RACE CARDS SLACKEN IN BANGALORE TURF CLUB

A Turf Tracker Perspective

The Bangalore Summer Meeting 2026 has thrown up a worrying trend that deserves serious attention from everyone connected with the sport. Despite having a sizeable horse population, race cards have consistently been restricted to just six races on most racing days. For a racing centre of Bangalore's stature, this is certainly not an encouraging development.

This season, Bangalore has approximately 650 local horses in training, supplemented by around 50 outstation horses. Compare this with earlier seasons, when the club regularly housed over 700 local horses along with nearly 100 outstation horses, and the decline in the number of runners becomes even more noticeable.

With over 650 horses in training, one would normally expect race cards comprising seven, eight or even nine races on several occasions. Instead, framing even a six-race programme has become a weekly challenge.

Of course, no experienced racing professional expects every horse in training to be race fit at the same time. Horses require time to mature, recover from setbacks, and reach racing condition. Therefore, it would be unrealistic to expect all 650 horses to be available for racing every weekend.

However, what is difficult to understand is why such a large training population is producing comparatively small fields throughout the season. The percentage of horses actually reaching the racecourse appears to be considerably lower than what one would normally expect.

In my opinion, one of the principal reasons lies in the overall preparedness of the horse population following the disruption caused by the Glanders outbreak in December 2025. With training activities resuming only around March 2026, valuable conditioning time was lost. While that disruption undoubtedly affected everyone, several months have now elapsed, and one would have expected a much larger proportion of horses—particularly the three-year-old brigade—to have entered regular competition by this stage of the season.

The relatively slow emergence of the classic generation has been one of the biggest disappointments of the current Bangalore Summer Meeting. Young horses are the lifeblood of every racing season. They bring freshness, larger fields, competitive handicaps and excitement for racegoers and punters alike. Their delayed arrival has inevitably reduced the options available to the handicapper while framing races.

In my view, there also appears to be an element of complacency within sections of the training fraternity. Bangalore is blessed with several highly experienced trainers, many of whom have decades of experience preparing racehorses. With such expertise available, one would naturally expect a larger percentage of the horse population to be race ready by now.

Smaller race cards have consequences beyond the stable area. Owners have fewer opportunities to run their horses. Punters are presented with limited betting options. Racing enthusiasts witness shorter programmes, while the overall betting turnover inevitably comes under pressure. The ripple effect is felt throughout the entire racing ecosystem.

Having been associated with Indian horse racing since my childhood—as the son of a successful Classic-winning trainer, later as a licensed trainer myself, and for the past two decades as a racing correspondent and analyst—I have seen Bangalore produce vibrant race cards with healthy fields and fierce competition. That is why the present trend is a matter of concern.

This article is not intended to criticise individuals but to highlight an issue that deserves discussion. Bangalore remains one of India's premier racing centres, and everyone connected with the sport shares the responsibility of ensuring that its race programmes reflect the quality and strength of its horse population.

The sooner a larger percentage of horses, particularly the younger generation, reaches racing fitness, the sooner Bangalore can return to presenting fuller race cards, healthier fields and a more competitive racing product for owners, professionals, punters and racing enthusiasts alike.

— Turf Tracker