Richard Dunwoody's Blog by Richard_Dunwoody

The Grand National left us plenty to talk about. The race itself saw some tremendous performances, particularly from those who rode the first five home. The rides by Jason Maguire, who brought Ballabriggs home in front, and Graham Lee, who did so well to get Big Fella Thanks into the race before the horse’s stamina waned, were particularly praiseworthy. It also showed that different methods of training can be successful. Jonjo O’Neill campaigned last year’s winner Don’t Push It over hurdles until he ran a fine third for AP McCoy in the renewal. There has been considerable amounts written about the deaths of two horses in the race. You can appreciate where the Animal Rights activists are coming from. No-one wants to see animals killed in the name of sport.

Europe continues to point the finger at Spain for bullfighting. Bureaucrats and animal welfare groups are trying to have it outlawed. The bull of course has little or no chance when it enters the ring but we do have to monitor very closely the vagaries of our own sport. The stats for the Grand National point out that an average of one horse is killed every year. That’s one too many. And it is an incredibly difficult situation for the racing authorities. Horses are bred to jump fences, bred to gallop. They are looked after to a very high standard. They are born to race, but should the industry – the sixth biggest in Britain – bow to more pressure from animal rights groups? There is no getting away from the fact that it is a tough race. And those who say the deaths are unacceptable have a very valid point. Someone put forward the view that the event is like an accident blackspot in horse racing. A lot of sports have or have had their own blackspots, but then things are done to try and eradicate the problem. But what can we do to alleviate or eradicate the problem with the National?

If you change the structure of the race, you may as well do away with it altogether. Should we lower fences and/or lower the distance? Let’s not forget that both horses were killed before they’d gone six furlongs. Jumping at speed over regulation fences will invariably mean the odd fatality too. Is the Grand National too dangerous? John Francome dealt with these issues well when interviewed on BBC Radio 5 Live last week. There are even some people in racing who can’t stomach the Grand National. They don’t like watching it. And that goes for trainers and owners too. Desert Orchid, for instance, was never given the chance, because connections did not want to risk him. But cutting down the size of the fences isn’t necessarily the answer to make it that much safer. I’ve never seen the first fence cut as short as it has been in the past two years, but still there are fallers at it.

Fortunately, Racing works closely with the RSPCA. And Racing is very lucky that the charity’s equine consultant is David Muir, a man who has a very sensible head on his shoulders. He is going to take part in a review of the Grand National course and he said: “I was gutted that two horses died because I put a lot of work into that course. What I will do now is go back and have a look at each element, with the BHA and the racecourse management, to see if the jump contributed to what happened, look at the take-off and landing side and so on, and see if the evidence suggests something can be done about it. “I’m trying to make the race better, safer where I can, but the one thing I can never do is eliminate risk: that's always going to be there.” Muir has fought the horse’s corner and the industry would be under a lot more pressure from some of the more militant groups if a less knowledgeable man was in his place. His cause has not been helped by some sensationalist reporting, particularly from the Mail On Sunday and Daily Mail.

The hypocrisy of the Mail’s editors is astonishing. Look at the amount of coverage they devoted to the race beforehand. They even included a sweepstake kit! Then we get sensationalist, over-the-top coverage of the two horses that died on the Sunday. If they don’t like the Grand National, then don’t cover it. Don’t try and sell papers by putting the racecard into the paper. Don’t build the race up beforehand. Let’s have not a word written about the National. You think that will happen? I think not. They know the National sells papers. All those involved in racing do care for their horses and horseracing has for many years worked closely with legitimate animal welfare charities, such as the RSPCA and World Horse Welfare, in order to make it safer. That will continue. It’s the sensationalist coverage that racing could do without.

The Chinese Grand Prix was one of the best races I’ve ever seen. Lewis Hamilton was at his aggressive, brilliant best. He put in a terrific manoeuvre to pass his team-mate Jenson Button in the middle of the race and eventually reeled in Red Bull’s world champion Sebastian Vettel with four laps remaining. The new Pirelli tyres make it much more of a contest. When they go off, they go off properly, and there is now much more overtaking, thanks also to the Drag Reduction System (DRS) and the extra horsepower generated form from the KERS energy boost device. F1 is, once again, fascinating. It requires concentration from the viewer to follow what strategy each driver is employing and appreciate how long he can make his tyres last. It promises to be a great season. On Sunday, I went to Hoppegartern in Berlin, where nearly 10,000 spectators saw Hungarian horse Overdose make his return to action. Appearing for the first time since losing his unbeaten record in Germany last year, the six-year-old registered his 15th win from 16 starts when blitzing his rivals in track-record time of 57.1s in a specially framed 5f event. The Temple Stakes at Haydock on May 21 is next on the agenda and Royal Ascot after that.