Ruby Walsh: Racing like this weekend deserves a greater reach

Millions of yellow lights dotted for as far as I could see meant millions of people but, in reality, would even 0.01% be thinking or even care about what happened this weekend at Haydock, Ascot, or Punchestown? Would any of them be passing judgment on the quality of the Betfair Chase?

Would anyone in the lights below wonder if Lossiemouth, Brighterdaysahead, and State Man would line up in the Morgiana? Or would any of them be involved in a debate about how Fastorslow is better than Galopin Des Champs at Punchestown, and that he could be the value in Sunday’s John Durkan? Could someone else be suggesting Fact To File would beat them both in an attempt to keep the Galopin fan from clocking the Fastorslow groupie?

Indeed, if that debate had occurred, someone would have made a detailed and robust case for Spillane’s Tower, but I doubt it was happening. The best of our sport would matter so little to those below me.

When I landed back in Dublin early on Thursday evening, the sports bulletins didn’t even carry the news of who was running this weekend. Still, they had news about League of Ireland signings, the absence of Daniel Wiffen and Mona McSharry from the short-course world championships in Budapest, and those who wouldn’t play for the Ireland women’s soccer team next Friday in Cardiff.

I expected Andy Farrell’s team selection to lead the sports news, which it did. However, State Man, Lossiemouth, Brighterdaysahead, Galopin Des Champs, Fastorslow, Fact To File, and Spillane’s Tower still didn’t even get a passing mention.

Somehow, horse racing has moved itself into a position of the mundane, hidden, forgotten. Interest has waned, so it is not worth mentioning until after the event, but horses are athletes, and some of Ireland's finest are strutting their stuff this weekend. 

Will the presence of those stars and the line-ups at Haydock and Ascot even keep racing nay-sayers happy? Probably not, as those who choose so will focus on the three-runner Florida Pearl on Saturday afternoon and moan, whinge,  and cry about the state of the sport without even contemplating why a race like this has ended up so uncompetitive. The answer is obvious if you wish to find it, yet so many won’t.

Still, a race like the Florida Pearl survives on the winners from September and October meeting here in November, but no-one ran in those months because of no rainfall, and hence, you now have no winners to clash here—the knock-on effects.

All will right itself in time, but I worry about the changes made to the Christmas programme and whether the correct races were axed and changed. I doubt they were, but that’s for another day because from 11.30am until just after Ireland and Fiji go at it in the Avia, the racing will entertain you.

Well, you might have to wait until midday at Punchestown when Butch Cassidy, Sermandzarak, Shuffle The Deck, and Zillow go at it in the maiden hurdle, but there is depth to today and, going on current stable form, Sermandzarak could be the one to be with.

Kloth Of Utopia can get the French off to a flyer at Ascot before Ballyburn, last season's leading novice hurdler, makes his chasing debut at Punchestown at 12.30pm. His schooling and work are good enough to deliver substantial rewards in this division throughout the season.

The Gordon Elliott rider arrangements suggest Stellar Story is the chosen one in his race at one o’ clock, and Paul Nicholls’s jockey bookings suggest Ascot is the place to follow his runners, so Pic D’Orhy, at 1.30pm, should be too good for Dashel Drasher.

Iroko, Trelawne, Tahmuras, Deafening Silence, and Hillcrest square off at 1.50pm up at Haydock, and Iroko is a horse that I believe is capable of winning a big race and could start his season in good style.

The Morgiana Hurdle goes to post at 2.10pm in Punchestown, and many will be champing at the bit to see Lossiemouth and Brighterdaysahead go toe-to-toe with State Man. I wish them the best of luck, but neither has one piece of form to suggest they will beat him to me, and I think he will win his third Morgiana.

Doyen Quest was supported last Saturday at Cheltenham like defeat was out of the question, and he duly obliged. This leads him to a follow-up attempt at Haydock. Still, cash for Shoot First or Backmeorsackme should be respected at 2:30pm.

Golden Ace downed Brighterdaysahead last March at Cheltenham, and the Ascot Hurdle at 2.45pm looks hers for the taking before Grey Dawning puts his credentials on the line in the Betfair Chase at 3.05pm at Haydock.

Royal Pagaille and Ahoy Senor have to be respected, but if Dan Skelton's grey is going to dine at the same table as those who run in Sunday's John Durkan Chase, he has to down both of those and Hewick, The Real Whacker, and Bravemansgame.

The Aces in that “Gold Cup” division are this side of the Irish Sea, and outside of Gerri Colombe, they line up at Punchestown on Sunday. Moving the John Durkan to November has been a great move by Punchestown and its intermediate trip of two miles and four furlongs is viewed by most professionals as the ideal starting point in a season.

In this particular contest, it’s one-all between Fastorslow and Galopin Des Champs, but Martin Brassil's charge holds a 3-1 lead at Punchestown in the overall score of 3-3.

Derek O’Connor takes over from the injured JJ Slevin on Fastorslow, but the JP McManus trio of Inothewayurthinkin, Spillane’s Tower, and Fact To File add the real spice to this contest, as does Grangeclare West.

The track and trip favour Martin Brassil’s charge, but there is a chance a new chasing king could announce himself in Kildare tomorrow, and this could be the first round in the lion's pit as one seeks to become the ruler.

The sports stars are lining up to strut their stuff, and a big part of me would love for more people to realise just how good this great game can be. Someday maybe.