​Cheltenham’s management have seen sense and changed the ‘Turners’, the 2-mile-4-furlong novice chase to a handicap. What they have not yet done, which I advise them to do, is transfer the ‘Turners’ as it was to what is known as ‘Trials Day’ in order to maintain a 2-mile-4-furlong championship race for novice chasers. This transfer would allow trainers to decide whether to target the Arkle or the Brown Advisory for their intermediate novice chasers at the Cheltenham Festival.
Cheltenham also propose to return the cross-country race to a handicap, thus denying the once highly-rated chasers, usually trained in Ireland, a race which is more or less a lap of honour for them. The notion that every race at the Festival should be a championship race of one sort or another has proved detrimental to the well-being of the meeting and opening-up the cross-country to every trainer in Britain and Ireland, allows the smaller trainer and owner an opportunity of Cheltenham glory and is to be applauded. 
Of course, the race most in need of revamping is the amateur riders National Hunt Chase, a race that might as well be confined to runners trained by Willie Mullins or Gordon Elliott given the recent record of the race or at least horses from Ireland. I remain convinced, as much of a traditionalist as I am, that the race has run its course and should be upgraded to a 4-mile Champion Chase, with novices receiving a weight concession and opened-up to professional jockeys. The meeting has lost two championship races, why not, perhaps as a three-year trial, give it one back in the form of a stayers’ championship race, thus allowing Willie Mullins and Gordon Elliott to direct the horses that might have run in the cross-country to the new championship race?

Franny Norton is to join Jimmy Quinn in retiring from the saddle. Quinn intends to finish at the end of the turf season, while Norton will bring a halt to his successful career at his beloved Chester this coming Saturday. Franny Norton was one of those jockeys who bridged the gap between journeyman and highly successful, riding over 2,000 winners, along with a fistful of group winners and several major handicaps. His retirement will leave a hole in the jockeys roster at Kingsley Park Farm, which, as will always be the case in racing, someone will speedily step-up to fill. Not that there will ever be another Franny Norton riding for Charlie Johnson.

When it comes to Group 1’s and classics, though she has only a French Oaks to her name, I suggest that not only is Hollie Doyle the most successful female jockey currently but also the most successful throughout the history of the sport in all racing jurisdictions. In the U.S., Julie Crone outstrips her when it comes to number of winners in her career – she rode over 3,000 – and though big prizes came her way, I will be surprised if her tally of Grade I’s was higher than Hollie’s haul, which I believe to be 10 or 11, though on Sunday I was adding Trueshan’s Cadran success to the total when he was ridden by the other Doyle on that occasion due to Hollie being on a suspension. I have asked The Racing Post’s John Randall for clarification. Of course, in my shambolic way of things, I muddled my initial question by not stipulating Group and Graded races as my point of direction.

Finally, sadly, though pleasurably, it appears Bryony Frost has settled very nicely in France and considers the country her new home and is forging a successful career, winning races a plenty and no doubt pleasing her new employers no end. Soon, that 3Ib allowance females receive in France will become a talking point as giving an exceptional talent like Bryony a head start will not please the male jockeys she is competition with.
I hope or perhaps pray that when Daryl Jacobs calls time on his career, Isaac Souede and Simon Munir will consider appointing Bryony to the position as their number 1 and she will be repatriated to her home country and more importantly her home county. Having championed her since the day she won the Cheltenham Foxhunter, I will miss not seeing her name on race-cards, especially when Paul Nicholls has one low in the weights for a big handicap. It almost feels like the end of a love affair, albeit a one-sided, long-distance affair of the heart between two people who have never met and most likely never will. I wonder if Paul Nicholls will miss her?

