'Outraged' BHA set to ignore France Galop in fixture row.

Byline: Lee Mottershead

THE leaders of Racing For Change and the BHA were last night leaning towards ignoring French concerns about British racing's proposed new Champions Day, by announcing that the fixture will take place at Ascot on its intended October 15 date next year.

With the 2011 fixture list now set to be revealed on Friday, senior figures, including BHA chairman Paul Roy, were yesterday involved in lengthy discussions about how to react to a France Galop statement that threatened to put a spanner in the works of what has been billed as a glittering new end to the British Flat season.

Under the plan, a cornerstone of the RFC agenda, Ascot would stage a starstudded card on October 15, highlighted by the Group 1 Champion Stakes, which would move from Newmarket but nevertheless be staged on its traditional date. In addition, Ascot could switch the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes from its September festival to the new card.

While Newmarket would lose its autumn highlight, it would very likely gain Ascot's Group 1 Fillies' Mile, with the race to be staged on October 8, alongside the Dewhurst Stakes, whose revised timing would position it just six days after France's premier juvenile race, the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere.

Responding to the British plan, France Galop said in a Monday night statement that its board wanted "to emphasise the importance of a minimum delay of three weeks between the future meeting and the weekend of the Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe".

In theory, that recommendation to the European Pattern Committee would be enough to prevent the BHA from approving the Ascot meeting. However, British racing's rulers, understood to be "outraged" at the French announcement, are now favouring pressing on with the plan regardless of external concerns.

Also pushing for a Champions Day decision are Fontwell and its owners Northern Racing, w h o s e h e a d o f development Jim Allen said: "We're due to race on Thursday, September 22, just before Ascot's threeday meeting, but if Newmarket and Ascot do a swap in October, we'll move to Friday, September 30, into a slot left by Newmarket.

I f t h a t d o e s n' t happen, we'll stay where we are."

CAPTION(S):

Paul Roy: involved in lengthy discussions