THE British Horseracing Authority said it plans to be in “close communication” with courses due to host fixtures next week to determine whether any extra meetings will need to be scheduled amid concerns that a forecast for freezing temperatures and snow could see tracks forced to abandon their cards.

Chepstow, Newcastle, Newbury and Market Rasen are among tracks to announce that frost covers are set to go down for meetings scheduled next week.

The BHA said: “The racing department is in close communication with all courses racing next week and will be making decisions regarding any additional fixtures in light of these conversations, and also as we get greater certainty in weather forecasts.”

Haydock clerk of the course Kirkland Tellwright said: “If it’s as bad as is forecast I don’t think there’s any amount of protection on the planet that’d save us.”

He added: “From this weekend we’ll have sheeted up all our most obvious areas in order to be ahead of the game. The problem we’ve got is we’re not talking about fresh ground, and we’ve areas of the track that are permanently in the shade at this stage of winter.”

Ascot also plans to put frost covers down on vulnerable areas from today. Clerk of the course Chris Stickels said: “We’ve got varying forecasts, the European and American models differ greatly. One is forecasting cold weather, the other doesn’t expect it to be too bad after Monday. We’ve the threat of some sleet, rain or snow on Wednesday, but at the moment it’s very unclear so we’ll monitor both.”