​The Brueghels’ were painters. There was Jan the Elder, also known as ‘Velvet’, a fact breeders will want to note when naming the offspring they breed from Jan Brueghel the St. Leger Winner, Jan Brueghal the younger, basically copied the style and subject-matter of his father and gained so little fame no sobriquet was attached to him. Then there was Pieter Brueghel, also known as ‘Peasant’ Breughel, who was influenced by the mad art of Hieronymus Bosch. He was followed by Pieter the Younger, also known as ‘Hell’ Bruegel due to his fascination with depicting the devil, hags and robbers. If he were alive today he would doubtless be court painter to the United Nations or the World Economic Forum.
Sadly, not one member of the Brueghel dynasty was noted for painting racehorses. Perhaps not one of them could master the art of painting a horse in movement, unlike many of their profession who thought horses raced with a gait not dissimilar to a rocking-horse and have suffered ridicule for all the years after their death.
Jan Brueghel, also known as the ‘Equine’ Brueghel, gallops with the grace of a Keily Hodgkinson and the power of an express train and could turn out to be one of the better St. Leger winners of recent years. Not that it has changed my view of the St. Leger, that it is a classic dying on its feet and is in need of reinvention, though this year’s renewal, I must admit, was a zinger, a race for the ages, as some might say. Illinois played his part in a sizzling finish that perhaps went to the horse with greater depths of stamina, while the second might go on to prove more effective at 12-furlongs. The downside of yesterday’s St. Leger is yet another Group I or classic at 12-furlongs+ has gone for export. Where are the British-trained stayers? Yes, Economics, but how often will we see him beyond 10-furlongs next season?

Unlike Ed Chamberlain and Lee Mottershead, I see no value in having the most unpopular Prime Minister in the history of the position attending a high-level race-meeting. His wife, perhaps; his children, undoubtedly. But not ‘Two-Tier’ Kier, a man who has no problem with putting the lives of the elderly and frail at risk by withdrawing their winter fuel allowance, while greedily and hypocritically accepting thousands-of-pounds of tax-payers money through fuel allowances granted to him and his ministers on ‘expenses’. The man should be banned from the sport, not lauded as good publicity, which to most of us he is not.

How good is Economics? How reliable as a marker is Auguster Rodin? Certainly, we have learned that Economics is a fighter. Yet scrapping for a win is not a trait that can be placed alongside Auguste Rodin’s attributes. Economics is almost certain to win the Champion Stakes at Ascot and will complete his first season with a very high rating. Next season we will discover if he deserves the accolades being laid at his feet. I am also, rather like his brilliant trainer, not of the opinion that he will improve for 12-furlongs and I doubt if William Haggas will be in any hurry to find out as the money and stallion value is pegged to 10-furlong races in our modern speed orientated world. Oh, I thought Marquand was exceptional yesterday.

On ‘The Morning Show’, we were given a glimpse of Bay City Roller coming off the lorry and walking into the racecourse stables. As soon as saw his head I fell for him. In the parade ring my initial thoughts were doubled or trebled. During the race I watched with eyes that might be described as ‘smug’. I doubt he will ever win by far and might battle for victories rather than win ‘Nijinsky’ style. But he is a racehorse and I wish George Scott plain sailing with him between now and next April. If he were mine, I would stop for this season and dream of what might be to come. He is by New Bay, so there is a chance he might stay 12-furlongs. I hope so, as these 10 and 12-furlong horses I find rather boring.

​Phillipa Cooper, owner of Sweet William, is too nice to be constantly doorstepped by Matt Chapman. I like Matt, do not get me wrong, but he is a slightly smelly cheese compared to the rose aroma of Phillipa, or Mrs. Cooper as I suppose I should address her.
What is more, she is everything a breeder of racehorses should be. She embraces the history of the sport, emphasising that her fellow breeders should forego speed, speed, speed and return to the breeding of more stoutly bred horses. To her, as it is to me, the ‘Cup’ races on the flat are the only races worth their salt and if were not for them, perhaps, the history of our sport might have been short-lived. Although her horses are given time to mature by her trainer John Gosden, now aided by his son Thaddeus, who will doubtless continue in the same vein when his father steps aside, and the prospect of winning any other type of race other than a race over 14-furlongs+ is given little consideration, it would be a boon for the sport if she should some day own and breed a horse happy at 12-furlongs and perhaps be precocious enough to be thought of as a Derby horse.
Owned by anyone other than someone with such a depth of feeling for the horses she breeds at Normanby Stud, and trained by someone who fully understands and appreciates the ethos of the owner, would Sweet William have reached the heights he is presenting attaining? Great owners deserve great reward. May you grace our racecourses for another fifty-years, Mrs. Cooper.
One little thing, and this addressed to Matt Chapman. Phillipa Cooper will always be the breeder of Gregory. Just because she summoned-up the courage to sell the horse to Wathnam – not their cleverest purchase, I suggest -she has not given-up the privilege of breeding the horse. A small matter, as I said, though Matt does keep saying ‘former breeder’ when he should be saying ‘former owner’. I suspect as part of the deal she asked Wathnam if she could have the horse back when his racing days are over. Mrs. Cooper is that type of breeder. Yesterday she told Matt that the day before she had gone to visit Samuel, the horse that won her a Doncaster Cup back in 2010. She also looked-in on the dam of Samuel. That is why she is one of favourite owners and I even forgive her for beating Trueshan.

