Uttoxeter Racecourse will host the Midlands Grand National on 20 March

Ground staff at Uttoxeter Racecourse are battling hard against the weather to make sure it is ready for the busiest time of the year at the venue.

The last three meetings at the Staffordshire course have been put in jeopardy by poor conditions.

General manager David MacDonald told BBC Radio Stoke: "We have 22 people who lay over 7,000m of fleece covers over a 1.2 mile stretch in a couple of hours.

"It's an incredible operation that all has to come up on the day of racing."

MacDonald continued: "At temperatures down to minus three, it looks as though fleece protects the racecourse.

"Anything less than that, you're in the lap of the gods, but we're quite hopeful for temperatures above that."

Uttoxeter hosts the Tote Raceday on Saturday, with the Midlands Grand National taking place four weeks later on 20 March.

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