Racing: Racing plans a Sunday spread

A CUT-BACK on Saturday evening racing, coupled with a vast increase in Sunday afternoon cards, is the main feature of the British Horseracing Board's fixture list for 2000.

Racing will take place on 14 consecutive Sundays next summer. These meetings will take place between June 4 and September 3. Cards will also be held on a further six Sundays, including 2 January.

A total of 162 evening fixtures are scheduled on 76 dates including six Saturdays during the summer on 13, 20 and 27 May, and 1 July and 19 and 26 August.

With a total of 1,209 fixtures, there are in total six extra, all on the Flat, compared to this year, three of which take place on the all- weather surfaces.

The BHB has also agreed to undertake a comprehensive review of the fixture allocation process prior to the development of the list for 2001.

The BHB's original proposals were not supported at a meeting of the Horserace Betting Levy Board in May when the stumbling block was the loss of hugely popular Saturday evening fixtures. Angus Crichton-Miller resigned as BHB deputy chairman after voting against the proposals at the Levy Board meeting.