These days, bad weather need only delay, and not destroy, the rhythms of racing. Fast work by all concerned yesterday produced a new date and venue for the eagerly awaited clash between the champion staying hurdler, Big Buck's, and the young pretender, Diamond Harry.

Ascot's admirably early decision to abandon a lost cause meant that work could begin on rescuing the featured Long Walk Hurdle. After several hours of calls from the racing office of the British Horseracing Authority, the agreed solution was to relocate the race to Newbury on December 29.

The Long Walk will now be worth £70,000, rather than its original value of £100,000 but, for connections of the horses involved - and the public keen to watch them - the salvaging of a race that would once have been lost outweighs any such decrease.

It is understood that Kempton's Christmas meeting was an alternative proposal but Newbury was regarded as more suitable. The Berkshire track will now stage an enticing eight-race card that afternoon including two grade ones - the Long Walk augmenting the Challow Hurdle won a year ago by Diamond Harry.

Paul Nicholls, trainer of Big Buck's, will be relieved not only to get another run into his champion but on a course where he has already excelled, easily outpointing a decent field last month. The 11 five-day entries for Ascot will stand for the rescheduled race.

Many other horses must seek fresh targets after the loss of Ascot's two-day programme. One trainer making a swift decision is Donald McCain, who will divert Inventor, his unbeaten novice hurdler, to Kempton.

McCain and his stable jockey, Jason Maguire, rerouted to Uttoxeter yesterday and maintained their impressive momentum with another double through Predictive and Ernst Blofeld.

Frost covers enabled the Staffordshire track to race and may achieve the same for Haydock today.

Carlisle's fixture tomorrow is already subject to an inspection this afternoon and, with 70 per cent of the course frozen, prospects are bleak. Kempton, meanwhile, have covered the entire track a week in advance of their Christmas Festival.

Those seeking a sunshine feel today might head to Lingfield to enjoy the British debut of an exotically international horse. Drogba was a champion two-year-old in Peru and now makes his debut for the Italian trainer, Marco Botti. He is owned by Claudio Pizzaro, the Peruvian footballer, and named after his former Chelsea teammate.