HORSE Racing Ireland will publish details of its 2023 spending plans early next week and the signs are that significant investment will go into prize money levels. Earlier this week it was announced that the Irish Derby pot had been increased by 25% to €1.25 million and last week HRI chairman Nicky Hartery dropped a hint at the HRI Awards that prize money levels remained a priority around the boardroom table.

“Prize money needs help, I believe,” he said. “So we are putting together a task force within HRI - it has already started - to discuss how we improve it over the next couple of years, with media rights coming in on top of that. We need to enhance the core money for all participants, but particularly the owners. Not only have we local owners but we are attracting many from overseas as well.”

In 2019 prize money was a record €66 million but - due to Covid - it fell in 2020 and was partially restored in 2021. This year HRI put €64.8 million into prize money, so it seems certain that the 2023 figure will be a record.

British racing will offer minimum prize money of £5,000 (€5,700) for its lowest class races next year. Irish racing’s minimum prize money per race is currently €10,000.

Hartery’s five-year term as chairman is due to end next May but it is believed that the Co Limerick breeder and businessman is prepared to do a second stint if asked by the Minister for Agriculture.

In his HRI Awards address, Hartery mentioned the new media rights contract and the all-weather track at Tipperary as being at the top of the agenda. HRI and the racecourses are currently in exclusive negotiations with SIS and Racing TV over the sale of Irish racing’s live pictures for the next five years. “We hope to deliver on media rights in the next couple of months,” Hartery said. “That’s a major project underway and it should start to deliver financially from 2024 to 2028.”

He continued: “The all-weather track at Tipperary continues to make progress, We hope to get that completed in the next couple of years.”

Next year’s HRI budget is also likely to feature an increased allocation to the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board. The IHRB chief executive Darragh O’Loughlin has indicated that he wants to increase the amount of inspections carried out and drug tests taken in 2023.

In 2021 HRI launched the IRE Incentive, which sees a €10,000 sales voucher awarded to the winning owner of selected races if the horse is Irish-bred. The scheme cost €1.1 million to fund in its first year and €1.3 million was allocated to it this year. It is likely to be repeated in 2023 but not expected to grow.

Also this week it was announced that the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby will be staged on a Sunday next year, rather than Saturday.

Saturday was the traditional Irish Derby day until 1988 when it moved to Sunday. The Curragh classic moved back to Saturday evening in 2012 but the race has gradually moved to an earlier time slot in recent years.

This year’s edition, won by Westover, went off at 3.45pm on Saturday.

Dubai Duty Free has been the title sponsor of Ireland’s premier classic race since 2008.

For the first time next year, the eight-race card will become apart of the Tote World Pool programme, whereby global tote operators operate a single pool on several major international race meetings.