Champion Trainer Willie Mullins was critical of the layout of Navan racecourse today following the win of his Local Celebrity in the Irish Stallion Owners EBF Maiden Hurdle.
Local Celebrity, under Mullins’ son Patrick, made use of favourite Rourke’s Cross’s exit at the second flight when running out the easy winner over the staying on Fair Of Cappamore
However Mullins Snr was subsequently critical of the layout of the track, saying “I’d be totally against the way they have laid out the track today, with island hurdles and no railing. In races like that with 25 inexperienced hurdlers I would have to say it is a step back to the old days – it is a bit like a point to point.
Regarding Local Celebrity, Mullins added “he seems to be doing things right although he might have been a bit fortune today with the favourite going early on. It’s great for the lads (Trinity College Dublin Horse Racing Society Club) after the disappointment of his early exit at Cork the last day.”
Following Mullins’ comments regarding the layout of the track, Clerk of the Course Paddy Graffin said “we’ve got three meetings in the space of nine days here at the moment and I’d much rather the staff use their time to get the track back into good shape rather than labouriously moving the railings on the track. All the top Grade 1 tracks in England like Cheltenham, Aintree and Newbury use island hurdles.
“For me the safety of horses, and most of all the jockeys, is of the utmost importance and the island hurdles give riders far more options and space. The feedback I’ve got from all the senior jockeys is very much in favour of them.
This season’s leading jockey Davy Russell also said “I’m 100% in favour of them. You can see more and have much more room and the horse that ran out in the first race (Jim Feeney) ran out on one of the few parts of the track where there was a railing - just look at the chase track out there, every fence is an island fence.”