Just want to say what a fine ride Amy Waugh gave Faylaq – son of an Arc winner – in the first race at York yesterday. If that had been Murphy, Moore, Buick or Marquand, the praise would have been effusive. As a 3lb claimer the praise was more muted. Also, Jim Goldie is greatly under-estimated as a trainer.

I used to love the St. Leger. It was my favourite classic and one of my favourite flat races. This year’s renewal has been described as ‘boutique’, which is a way of suggesting it might not be overly competitive and with too small a number of runners to justify its position as a ‘classic’. The St. Leger is dying and is only kept breathing relevance due to Coolmore’s persistence in remaining faithful to their stoutly-bred colts, fillies, stallions and broodmares. If ‘the lads’ were to decide to go with fashion and turn their operation to a speed-dominated operation, the staying division would  nosedive into obscurity. That said, I hope Sunway wins today and give his French, though English-based, trainer a deserved big winner.

Why o why o why does the St. Leger have to clash with Irish Champions Weekend? Why? Is it so overwhelmingly difficult for the B.H.A. and the I.H.R.B. to get together to draw-up their respective racing calendars so that the two top autumn race-meetings are staged at least a week apart? As things stand, there are no less than three major staying races in a two-day period, two of them being St. Legers, the other one of the triple crown Cup races. It is right stupid, downright lazy, ridiculously inefficient.

​From a source unconnected to horse racing, I discovered the fate of a Canadian jockey who died in mysterious circumstances in 1948.
If you research the history of U.S. Triple Crown winners, you will doubtless only find a passing reference to Al Snider, a Canadian who was finding fame in the U.S. prior to his disappearance. Eddie Arcaro went on to ride Citation, the winner in 1948 of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes. It was, I suppose, appropriate that Arcaro should inherit the ride on the great horse as he was among Snider’s best friends.
Albert Snider had won 9-races on Citation and it would have been10 if the fates had allowed him to be aboard the horse for the first of the Triple Crown races. Citation was owned by Calumet Farms, owned by Admiral Gene Markey, who was also aboard the Evelyn K, owned by John Campbell, New York racing secretary, and the day before Snider’s disappearance, he had offered Snider the position of contract rider for Calumet. We do not know if Snider accepted the offer, though as Calumet had the top stable in the U.S. at the time, winning major race after major race, it would seem unlikely Snider would have turned the offer down.
The Evelyn K was anchored off the Florida Keys and Snider, a keen fisherman, and two others, Tobe Trotter and Canadian businessman Don Frazier, decided to while away the time before supper by taking the skiff, strangely designed by Eddie Arcaro, to undertake some fishing. They said they would be back within an hour. They were fishing in shallow water, close to the shore and until the storm took shape they could be seen from the 65-ft yacht. After the storm, the three men were never seen again. The storm was intense enough to topple a 70-foot elevator tower on Miami Beach and it was said the storm was unusual as it took shape very quickly, becoming dark equally speedily, with lightning throughout.
Coincidentally, sheltering from the very same storm was the yacht Tonga, with actor Gregory Peck aboard. 20-years later Peck owned Different Class, 3rd in the 1968 Grand National. He also owned Owen Sedge, 7th in the 1963 Grand National.
During the air, sea and land search for the 3-men, a pilot noticed footprints on a small island in the Florida Keys. When searched with sniffer dogs, a scent was picked-up but petered-out halfway across the island.
The skiff washed-up 10-days later, on rocks in the Keys, completely empty. The men all wore life-preservers, yet none were found. One oar, though, was found floating in the sea.
The mystery was compounded when Tony Trotter, son of Tobe Trotter, received phone calls from Cuba. What transpired during these calls is not recorded, though the suggestion is that they were either silent or menacing.
Because of these phone-calls, Snider’s daughter, 7 at the time, was taken out of school for her safety. Later in life, when talking about the mystery of her father’s disappearance, she said she thought a likely explanation, if foul play was involved, was that her father had been approached to stop a horse and he had refused. Gangs of horse-stoppers were prevalent at the time.
As by all accounts, the storm was intense and began quite soon after the 3-men left the Evelyn K and they were seen actively fishing in the short interlude before the storm played its hand, how likely is it than any criminal activity could have taken place? If foul play was involved, my only thought is that someone on board the Evelyn K must have scuppered the skiff prior to the 3-men setting off for their fishing expedition, allowing it to sink once the storm took effect.
Adding to the theory of foul play, though it might have been a hoax, of course, was a note washed-up in a bottle on the shoreline 4-months after the disappearance. It read: ‘Help. One dead. Al.S.’

