- The Clarence House Chase will take place a week on Saturday at Cheltenham
- Fixtures at Haydock and Taunton have been called off due to frozen conditions
- Saturday’s card at Lingfield hinges on an inspection on Saturday due for 2pm
The Clarence House Chase has been rescheduled for a week on Saturday at Cheltenham — but the race will not feature the fancied El Fabiolo.
The Grade One two-mile chase was due to be run at Ascot on Saturday, with El Fabiolo taking on Nicky Henderson’s Jonbon in a heavyweight clash between the leading contenders for this spring’s Queen Mother Champion Chase.
But after freezing conditions caused the Ascot meeting to be abandoned, El Fabiolo will wait for the Ladbrokes Dublin Chase at the Dublin Racing Festival on the first weekend in February, a meeting at which he won the Arkle Novice Chase last year.
There is no jump racing in Britain on Saturday, with fixtures at Haydock and Taunton also frozen off, while the card at Navan, which features in ITV’s coverage, must pass a 7.30am inspection.
Saturday’s card at Lingfield, which includes the return of Venetia Williams-trained Cheltenham Gold Cup hope L’Homme Presse in the Fleur De Lys Chase, hinges on a 2pm inspection on Saturday, with temperatures predicted to rise over the weekend.
El Fabiolo will miss the highly-anticipated duel with Jonbon that was set for Ascot on Saturday
Freezing conditions have played havoc with Saturday’s racing with the Clarence House Chase now set for a week Saturday at Cheltenham
