A precautionary inspection is to be held at Redcar Racecourse on Friday morning amid the threat from Storm Babet.

Racecourse officials have announced tonight that the inspection will be held at 8.30am ahead of the scheduled eight-race card.

Redcar's general manager Amy Fair said: "The track is raceable as of 5pm this afternoon. However, in light of the unexpected rainfall on Thursday afternoon and the ongoing forecast for Friday, it has been decided that a precautionary inspection will now take place at 8.30am on Friday morning. 

"We obviously hope we can go ahead with what is a competitive card but, as always, safety has to be our number one priority, and a decision will be made as soon as we know the full impact of Storm Babet."

As things stand, the going has been updated to soft and the first race is due off at 1.35pm. There was 10mm of rain at Redcar on Thursday afternoon, with a further 8mm of rain now forecast overnight on Thursday through to 6am on Friday. An additional 8mm is forecast throughout Friday until the end of racing with the last race scheduled at 5.38pm.

Strong winds are also expected throughout Friday.