THE first in a series of 50 National Hunt races offering a bonus element for smaller trainers took place at Gowran Park yesterday.

Supported by the Irish Racehorse Trainers Association, Irish Stable Staff Association and Irish Jockeys Association, the William Hill Each Way Extra Challenge Series features 50 races spread across 28 meetings at 13 racecourses.

Run over seven months, the series is open to all trainers but the bonus element is only open to trainers with 50 or fewer winners in either of the last two seasons in either code. Any rider who rides for a qualifying trainer will have bonus points allocated, while riders who ride for ineligible trainers will not receive series points for those rides only.

Stable staff from all yards will qualify for the bonus element, including staff of trainers who are ineligible. A €100 best-turned-out award will be given to the stable staff for each race in the series.

The series will see points allocated per race to trainers and jockeys allocated on a first to seventh place finishing basis (10,6,5,4,3,2,1) with an overall table to decide the prize winners at the final fixture on April 24th. The winning trainer will receive €50,000, and the winning rider and stable staff will receive €10,000 respectively.

Feidhlim Cunningham, CEO of the Irish Racehorse Trainers Association, commented: “This initiative is a fantastic opportunity for medium and smaller trainers. The IRTA is delighted to have developed this series in partnership with William Hill which rewards trainers, their riders and stable staff.

“The races are open to all trainers, ensuring nobody is excluded from running, while the bonus element is specifically reserved for those who trained fewer than 50 winners last season. This represents real, meaningful support for grassroots racing in Ireland.

“With €100,000 in bonuses available for trainers, the €50,000 first prize equates to winning €732,000 in gross prize money. The exposure this series will provide to trainers nationwide will be hugely important, and we are very grateful to William Hill for sharing our vision of what this series can achieve.”