A NORTH-EAST racecourse has been fined £3,500 after an inquiry ruled its last-minute abandonment of a race meeting was against the rules.

Now, Redcar Racecourse may have to compensate owners, jockeys and trainers following the incident last year.

A two-day Jockey Club inquiry, which ended yesterday in London, said that Redcar had been unfit for racing on the day, and imposed the fine on the course.

The meeting in question, on May 14 last year, was abandoned after a hastily-organised inspection of the course found the track to be in an unraceable condition.

A Jockey Club statement said it was "satisfied that on May 14 there was a substantial number of unfilled holes in the final two furlongs caused by horses hooves at a previous meeting, which had not been repaired, and as a result the course was unfit for racing."

The controversy arose when, five minutes after the advertised first race time, racegoers were told in an announcement that the meeting had been called off "in the interests of safety, due to the track being rough and uneven".

Newmarket-based trainer Nick Littmoden and a delegation of officials, trainers, owners and jockeys highlighted the appalling state of the course to Redcar stewards, who decided to cancel the meeting minutes later.

No one from the racecourse could be contacted for comment last night.