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Channel 4 have secured the rights to show all terrestrial racing, including the Derby, Grand National and Royal Ascot.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/mar/19/channel-4-derby-grand-national-royal-ascot

It seems we will never be rid of this infernal McCririck - though may be comedy value in seeing him in top hat and tails at Royal Ascot.

Really surprised by this.

I was of the undersatanding that a select few "Trophy Events" (Grand National, Derby, Cup Final, Boat Race etc)  were "protected", & the PSB in the UK had the permanent right to them. This has changed, presumably?

I thought this was the case too

Downside. McCririck

Upside. No more Carson.


(In general Ch4 do racing far better I think, on the BBC apart from the trophy events its often shoehorned into schedules here and there)

The 'crown jewels' are protected to terrestrial TV, not necessarily BBC.

Sky can't exclusively show the Grand National.

Will be interesting to see what happens to Clare Balding now - she's said she's 'not rushing into any decisions about her future'.

Will be difficult for her to stay at BBC after Olympics as the amount of sport they show declines, plus the fact she won't get a look in as main presenter at the one they do have (Wimbledon).

On the plus side, if she does go to Channel 4 then it may well be gg McCririck as she hates him with a passion.

Yuh, Clare to CH4 and McCririck to finally be dumped is odds-on imo.

Be good to lose Carson, Cochrane, Statto, Parrott and Wiltshire tbh, even if it's only been for a few days a year.

Would be good to see the commentator move as well, just to have Jim McGrath talking to Jim McGrath.

lydia hislop >>>>>>any other presenter, also like to see graham cunningham from ruk drafted in. Him and the shoe definately my fav pre race analysts.

What will happen to that little chap who bitches about people's outfits?

He gets humanely destroyed, one would hope.

Willie Carson will probably get axed.

Royal Ascot could be laugh on Ch 4 - with the fashion and the adverts there may not be any time to show the racing.

Glad the BBC will lose it, for so long they squeeze races in-between all sorts of sports and other programs its a joke.

Have to admit, the amount of fashion crap they had for Royal Ascot last year was beyond annoying, hopefully that'll be cut down/out, on the downside at least the Beeb had HD.

channel 4 has HD

It does?  I've seen the C4 HD Channel but nothing is ever in HD.

sky 140 is 4HD as far as i know

140

wow you have never seen emma spencer in HD

She's better in HD?

ok who is emma spencer?

shes like one of the hottest little birds on tv , stunning !!!! :) imo

(http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ZVclSD43LFg/S8g4quCpI9I/AAAAAAAAACw/IcDJokqzjes/s320/a+emma+spencer.jpg)

what race does it run it and whats best price?

worst pic ive ever seen of her

Here's a better one - also features Mike Cattermole for those who like that sort of thing.

(http://www.mikecattermole.com/public/images/96a.jpg)

 ;applause; ;applause; ;applause; ;applause; ;applause;

Geo

Aren't those two seeing each other at the mo?

Gonna take more than 3d to convince me tbh.

Agree with all those except the Cockroach.

I think he's pretty good.

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7kNlL4IMaU

Sandy

Great jockey when the money was down. Can't think of anyone stronger in my lifetime. Very shrewd when it came to utilising a good draw too.

Not seen a huge amount of him as a pundit tbf but no Hoiles from what I've seen. Racing is defo the worst analysed sport on TV.

oh emma ramsden as i knew her back in the day

I wouldn't be too sure about Wimbledon Andrew as she already does the BBC radio commentary for it.

I'd be surprised if Andrew Castle's feeling totally secure about his job as anchorman.

Personally I can't stand either of them I'd have Willie Carson doing Wimbledon in a heartbeat.

The thing with Wimbledon though is it is Sue Barker's thing - giving that to Clare would mean getting rid of Sue, which is something the BBC will be loth to do given the strife they've recently got into for shipping older women out to pasture.

Derek Thomson doing the fashion, oh dear.

Willie doesn't get enough love!

Too easy.

Balding is doing the Paralympics for C4 who have the coverage, later this year. I would think she'd end up doing C4Racing. Never really felt right watching her present Castleford v Wakefield in the Rugby League Challenge Cup, really......

Even worse - posho Clare at Frimley Green for the darts (though she is very good at whatever she presents)

So, the axe has been wielded and McCririck's a goner. Predictably, he's bowed out with good grace and decor..oh wait.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/oct/25/john-mccririck-channel4-ageism-axed

Also gone - Alastair Down, Mike Cattermole, and Thommo (Francome and Lesley Graham we already knew about)

Staying - Emma Spencer, Simon Holt, Richard Hoiles, Jim McGrath, Tanya

Coming in - Nick Luck, Graham Cunningham, Rishi Persad, Mick Fitzgerald and the cute-as-a-button Gina Bryce.

