‘Absolute farce’ blast punters as Alphonse Le Grande disqualified, owners stripped of £90,000 winnings and jockey banned
PUNTERS blasted an ‘absolute farce’ as 33-1 Cesarewitch winner Alphonse Le Grande was disqualified and jockey Jamie Powell banned for breaking whip rules.
The result of Saturday’s big Newmarket race had been in limbo for days as chiefs convened to settle once and for all if Powell had gone over the limit of six uses of the whip.
https://twitter.com/RacingTV/status/1846170523740323858They found he had, banning him for 28 days and naming initial runner-up Manxman the official winner of the 2m2f Flat handicap.
Those who backed the fancied, Simon and Ed Crisford-trained Manxman – who originally lost by a nose – will NOT get paid out.
Punters who backed Irish raider Alphonse Le Grande, even though he has been stripped of the victory, got paid out by bookies on Saturday.
The wait to crown the official winner of the race has left a nasty taste in the mouth of punters – with some arguing bosses MUST come to a decision on the day.
A BHA statement read: “Following his ride on Alphonse Le Grande in the Club Godolphin Cesarewitch Handicap on Saturday 12 October, apprentice jockey Jamie Powell was referred to the Whip Review Committee (WRC) for use of the whip above the permitted level.
“Having reviewed the footage and taken evidence from the jockey, the stewards on the day counted that the rider had used his whip ten times, which is four uses above the permitted level of six in a Flat race.
“The ride and all evidence was therefore referred to the WRC, as is standard practice.
“The WRC meets every Tuesday and Friday. Having reviewed the race and the evidence, the WRC have confirmed that the whip was used on ten occasions by Mr Powell.
“All ten uses made contact with the horse, and none of the uses were clearly and unequivocally for safety purposes only.
“As ten uses of the whip is four above the permitted level, Alphonse Le Grande has been disqualified from the race.
“In addition, Jamie Powell has been suspended for 28 days, this being a Class 2 contest with a total prize fund of more than £150,000.
“As a result of the disqualification, the Club Godolphin Cesarewitch has been awarded to original runner-up, Manxman.
“Should they wish to, connections of Alphonse Le Grande may appeal this decision.”
While Brant Dunshea, Chief Regulatory Officer for the BHA, said: “There is simply no excuse for using the whip four times or more above the permitted level.
“It is encouraging that there have been so few instances of this being the case since the rule was introduced, with this being only the third time a winner has been disqualified for egregious overuse of the whip.
“We understand that some customers will question why this matter cannot be resolved on raceday, especially those who backed the on-the-day runner up Manxman.
“However, this would present its own challenges, and the consultation process of the whip review revealed a strong preference from several key audiences that these matters should be handled away from raceday.
“The Whip Review Committee (WRC) was introduced to ensure consistency of decision-making around whip decisions.
“It is critical that decisions of such importance as potential disqualification are handled in a consistent manner via this process.”
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