Safety issues brought a premature end to today’s Matamata meeting.
Two horses came to grief in the opening event and a subsequent track inspection by stewards with trainers and jockeys’ representatives resulted in a decision to abandon the fixture.
Sam Weatherley’s mount Duke Street came down with 800m to run in the 2000m maiden and Tensile, ridden by Mark Hills, was unable to avoid them and also fell.
Both jockeys and their mounts escaped without injury.
Stewards said they could find no reason for the slippery track.
The meeting will not be re-scheduled as the majority of horses who didn’t race at Matamata have options at Hawke’s Bay, Tauranga and Ellerslie over the next nine days.
New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing, in association with the respective clubs, will look to divide races where possible at these meetings.