All-weather racing enjoys the same response from horseracing fans as Marmite does from toast lovers. Some love it, others hate it.

Okay, the allure of attending a mid-winter meeting at Wolverhampton to see horses run on an artificial surface won’t be as great as watching the Gold Cup on Ladies’ Day at Royal Ascot in high summer. But that doesn’t mean we should become all-weather snobs. In fact, the UK’s all-weather racing scene is going from strength to strength. Good news, hopefully, for punters who try to make money from races run on the sand.

The three courses in the UK that currently stage all-weather flat racing are Lingfield Park, Wolverhampton and Southwell.