​These are relevant facts: Mr Hanlon offered false and misleading to investigating I.H.R.B. officials.
Failure of a veterinary surgeon retained by Mr. Hanlon to complete an entry in the passport of the deceased animal regarding the previous administration of a medical product prohibited in a food-producing animal.
Mr. Hanlon’s conduct was also referred to.
Mr. Hanlon had misled the I.H.R.B. officials in the early stages of the investigation in relation to the issue of who had attempted to secure the covering of the deceased animal with a tarpaulin and who drove the horsebox and when the tarpaulin had been recovered after the incident.
Mr. Hanlon was in breach on the basis he remained responsible for checking and ensuring the relevant sections of a passport are updated, even when a veterinary surgeon was retained for the purpose.
The horse in question was found to have died during the night in a ‘private paddock’. I am not certain whether ‘private paddock’ refers to somewhere outside of Hanlon’s premises or just a paddock away from the stable area. The age or sex of the horse was not mentioned.
Reading the official report on the I.H.R.B. website I was surprised to find little to be critical about. The ‘little’ was this: although the buck should always stop with the trainer, and there is no doubt Hanlon was guilty as charged; a trainer operates in a world of practicalities. Yes, the rules are there for good reason and should be adhered to at all times. The truth though is this; a horse carcass is not easy to handle. It is almost impossible to transport a dead horse in an enclosed lorry, for instance, and a fore-end loader or tractor is necessary for the lifting the body on to a trailer. For most people, certainly non-farming people, this is an unpleasant and undignified operation. If, as he stated, Hanlon was waiting most of the day for someone to arrive with a tractor, while in the mean time he was extremely busy with the business of training the horses under his care, to anyone with knowledge of a busy work environment, it is understandable, due to time constraints, if the loading of the carcass onto the trailer was carried out in a haphazard and hasty fashion, with Hanlon leaving the covering of the deceased animal with a tarpaulin left to his staff.
Hanlon will have learned much from this incident. He is a larger-than-life character and will be chastened to be in the spotlight for failings on both his part and on the reliability of his staff to undertake not to act in a manner that undermines his reputation.
It must be said that this case was not an animal welfare issue. When the I.H.R.B. officials inspected the stables and the horses they found no fault, neither with paperwork nor the condition of the horses.
The problem I have, having now read the official report, is that Hanlon’s case was not heard in isolation as it was clear by statements from the referral committee that a television documentary aired days before regarding animal welfare across not only Ireland but Europe, in which Hanlon appeared positively, pushed them to, perhaps, be more severe in their sentencing than they might have if the television documentary had not appeared so close to the enquiry.
Also, and here I repeat myself, compared to the Mahon case, which involved animal cruelty that sickened and appalled, in which a prison sentence would have been appropriate, the verdict was a 3-year suspension of a trainers’ licence, though not banned from the sport as he was allowed to seek work in the industry. 3-years was a soft suspension, as Hanlon’s 10-months, with, perhaps, five-months suspended, was harsh.
Luke Comer only received a 12-month suspension after being found grossly negligent, with skeletal equine remains found on his land and no records of which horses had perished. The fact he offered to donate £20,000 to Ireland’s equivalent of our R.o.R. a mitigating factor in his lenient punishment, I suggest.
Having read the official report, although I respect the sentiments of the committee, I remain convinced that Hanlon’s punishment is disproportionate to the offence and by making a mountain out of a molehill, the I.H.R.A. are equally bringing the sport into disrepute. The 2,000 euro fine and a six-month suspended sentence would have served a better purpose. Hanlon would still be guilty as charged, he would have received a hard rap over the knuckles and learned a valued lesson. 

