It has been confirmed that Ladbrokes will take over sponsorship of the former Hennessy Gold Cup, one of the highlights of Newbury's racing calendar and indeed the British jumps season. Hennessy ended their 60-year association with the race last year and the new sponsorship agreement will see Ladbrokes sponsor 13 of the 14 races over the two-day winter festival scheduled for Dec. 1-2, 2017. Prize-money for the whole meeting will increase to £700,000, with the feature race also benefitting from a 25% boost to £250,000.
Announcing the new association, Dominic Burke, Chairman of Newbury Racecourse commented, “The Directors of Newbury are delighted to welcome Ladbrokes as sponsor of our most high profile and popular jump meeting of the year. Ladbrokes has supported many races at Newbury over the years, and we are thrilled that Jim Mullen and his team share our ambition to take what is now a superb two-day race meeting to an even higher level, with both days being televised by ITV in 2017.
Ladbrokes chief executive Jim Mullen, added, “I am extremely pleased and proud that Ladbrokes has reached a deal with Newbury Racecourse and we have made a five-year commitment to sponsor the two-day late November/early December meeting featuring the great steeplechase formerly known as the Hennessy Gold Cup. Horseracing is a vital part of the heritage of our business, and we are passionate about maintaining our support of the sport. We have committed to work in partnership with Newbury Racecourse to build the two days of this fixture into one of the most compelling attractions not just in the racing calendar, but in that of sport as a whole.”
The final running of the Hennessy Gold Cup was won by the Colin Tizzard-trained Native River (Ire) (Indian River {Fr}), who will bid to emulate some previous illustrious winners such as Denman (Ire) (Presenting {GB}) and Bobs Worth (Ire) (Bob Back) when he attempts to add the Cheltenham Gold Cup to his CV in March. Hennessy's withdrawal from the Gold Cup follows their similar decision to end a long standing sponsorship of the Irish Gold Cup in 2015, a Grade 1 steeplechase held at Leopardstown each February.
Not a subscriber? Click here to sign up for the daily PDF or alerts.
