Ascot a faller but Kempton is one jump ahead of snow

Officials at Kempton Park are confident that Boxing Day's King George VI Chase card will go ahead, despite a cold snap which looks set to wreak havoc on the fixture list over the next few days.

The Sunbury track escaped much of the heavy snow that covered the south east last night and clerk of the course Brian Clifford said: "We got two inches of snow on the frost covers last night and we were lucky. We could have raced today.

"The forecast for the next four or five days is not good, with five to 10 centimetres of snow due to fall and overnight temperatures of around -3C.

"Temperatures are due to rise from Christmas Day into Boxing Day, so we are very optimistic."

Ascot were not so fortunate. Officials were left with no option but to abandon tomorrow's high-profile meeting which included the Grade 1 Long Walk Hurdle, with conditions showing no signs of improvement.

The Berkshire course was hit with between three to four inches of overnight snow and although frost covers were deployed over the whole track, clerk of the course Chris Stickels was forced to call off the two-day fixture.

Stickels said: "There is so much snow on the track it is going to be impossible to move it all and that means we were going to need a significant thaw today, which we are not going to get."

Newcastle will hold a 7.30am inspection to determine if racing can go ahead tomorrow. There is an inch of snow on the track but a sharp frost is expected with temperatures set to dip to -4C tonight.