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Before they got to itv cameras , if that’s true Nico is deservedly is in a world of ****
Pick 3 on Saturday champion 2025/2026
Is “Irish” a race? I thought it was a nationality?
The only thing it could possibly be is “pikey”, I would think.
I don’t know what he’s allegedly said but there were a couple of words that sprung to mind as potentials to me, hopefully not the case.
On another note it just occurred to me that in the first tomorrow, the Dawn Run, James Bowen is jocked up to ride on Carrigmoornaspruce for Declan Queally. Might be a bit awkward for James considering he’s very connected to the Henderson yard.
Those were my first thoughts too, but would Nico say that in front of the ITV cameras?
That was one of the words that came to me also Glad, possibly another ‘P’ word which some might feel isn’t as discriminatory
I guarantee you if you included the word Irish in reference to someone’s actions in a workplace there will be trouble. For example “it’s always the Irish who don’t wash their mugs in the kitchen”, it will not be tolerated in the modern world.
The more I know the less I understand.
Handbags indeed. In any level of sport that is competetive there is highly charged banter. Id have told the entitled prick to learn to not try and fall so much and to stick it where the sun dont shine. He comes across as a most entitled arsehole like the ones i met at uni in my younger days. Think the world owes them. Totally lacking in class and decorum.
“he called me a f*****g p***k a couple of times in front of the ITV camera”
Apparently Nico prior to the meeting in an article on Cheltenham Festival starts, had said:
“We’re racing all the time and we’re trying to protect the sport. The problem is an amalgamation of some of the Irish lads coming in and the amateurs who – and there is no other way of putting it – just don’t care.”
Great job ‘protecting the sport’ there Nico – sounds like he already had a bee in his bonnet about the Irish jockeys – maybe the alleged racial slur wasn’t picked up by the ITV cameras and if that is the case then we have a he said, he said incident and are the other jockeys and/or people within earshot of the incident at the time going to drop another jockey (a professional of Nico’s stature within their ranks) in it by backing Declan Queally version? Afterall we all know how the jockey ranks closed and turned against Bryony Frost in her incident with Robbie Dunne.
If it was professional against professional then I would imagine Nico probably wouldn’t have said anything but given it was an amateur and an Irish one at that he probably felt his entitled self was well able to intimidate and get away with that kind of behaviour.
I always feel theres a sense of inverted snobbery at play with Nico.
And i feel it gets his shackles up more than it should and he reacts.
Mind, declan crying to matt chapman, what was that about? Surely keep it in the weighing room. By all means make an official complaint. Also the “i’m an amateur card” nice day out with the wife and kids, its the bloody pinnacle of the sport. Everybody deserves respect, but its also a level playing field.
The racist aspect will be interesting. Cant for the life of me think what he has said thats racist. If he’s made anti-irish slurs or whatever, thats gonna make him very, very unpopular. Sure his best mate is gavin sheehan.
Anyway, hopefully it gets sorted through proper channels and we can avoid the pile on.
There’ll probably be a hearing in 2028 once they’ve gathered all the evidence.
The more I know the less I understand.
Agree Mickeyjp. We don’t know (yet) what was actually said. Nico comes across as the sort of entitled character who reinforces negative public opinion about our sport. That said, Declan Queally was officially reprimanded for his part in delaying the start of a race at the international showcase of British racing and forceful negative comments from fellow jockeys are to be expected. Nature of these comments are key so depends on witness statements…
I get why jockeys get tetchy. Its a hugely dangerous sport and the adreline will be pumping massively especially at a charged cheltenham. Calling him what he allegedly did reeks of snobbery. I had it when my council school beat one of the top public schools at rugby. When we finished the game we had all showered and were on our way home when you could clearly hear their coach saying how dare they lose to us oiks.
One thing i will say though. Queally looks a unit. If i had his size i would have pinned nico against the dressing room wall and told him to watch his tone. Im sure other irish jockeys wont be best pleased if hes made it racial. Not a good look for racing.He wouldnt have dared say that to davy russell as he knew hed have face consequences. The fact hes targeted an amateur is a low blow similar to dettori. Nico not exactly at the top of his game just now. Pot,kettle,black.
I don’t really want to say anything more on this, let the investigation take its course etc…. but some parting thoughts I’ve had, with the I just wonder if the article/interview Nico gave previously which is likely to have put Declan’s back up which we know referenced the group of jockeys he was targeting as ‘Irish lads’, likely to be similar again? I get what refuse to bend is alluding to earlier on, you do have to be careful using even something as factual as somebody’s nationality to describe them these days but its a bit tit for tat as Declan has also said he didn’t like being abused by an English jockey. Feels a bit handbaggy, tit for ta maybe
I’m not Nico’s biggest fan here but you hear some terrible things said about him which are stereotypes of his upbringing/heritage also. I will hold my hands up here and say I shouldn’t have referenced him coming across as a douche yesterday, that was overstepping the mark.
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