Mingenew Cup abandoned after just one race due to poor track conditions

After getting off to a successful start with the first race, the Mingenew Turf Club was forced to abandon the rest of its annual race meet on March 9, due to poor track conditions.

Race one saw Im On take out the win with no hitches, but not long after it would be announced that races two through to six would not run due to parts of the track being unsafe.

The annual ticketed Mingenew Cup was much anticipated in the lead-up, with a fashions on the field competition, bouncy castle, novelty horse race, fireworks and live performances all planned for the day, before it was cancelled.

The news came from Country Racing Association Western Australia’s Facebook page, where they posted: “It’s a great disappointment for the hard working committee of the Mingenew Turf Club that Races 2-6 have been abandoned due to a section of the track between the 800-1200 being unsuitable for racing.”

Secretary and Treasurer for Country Racing Association WA John Biggs said that an official had cleared the track before the race but problems arose after the first race.

“Racing and wagering arranged for an official from Geraldton to go down and inspect the track . . . they were obviously satisfied because there was no feedback,” he said.

“After race one, apparently there was a patch of the track, about three or four horses off (the) running rail, which a horse faltered on and because of that, the stewards declared the track unsafe for racing.”

There are no plans to re-schedule the annual event and the club will be looking to fix the issues for next year.