The first horse racing event under the new management team at Down Royal Racecourse will take place this week. And to celebrate the start of the new season, racegoers are being given free entry.

Down Royal chief executive Emma Meehan is looking forward to welcoming returning punters and new visitors to Down Royal on Tuesday, January 29.

“The January meeting is usually one of the quieter race days at Down Royal but in 2019 it is something of a milestone for the new management team and we are delighted to be declare the race meeting free to enter, thanks to our partnership with BetVictor,” stated Meehan

I am sure we will see a big crowd here next Tuesday as we host the first race meeting under the new management team. This meeting heralds the beginning of a new era at Down Royal and the team are already looking forward to a busy and exciting 2019, with a full racing calendar over the coming 12 months.” added Meehan.

Matt Scarrott, director of sportsbook at race day sponsors BetVictor said: “We are pleased to be sponsoring the entire card at Down Royal’s opening meeting of 2019; the first under the course’s new ownership and management team and our first time sponsoring in Northern Ireland. We are particularly excited to be offering racegoers free admission on the day through our sponsorship of the gate and we’re looking forward to sharing a great day of National Hunt action with what will hopefully be a bumper crowd.”

 The first race on Tuesday is at 1.15pm and the last race will be at 4.15pm.