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DDC rose on the take off side, jumped the birch, stayed within the wings and landed on the landing side. How could he be disqualified for taking the wrong course?
The wings are the boundary of the course. If the wings were forced out then the boundary was very clearly breached.
Capeland should not have been DQ
It should normally be carried out but as he was (gingerly) ridden to the finish rather than pulled up, then the DQ should stand as he was disqualified from any finishing position.
Yes that’s the race Bachelors- thanks it was driving me bonkers trying to remember it.
Seems the eventing world have their own problems:
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.horseandhound.co.uk/news/fei-eventing-flag-rule-petition-685279/ampNo problem
I have no idea how narrow the jumps are but if it’s narrow for one horse then isn’t it narrow for all? Also, shouldn’t the onus be on the rider to ensure the horse stays within the flags? I do recall there being another controversy earlier this year with the “no drawing blood” thing. I wonder how that would have fitted in with the whip debate a generation or so ago.
I’m firmly in the ‘winner should have been DQ’ camp, for two reasons. One is the simple fact that he’s wiped out his closest challenger and the fact that it was accidental and probably prompted by the loose horse, really shouldn’t make any difference.
Because my second reason is that allowing him to keep the race sets a dangerous example. There have been far too many races in recent years in which the leader has been allowed to drift across in front of a challenger at the last fence (sometimes the second last). The jockeys (and two have admitted this to me off the record) now do this deliberately, knowing full well that the stewards will take no action.
Watch films from twenty years ago and you won’t see this happening anything like so often, but it has become an accepted part of race riding in the last few years. Is the modern generation of jump jockeys really incapable of keeping a horse going straight?
AP
I know from same stable, but should there not of been an objection ? by the stewards on behalf of the people who backed capeland.
Is the modern generation of jump jockeys really incapable of keeping a horse going straight?
If a horse veers very sharply and late like DDC, I doubt even Geoff Capes could keep it straight. The jockey didn’t feel the need to beforehand as the distance to the fence and the angle of the horse drifting toward it he felt that their would be no problem but it didn’t turn out like that so was definitely a case of careless riding
How Elusive Kate didn’t get DQ all those years back for taking Sky Lantern across the whole track beggars belief
Charles Darwin to conquer the World
Sandy Boy under the champion jockey being a prime example just now at Exeter
Charles Darwin to conquer the World
Well having watched the Melbourne Cup and the ban Frankie got and its demotion I find it more and more unacceptable that Diego didn’t get disqualified.
Maybe not for careless riding but surely you can’t take out your nearest challenger, even by accident and expect to keep the race!
The more I watch it the worse it looks to me!!
And as someone on here has said it sets a precedent
Troy, there’s no point objecting or appealing on behalf of Capeland’s backers/connections as he finished ninth so wouldn’t benefit from DDC’s disqualification.
However connections of the second should surely be appealing the decision.
Remember Michael Schumacher stopping Damon Hill many years ago.
I didn`t have a bet in the raceFrom Nathan – If a horse veers very sharply and late like DDC, I doubt even Geoff Capes could keep it straight. The jockey didn’t feel the need to beforehand as the distance to the fence and the angle of the horse drifting toward it he felt that their would be no problem but it didn’t turn out like that so was definitely a case of careless riding.
Nathan – Lorcan created his own problem by not taking the ground up the inside rail. The loose horse was well clear. Had he done so, the likelihood of DDC veering left would be slim to none. However, in the odd chance DDC did, Lorcan would have had plenty of ground and time to take corrective action. Good to read that you agree that it was careless riding.
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From Nathan – Sandy Boy under the champion jockey being a prime example just now at Exeter.
I’m glad you mentioned the Exeter race, as I hadn’t seen the race. Watched the replay about a dozen times. This is another example of “Rider Error”. Richard has his whip in his right hand and hits Sandy 4 times after jumping the last. It’s the 4th strike that causes Sandy to veer left and impede the other horse. Richard had ample time to switch the whip to his left hand after jumping the last, as well as having plenty of ground to run down the center of the straight.
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From Raymo – Well having watched the Melbourne Cup and the ban Frankie got and its demotion I find it more and more unacceptable that Diego didn’t get disqualified.
Raymo – Excellent observation, as I had seen the same (BTW, excellent post). Once again, Frankie was guilty of “Rider Error”. Fortunately, the head-on replay was available. Just like Richard, Frankie had his whip in his right hand and struck his horse multiple times causing him to veer left, resulting in the interference. Frankie made no attempt to switch hands and straighten his horse. As appropriate, the stewards got it right with the DQ of Frankie’s horse and the subsequent suspension. Whereas the stewards got it completely wrong in the DDC/Capeland race, concerning Lorcan’s ride.
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On all three occasions, the result was “Rider Error”. All three riders failed to take corrective action and keep their horse straight. Even such accomplished riders such as Richard and Frankie are prone to make errors. Oddly, only one was held to account.
Lots of talk about taking the whip out of the rider’s hands and all we hear from the jocks is that we need the whip to take corrective action. Well, I’m not “anti-whip”, but it does appear that use of the whip causes more problems than solutions (it should also be noted that Lorcan gave DDC a couple of right-handed strikes on the neck a few strides before taking his left turn). These three instances are not an anomaly. I see it all the time, wheather watching racing in the UK, Australia, Hong Kong or the US.
