Caulfield's new indoor Heath track will need another set of trials before it is given the green light to race after the new surface hosted its first official event on Monday morning.
While feedback on the new surface has been positive, riders want to see how the track will compete at full field sizes, given no more than seven horses will compete in a single trial on Monday.
Melbourne Racing Club CEO Josh Blanksby said they had hoped to get the approval mark this week to race on the Heath before the expected April start date, but said they were happy to wait and do another set of trials to meet all their requirements. .
“The riders really liked the main turn and the camber, which was one of the concerns when we were designing it,” he said.
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“We didn't get as many horses as we wanted, so the fields weren't full because there was a big group of trials in Geelong (on Tuesday).
“We had done some trials with just five and six horses, so the jockeys said they wanted some trials with 12 horses, which is a potential field size in races.
“The other comment is that they would like to have more riders at the track before any races are held there. We will work with Racing Victoria and do another set of tests in the next few weeks to give it another chance.
“We were hoping we could outline all the requirements today and announce the first race meeting, but we won't.”
With Caulfield's bumper autumn carnival approaching, Blanksby said they would not rush the Heath track, which had originally raised concerns from the Victorian Jockeys' Association due to the narrow inside track.
“Craig Williams noticed that at the back, it looked like the right track, and it was good,” Blanksby said.
“There is a meeting scheduled for April 17, which is the target date all along, so anything before that will be a bonus.
“We can try to hold a race meeting in March if we get the signatures, otherwise we will stick to the April plan.
“There have been some good growing conditions with the rain, but we will let it settle a little longer.”
Originally published as Caulfield's controversial new inland Heath track goes on trial again before receiving race mark of approval