​It is National Racehorse week and another opportunity to enter a licenced trainers’ stable or any associated thoroughbred establishment to get close-up and personal with the horses and staff that make our sport unique.
I hope the public understand that a racing environment is a workplace and for them to be allowed access the daily routine must be altered, with, no doubt, an earlier start to the day for the staff and much organising during the preceding weeks to ensure the health and safety of the public and to put on a ‘show’ that both informs them, rights false impressions and offers a day to be remembered.
I am sure Richard Philipps and other will tell me why I am wrong but I do feel that a National Racehorse Month, with stables opening-up to the public over the course of 4 or 5 weekends might draw a larger response as in the main people work a 5-day week, Monday to Friday, making week-days difficult for these people to attend. It is not a criticism, just an observation.
I hope during this week the public are also made aware of the B.H.A.’s ‘Lives Well Lived’ campaign and all the equine activities retired racehorses can move on to after their racing careers have ended. I would like to see donation buckets at every stable open to the public this week, inviting people to donate to the equine charities that either rehome retired racehorses or those like the R.o.R. who retrain racehorses for future careers in show-jumping, eventing, dressage, polo or perhaps even just becoming a hack.
 It is the duty of everyone involved with racehorses, and that includes jockeys, I believe, to keep an eye on the horses who leave the racecourse for lives outside of the sport. The Grand National winner Hallo Dandy was found on a rubbish dump in poor condition and it was his rescue and rehabilitation that kickstarted the need for specific equine charities and has led the way to where we are now with ‘Lives Well Lived’ and all the marvellous charities that help racehorses into other equine activities.
It has been my belief that there should be a levy on every horse, from foal upwards, sold at public auction. Initially, and I still stand by my opinion, I thought this would be an excellent way of siphoning money from the sales ring through to prize-money on the racecourse. But as Lee Mottershead wrote in his column today in the Racing Post, perhaps s similar scheme could be used to fund the aftercare of racehorses.
Either option should be considered, though I would prefer, after a few seconds of thought, that it would help both human and horse if 1 or 2% of sales prices were taken to boost prize money and then a similar percentage of prize-money then gifted to the aftercare of retired racehorses. It remains ludicrous to me that breeders can receive 7-figure numbers for the sale of a yearling, and 6-figures when it comes to store horses and from boutique National Hunt sales, and for not one penny, yes, I know it is not all profit, returns to the racing side of the industry. From ‘birth to death’ should equally apply to breeders as it does to the owners and trainers of racehorses.
Finally, I wrote yesterday how Josephine Gordon winning the valuable mile handicap at Kempton on Saturday warmed my heart, now she has warmed it even warmer by donating her share of the prize-money to the fund set-up for the care of Alice Proctor, the amateur rider who suffered a severe spinal fracture at Cartmel a few months ago. I hope Josephine is not offended if I suggest she is far from the wealthiest jockey in the weighing room and to give away the largest bonus she has achieved in many a season is not, as she described it, ‘a little gesture’, but one of great generosity. It brought a tear to my eye and inspired me to go against my ‘look after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves’ attitude and donate to the cause myself. Although her gesture I am sure was without thought of herself, I hope Josephine’s gesture inspires the racing fates to look kindly on her and her career returns to the upward trajectory of a few years ago.

​The cancellation of a race at Newton Abbot on Monday due to only 3-horses being declared, an example of the B.H.A.’s drive towards more competitive racing, has drawn criticism from Henry Daly who had expected to win the race. Daly quite rightly is of the opinion that cancelling races is not a good look for the sport. What is worse, though, is that any one of 3-races might have been cancelled due to also having only 3-declarations, the deciding factor on which one to cancel was based on the class of race. If it were a nine-race card all three would have received the chop as that would still have left the minimum number of races any race-meeting must stage. Small mercies!
This new measure, as well-intended as it is, acts against owners, all of whom deserve an opportunity of winning prize-money occasionally. In my opinion though the new measure makes sense, why not split the prize-money for the cancelled race between the owners of the 3-horses denied a run. When there is a walk-over, for instance, the owner of the horse still receives the prize-money even though there was no race for spectators to watch. We should be doing all we can to encourage owners stay in the sport and at the moment this rule is hurting owners and the B.H.A. should rethink the measure.
Bye-the-bye – on this occasion, given the very watery weather we are experiencing this weekend in Devon, it is odds-on the meeting will be abandoned, something that is prone to happen at Newton Abbot, the reason why they chose a decade or so ago to only race through the warmer, drier summer and autumn months. I think, if Monday’s meeting does not go ahead, it will be the third abandonment of the year at Newton Abbot. 

