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http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk 23rd October 2012
Mark Bradstock has called for changes following the Cheltenham debacle in which his stable star, Carruthers, was left at the start.
Bradstock, who trains the nine-year-old gelding at Letcombe Bassett, near Wantage, was fuming after his Hennessy Gold Cup hero took no part in the Ryman The Stationer Handicap Chase on Saturday.
Jockey Mattie Batchelor’s mount was at the back as the field funnelled out on to the track by the second-last fence.
But his pleas to starter Simon McNeill that he was not ready fell on deaf ears, and Carruthers stood still when the tapes went up.
Bradstock said: “I think the problem is that where they have moved the second-last fence it has caused the three-mile start to be a complete fiasco.
“Also one of the main issues, which I didn’t realise, is that the BHA (British Horseracing Authority) has instructed the starter to ignore the jockeys.
“That surely is potentially a real welfare issue. A horse could have been kicked, a saddle could have slipped or anything, and that I find mind-boggling.”
Bradstock felt Cheltenham should replace three-mile chases with races over three miles and one-furlong or two furlongs.
And he also called for the BHA to review their directive on starters not listening to pleas from jockeys.
Cheltenham held an inquiry into the incident and concluded that the race had been started properly.
Bradstock, meanwhile, hasn’t picked out a race yet for Carruthers to try again
– BHA has instructed the starter to ignore the jockeys – anyone know about this?
Yes it was a farce. The sad thing was it was treated as a runner.
Shocking for those who backed it.Was a shambles on Friday and nothing was done then , hopefully something will be done before any other races are ruined.
Starters have not been told to ignore jockeys, but the rule states that a jockey should only shout "no sir" in an emergency situation, and not simply because he’s unable to take up his intended position. In my view, Matty Batchelor could have jumped off perfectly well on Carruthers, albeit much further back in the field than he’d have wanted, but took a chance that by stopping his horse going forward (he clearly takes a tug), and shouting to the starter, he’d be able to effect a false start and get another chance. That may well work with less experienced starters than Simon McNeill, but is clearly a breach of the rules, and McNeill was correct to let the others go.
I’ve got plenty of sympathy with the views expressed that the current 3m start is not satisfactory, and it’s probably the case that this wouldn’t have happened had they started 100 yards further back, or indeed filtered in from the hurdles track (as suggested by Ruby Walsh), but that’s a slightly different scenario.
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