No crowds - but plenty of jump racing action at Fontwell Park

Over they go at Fontwell Park / Picture: Getty

They might still not be allowed to let punters in – but staff at Fontwell Park are getting ready for a busy few weeks of racing action.

There are four race meetings scheduled over the next couple of months, including National Spirit Hurdle raceday, which contains the popular course’s richest race of the year.

Fontwell’s latest attempt to get racing on, last Sunday, was called off three days before racing because of waterlogging to parts of the track.

Clerk of the course Philip Hide and his team will hope for drier conditions from now to enable them to press on with a series of fixtures which, although they won’t be open to the public, will be shown on Racing TV.

First up is a jumps meeting next Wednesday (February 10) and that is followed by another on Thursday 18.

Sunday, Feburary 28, is National Spirit raceday. It’s the most valuable and prestigious race in Fontwell Park’s calendar, named after the winner of the champion hurdle from the 1940s.

It attracts some of the finest hurdlers in the country and recent winners include Vision Des Flos, Old Guard, Camping Ground and Lil Rockerfeller.

March is equally busy at Fontwell, with meetings on Wednesday 10, Saturday 20 (which would normally be their big Irish-themed celebration for St Patrick’s Day) and Monday 29.

Staff are also working on plans for a special online event for racegoers.

They tweeted this week: “We’ve got an exciting free online event with some very special guests coming soon. We can’t say too much yet.”

The event will star 31-time Cheltenham Festival winning trainer Gordon Elliott and 25-time Cheltenham Festival winner and Grand National and Gold Cup winner Davy Russell.