The name de Rothchild sends a chill down my spine – for reasons unconnected to horse racing – but credit should be extended when it is due. One of the family has suggested a third alternative in the yes or no debate about geldings running in the Prix de L’Arc de Triomphe, to allow geldings to run but to give them a few pounds more weight. As someone who firmly believes the best horses regardless of gender and testicleless should be allowed to run in the top races, I would hope this option wins the argument. In the U.S. they have no such restrictions and history records many of the legends of the track over there were geldings. To me, horse racing exists in the first place for the experience of watching horses race each other, with the interests of the breeding industry only coming a close second. The horse should always go before the cart.

My heart was warmed yesterday watching Josephine Gordon win a nice pot at Kempton and on terrestrial t.v.. Why her career has nose-dived from champion apprentice and a hundred winners in one calendar year to scratching around for a living is an answer I would like to hear. It happens to no end of young jockeys having to traverse the journey from up and coming to full-blown professional and Gordon is not alone in having to work her socks-off just to keep her head above water. I thought when she emerged from her apprenticeship that she would go on achieve a level of success that both Holly and Saffie presently enjoy. I hope her victory on Whitcombe Rockstar will be the lift-off Gordon’s patience and dedication deserves. Fingers crossed.

On the topic of female jockeys. The feature interview in the Racing Post today is Peter Thomas interviewing Saffie Osborne, with insight and interventions from her father, Jamie, plus a contribution from her mum, Katie. It is as good a feature-piece as Peter Thomas has penned, full of wit, family rivalry and affection. Worth the price of the paper on its own. “I am singlehandedly trying to bring up my father. I am 22, he is 18,” is a quote we will be seeing in racing literature for many years to come.

​What is wrong with Irish stewards? It is utterly bizarre that they can impose a lenient sentence for absolute animal cruelty of 3-years to one licenced trainer and then impose what is comparatively a draconian sentence on another licenced trainer of 10-months for what to all extent and purpose is a tarpaulin over the carcass of a horse coming loose in transit. Guilty sentences should be appropriate to the crime and it is something Irish stewards seem not to appreciate.
Shark Hanlon, one of the sport’s great characters, has received a 2,000 euro fine and a suspension of his licence for ten-months, though five of the months may become suspended, for bringing the sport into disrepute by transporting the carcass of a horse on a trailer towed by a horsebox with Shark’s name and logo on it, during which the tarpaulin that covered the carcass came loose, exposing the dead horse to sensitive onlookers, some of whom took the opportunity to take photographs.
As of the report I have read in the Racing Post, we are not informed the name of the horse or the circumstances of how it came to lose its life. The problem with censoring some of the facts of the case is that those opposed to the sport can make wildly inaccurate claims on how the horse died, as happened in the overly-hyped prosecution of Gordon Elliott, who at the end of the day was made a villain for the stupid act of allowing himself to be photographed sat astride a dead horse. Gordon was accused of galloping the horse to death and other stupid accusations. 
Fairness in Shark’s case would have been the 2,000 euro fine and a sharp rap over the knuckles. Perhaps a 5-month suspended sentence at worst. But to deny a man his livelihood for poor judgement is beyond unfair, and worse, it is a starting point for the ignorant few to build yet another erroneous case of animal cruelty against the sport. The Irish stewards, in my opinion, continue to behave irresponsible, with their verdicts maligning the sport to worse effect than the ‘crimes’ they investigate and adjudicate upon.
Yes, to transport the carcass in an open trailer towed by his own horsebox was poor judgement. In fact, he may have left the transportation to the knackery to staff members, I do not know. And if he did not oversee the loading of the carcass and ensuring the body was covered correctly, perhaps he was guilty of a form of neglect of duty. But to lose his livelihood for the best part of a year; to have his reputation stained, is so far beyond reprehensible that those responsible should be removed from their positions.
Shark was certainly guilty of poor judgement, yet I contend the Irish stewards are equally guilty of poor judgement as by making headlines out of a parochial matter they have behaved in a manner likely to bring the sport into disrepute. When that sicko trainer, (Mahon, was it?) received a 3-year ban for an act of cruelty that turned my stomach and roused me to anger, they suggested a longer suspension would cause hardship to his family, and yet to a licenced trainer whose reputation for fun and the right spirit precedes him, no similar kindness was offered.
In banning Shark, they perhaps have banned Hewick from gracing the racecourses of Ireland and Britain, too; they have punched a hole in a fairytale. These people need to be named and shamed for making a mountain out of a molehill, and then left to ‘die’ upon that mountain.
Shark Hanlon intends to appeal. Every trainer in Ireland should stand shoulder-to-shoulder with him as any one of them in the future may also be subject to similar prosecution and sentence.

