as much sense as knocking down Wembley and building a new stadium at Wembley!