A pretty good cutting of deadweight but it would have been impossible for them to really screw this up, as they could pick and choose the best from the BBC and the two racing channels. Rishi I could do without - too much of a transparent blando like Jake Humphries (who has now turned up presenting the One Show - his natural home)

luck= good presenter but a massive defender of the worst parts of racing

cunningham= dont think he is a good judge tbh but at least he has an opinion would imagine channel 4 would like him to reign in his sometimes almost bullying on screen

persad= just hideous

fitzgerald= "nice hoarrrrrrrrrrrrrse" "the favourite looks well" " chemical nickys told me this one is working well" there you go saves you watching him

bryce = nice enough girl good to look at has no opinion though and is very much another fence sitter in the industry

Why let Francome go and bring its Micky Fitz? 

I don't get that, I hate the man.  Both as an analyst and as a jockey.  He cost me my biggest winning day.  He offers nothing insightful on ATR and as a general rule of thumb laying his selections is profitable.

Rishi is terrible, he serves no purpose. 

Luck - I like for the most part.

Gutted to be losing McCririck and Thommo, grew up with them always on the racing.

My Dad has a video somewhere of when I was like 4 years old at York races and McCririck asked me live on air what I fancied in the next race. I think I said I don't know, ask my Dad and he laughed and did exactly that.

And Thommo is a legend, I don't like it when he gets bad press. A couple of years ago my Dad won tickets to go watch morning line live (before they had a live audience every week) and a day at the races in hospitality.

Anyway most of them pretty much ignored us which was fine but Thommo spoke to us for like 10 minutes before and 20 minutes afterwards telling us stories and he was really funny on the advert breaks too. Top bloke.

Tanya Stephenson was nice too actually, she tipped us Regal Parade which later won at like 16s.

At least most of the new additions are decent, with the exception of Rishi, who I think we all agree is truly awful.

Rishi is an absolute joke.....would have tuned in for Lydia Hislop and surprised/disappointed they didn't go for her

got to much of an opinion and ap wont talk to her

Don't care about horse racing but that Rishi dude has got to be the most boring tv presenter ever, hate his monotone voice.

Pleased with the drops.

McCririck and Thompson should have gone years ago.

Francome became lazy as a judge years ago. Never did an ounce of research and just guessed. McGrath embarrassed him over and over again with his knowledge.

I would have dropped Emma Spencer though.

Mist of the pick ups I approve of too.

Balding is the guvnor. And she'll be better now not lumbered with Carson.

Persad is going to do the Thommo role obviously.

Cunningham is excellent.

Only one I'd argue with is Fitzgerald. He'll add zero.

Hoiles is streets ahead of all other TV types. Nick Luck (NB)

mmmm, Cunningham I like and he has some balls about him after starting a tipping site and then basically one day after a few horrid months of tipping 5/2 chances ew in bad ew races he shut it down and sent everyone that months subscription back.


Would have liked to see Cattermole stay tho.

This might not be very PC but Rishi=token. The guy is awful and gets the job for one reason.

This.

This might not be very PC but Rishi=token. The guy is awful and gets the job for one reason.

This

Alastair Down being ditched is a mistake but the rest of those axed probably ok. Glad they kept Jim McGrath too.

They messed up the morning line a few years ago when they changed it, can see the same with the main coverage. BBC was dull and made none hardcore racing fans simply switch off. CH4 used to be full of characters and presenters that were different and that's why it was special.  Copying the style of BBC and using all the same stiffo's means doom switch for me.

John McCririck says his dropping from the Channel 4 Racing presentation team is "absolutely outrageous". http://ow.ly/eMUY9

he is soon to leave for his annual freebie at the breeders cup

I've a feeling that once Rishi was on the firm Cat was out as they don't get on.

Cat once handed over to Rishi as "the man with the tan" years ago on BBC and I'm sure the rift is ongoing.

As a real racing fan i think they would be much better served by getting a couple of proper punters on there to be honest.  The "horsey" demographic is way over represented by the likes of Alice Plunkett, Emma Spencer, Clare Balding etc but with the exception of Jim McGrath who, whilst undoubtedly clever, is a bit dry.  I would really love to see Eddie Fremantle get a mainstream job but the man i have always thought would be incredible is Harry Findlay.  He has that larger than life personality and would be sufficiently opinionated and if he said "I have had twenty grand on this jolly and it cannot get beat" it would add a story and interest to the races for those that haven't had a bet.

Didn't realise Fitzgerald was in for race and form analysis. Roffle @ that.

found this from 2002 on the beeb website

"An articulate and witty figure, Fitzgerald makes for interesting interviews as he proved after one of his biggest successes."


not a great prediction that

GC  is a great addition. Lots of time for the bloke.

Would have hoped Cunningham would have been in the form analysis team.

Doubt Findlay has enough to have 20 quid on anything at the moment, let alone 20 grand.