​To my amazement, and perhaps to her own amazement, in riding a double at Goodwood yesterday, Hollie Doyle racked-up the thousandth winner of her career. Within that one-thousand, she has accumulated 31 Group and listed races. When you consider that it took Hayley Turner until 2024 to achieve one-thousand winners, Hollie’s achievement is quite remarkable.
I cannot be confident but Hollie Doyle must be the most successful female flat jockey of all-time. I know Julie Craze was ultra successful back in the day in the U.S. and Emma-Jayne Wilson equally so in Canada, yet I feel Hollie has surpassed them, and if the stats suggest otherwise, by the end of her career Hollie will have the stats firmly in her favour.
Three-years ago I commented on a Racing Channel (?) film on the career of Willie Carson that he was the most under-rated champion jockey of my lifetime and that the current jockey who reminded me of him was Hollie Doyle. This was three-years ago, remember, and several people thought I was deluded. A few weeks ago, I received an e-mail from one of those people apologising for his comments and admitting that I was, after-all, right in my opinion. Hollie has now silenced the doubters, while winning the hearts of the racing public.
Archie Watson’s support has been vital in getting Hollie to where she is today. No matter how talented a rider is, male or female, to make it to the top sphere of the championship – Hollie is currently eighth, with Saffie Osborne one place above her – dedication has to be grafted to loyalty from trainers and owners and Hollie cannot complain on that score. Not that I can see kind-hearted Holly having many complaints about her life. She will travel to all points of the country to ride a horse trained by Archie Watson, no doubt turning down a book of rides at another meeting. Imad Alsagar, to whom she is retained, comes first, followed by horses trained by Archie Watson.
She deserves her success and I am sure there is more to follow. As I commented many years before Doyle and Osborne came on the scene, the sport can only benefit from having female jockeys given opportunities at the highest level and the two mentioned above have proved themselves amongst the top jockeys in the country. It is good that the perception change brought about by Hayley will now endure down the ages.

It seems likely that in the future geldings may be allowed to run the Arc as the French authorities are to debate the matter, with a lot of support, apparently, for removing the restriction. The Arc, along with the classics, may be races designed for the benefit of breeders, to establish the best of the best, yet if there is a gelding better than the classic crop then it must be more beneficial to everyone to have it proved on the racecourse. Too many times colts go to stud on inflated ratings brought-out by a lack of opposition. If a gelding should go and win three Arcs, for instance, which is more likely than a colt winning the race three-times, beating one or two of the previous classic generation, it will provide a metric for assessing the merit of that classic generation. I am all in favour of allowing geldings into all Group 1’s, including the classics.

Callum Shepherd’s ban is overturned, which is a relief to the jockey and the right result for the sport, even if I do not agree that he lost his balance in the last stride of the race. I suggested his ban would be reduced thoughI did not expect his appeal to be 100% successful, though I am pleased he won the day.

Finally, over-all I like the Gredley family, though I still believe they were wrong to jock-off Callum Shepherd in favour of Rab Havlin, a jockey of the same status as Shepherd. Now Havlin has received the heave-ho in favour of Christophe Soumillion, and they are returning to 12-furlongs, with their thoughts moving back to a possible tilt at the Arc. I believe the horse is a 12-furlong horse; he just is not a genuine Group 1 horse. Winning in France in the coming days will not either prove or disprove my opinion as it is a lesser grade race, though winning the Arc would prove me both right and wrong at the same time.