Having no other interest in the race other than as an observer for me the problem lies in how the rules were changed a few years ago.Previously if the offending horse/jockey by interference had changed the likely finishing position of a rival,& the race result,they could be demoted (put behind) or disqualified.Since the introduction of the new way of looking at such incidents I think we have all seen at various times occasions when we can’t believe a horse has been allowed to keep the prize.
If asked the question ‘was the race result affected’…the stewards would in my opinion be hard pressed to say it wasn’t.Watching the finish again after a ‘cooling off’ period I see it differently. Williams has Diego Du Charmil about two horse widths from the inside rail as they go to the last. When the loose horse runs out, Diego Du Charmil does not turn his head in that direction; he carries on fairly straight for a few strides and then, again without looking that way, lurches to his left. Williams grabs his head and quickly pulls him back straight for two strides, at which point Bryony has seen the danger and she attempts to hook Capeland back and go right to get inside Diego Du Charmil.
She doesn’t make it, but Capeland has responded and is going right at about the same speed and velocity as Diego Du Charmil is going left again as he comes off that temporary straight line Williams has pulled him on to.
Rather than the original assumption that Diego Du Charmil cannoned into Capeland and took him out, Capeland hit Diego Du Charmil’s back end hard enough to help turn the horse even more to his left. Arguably Bryony’s decisions – to take no action despite the fact she was right behind the loose horse (Diego Du Charmil was a fair bit to the right of the loose one), and to take nine strides (after it becomes obvious the loose horse is going to run out) before she tries that desperate pull to the right.
If the case was judged on which jockey took the worse decisions as the situation unravelled, then I’d have Bryony as the guilty party. Williams was arguably in a less risky situation than she was – two to three horse widths farther right of the loose one than she was – yet he reacted much more quickly in straightening Diego Du Charmil than Bryony did in changing course on Capeland. It was that too-late decision on her part that contributed to the collision, and it arguably impeded the chances of Williams to once again straighten Diego Du Charmil.
I wouldn’t be too hard on Bryony. As the commentator starts the sentence “Heading towards the last” you can see Capeland’s head turned to the right as she feels him drift and is trying to hold him straight. It still looks like there is plenty of room to jump the fence and DDC isn’t going to close down much so trying to switch behind DDC would have been a momentum- killing move and could have cost her a good jump at the last and her chance at the win. But Capeland doesn’t respond and just yaws his head further to the right while his body keeps going left. It’s a horrible feeling to be coming into a fence on a horse that is doing this- it means they are trying to run out and there isn’t much you can do. Horses can ignore aids if they want to- they can run left with their nose practically touching the saddle on the right if they really want to.
Bryony realises that Capeland isn’t responding and then takes the only option left- hold hard and try to switch behind DDC to take Capeland’s eye off the loose horse and use DDC’s hindquarters as a wing to stop Capeland running out. Unfortunately at that moment DDC takes it into his head to veer hard left after the loose horse, as violently and unpredictably as a horse shying. I don’t think either jockey is at fault but I think Capeland is a hard mouthed brat and I wouldn’t fancy riding DDC down the road if there was a plastic bag in the hedge either.When DDC landed he had his hind legs between the obstacle and the wing, clearly he had “left the course”.
If you don’t believe it, use the freeze frame and have a closer look at his hind legs when they hit the ground. They are 100% outside the fence and still inside the wing!!!
There is also no excuse for him to veer to the left since the loose horse was already past the fence at that time. Therefore the loose horse has zero impact on DDC’s actions or behavior and shouldn’t be used as an excuse.
After watching replays of the incident, here’s my opinion.
Capeland was unlucky because if he’d had been on the other side of Diego Du Charmil he would have clearly won.
Capeland was forced out by his stable companion and jumped the white plastic of the fence. Read one article that said these plastic part of the fence if they be hurdles won’t be there, so Capeland in affect hadn’t jumped the fence. Diego Du Charmil, on the other hand had jumped it in a peculiar way but again if it was a hurdle it would have counted as jumping the obstacle.The horse finishing in second had no grounds to object as he was merely benefiting from DDC mistake, in fact at one point had the advantage, it’s up to Capeland’s connection to object, but I don’t think they’ll get satisfaction from it.
The incident happened because the loose horse (Ballywood) went around the fence and CCD was following him, Capeland was just unlucky to get caught up.
This is just another incident much like Devon Loch’s National in my opinion, they are a rarity in the sport, but do occur from time to time.
You've got to accentuate the positive.
Eliminate the negative.
Latch on to the affirmative.
Don't mess with mister in between.But surely if Capeland’s connections successfully appealed to have DDC thrown out he would only be promoted from 9th to 8th. I can’t see how the stewards could award him the race.
You’re right RR, Clondaw Castle did benefit from the chaos at the last but that doesn’t matter. If DDC is disqualified then Clondaw would be awarded the race. With about a £20k difference in prize money it must be worth a punt.
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