​For many years now I have vented my displeasure at the tendency of breeders to breed for speed over stamina. Finally, others are now following my lead and warning of the danger this imposes on both the sport and the thoroughbred as a species. And the impact is mighty, believe me.
In the U.S. a 10-furlong race is a test of stamina, with 12-furlong races their equivalent to a marathon in Britain or Ireland. 2-mile flat races are so rare they are dismissed as novelty races. This is the road British and Irish breeders are now set on. Australia on the other hand is wedded to staying races, with, of course, their number 1 race, the Melbourne Cup, run over 2-miles. Which, of course, is why their owners and trainers come to Britain to buy-up any number of stoutly-bred horses with the hope of winning their world-famous race. 
As Lee Mottershead pointed out in his column in the Racing Post today, all the Group 1’s over 12-furlongs in Britain this season have gone to foreign-trained horses, as well as several of our prestige 12-furlong and beyond handicaps. The results from last Saturday is proof if proof were needed. 
It may be a bore that the Doncaster St.Leger is almost certainly bound for Ireland and Coolmore, yet if it were not for ‘the lads’ the staying division and the 12-furlong division would be so weak as to be risible. Due to the ever-lasting, I suspect, genes of Galileo, Aidan O’Brien is sure to rule the roost for as long as he wishes to continue training, with Joseph sitting in the wings to receive the honour of keeping Ballydoyle to the forefront of the sport. So Coolmore cannot be included in any condemnation of the short-sighted and self-indulgent attitude and habits of breeders.
The continuation of the present, and seemingly steadfast, trend for speed, is a threat to the species. Sprinters sprint, though in retirement they become tractable, in the main they have no other purpose in life but to gallop as fast as their legs will carry them over no more 6-furlongs. This trait is pretty well useless for any other aspect of equestrian sport and reduces their appeal and value once removed from a racing stable.
National Hunt trainers will run a mile from sprint-breds at the horses-in-training sales. It can be hard enough to teach a flat horse to jump, let alone to settle and drop the bridle, so sprinters are not worth the bother. Of course, many National Hunt trainers will make the attempt if an owner sends him or her a sprint-bred horse. You may argue, quite reasonably, that Red Rum was sprint-bred through and through and it did not stop him winning three Grand Nationals. He was, though, Red Rum. A god of equines; the rules simply do not apply to the likes of him.
Sprint-bred horses are equally of no use to 3-day Event riders or show jumpers. Or dressage riders. Or hunting people. Or for hobby riders who want a comfortable ride around the lanes and bridleways.
In fact, half the reason competition during the main jumping season is going from bad to worse is that National Hunt trainers have a limited field of ex-flat horses to buy for their owners and that is excluding the number that are bought in the summer by Australian buyers. The fact that we have two exceptional hurdles at the moment, and perhaps half-a-dozen more at Closutton (possibly), in State Man and Constitution Hill, should not hide the fact that compared to the 1960’s 70’s and 80’s when the Champion Hurdle could be as competitive as the County Hurdle, the two already named could easily get to March not only unbeaten but unchallenged. In the eras mentioned, when true champions took each other on, legends of the sport like Sea Pigeon, Night Nurse and Monksfield, to name but three, could be beaten as often as they won due to the competitiveness of the division. All of those three were, to get back to my point, were flat-bred, Sea Pigeon regally so.
The only way to check this imbalance, as I see it, is to reduce prize-money for Group 1 sprints and increase prize-money for Group 1 stayers’ races, with the Ascot Gold Cup elevated to become one of the most valuable races in the calendar. Breeders need both a kick up the ass and an inducement to return to breeding for stamina, with far less kudos for breeding the winner of one of the sprint races at Royal Ascot and greater kudos for breeding the winner of the Ascot Gold Cup or Queens Vase. As things stand, breeding the winner of either of the latter two races is greeted as something of a consolation prize.
It is said that in breeding stamina to stamina has the chance of breeding slow hunters; equally, if sprint-blood is bred to sprint-blood what can be achieved is very fast horses over no more than 4-furlongs. In both examples there will be exceptions and equally singlemindedness to either is a dangerous path to tread. Yet I would contend this world of far fewer horse- aware riders would be better catered-for by the accidental breeding of slow hunters rather than speedballs unfit for anything other than frightening the life out of their new owners.