Marlborough RC 29 April 2018 – R 7 – Chair, Mr P Williams
ID: JCA11757
Code:
Thoroughbred
Meet Title:
Marlborough RC - 29 April 2018
Meet Chair:
PWilliams
Meet Committee Member 1:
MConway
Race Date:
2018/04/29
Race Number:
R7
Decision:
The Committee finds the charge proved.
Penalty:
Mr Johnson is suspended from the close of racing on Saturday 5 May 2018 to the close of racing on Saturday 26 May 2018.
Facts:
Following the running of race 7, the “Peter Yealands Wines Marlborough Cup Open 1950”, Information A8162 was filed by Stipendiary Steward, Mr M Davidson under Rule 636(1)(d). The Information stated “C Johnson (Assign) failed to ride out to the finish of the race where there was a reasonable chance of finishing 2nd. Mr Johnson was beaten a nose for 2nd.”
Rule 636 (1) (d) states “A person…..being the Rider of a horse in a Race, must ride his horse out to the end of the Race if there is a reasonable chance of it running into a position for which there is prize money to be awarded or a dividend to be declared”.
At the beginning of the hearing Mr Davidson read out the Rule. Mr Johnson confirmed he understood the Rule under which he was charged and also that he did not admit the breach.
Submissions for Decision:
Stipendiary Steward, Mr McLaughlin, using the side-on film from approximately the 100m mark, identified Mr Johnson racing alongside “Shadow King” approximately 3 lengths behind “Overtheriver”. He said from the 100m mark to approximately 2 strides from the winning post Mr Johnson could be seen to be riding with an acceptable amount of vigour and was racing neck and neck with, and next to, “Shadow King”. He said 2 strides from the post Mr Johnson’s body position clearly changed and “his backside will rise” which resulted him relaxing his ride for those two strides. He said it was the Stewards' view that Mr Johnson’s action in relaxing his ride over those last two strides cost him running 2nd. Mr McLaughlin confirmed the margin between 2nd and 3rd was a nose and this was confirmed by the photo finish of the end of the race and official margins given to the Committee.
Mr Johnson said that during the final 100m of the race he did not feel he stopped riding his horse. He said he was under heavy pressure turning for home trying to chase down the leader and this was the horse’s first race day start since mid November. He said just prior to the 100m he felt he was clearly in 2nd place and then “Shadow King” got alongside him and then slightly in front and looked like it would run past him. Mr Johnson said he was continuing to use the whip and he felt his horse was starting to go up and down on the spot and getting no more out of him. Mr Johnson said that whilst he stopped using the whip 2 strides out he did not feel he had stopped riding him out and actually thought the horse had found a little bit more at the end of the race.
The Chairman asked Mr Johnson if he had any comments on the visual evidence presented by the Stipendiary Stewards in relation to the final 2 strides of the race. He said he believed the film showed he was still pushing his horse. He said he had “come up” on the final stride when the horse had come off the ground and when further questioned as to why he stood up he said he didn’t feel he had. In support of this Mr Johnson asked for the film to be paused 2 strides from the post and he said at that point he felt he was pushing his horse out to the finish. He reiterated that he felt his horse was also going up and down in the wet ground and added that he was aware how close he was to “Shadow King” on his inside.
In summing up Mr Davidson said at the 50m mark Mr Johnson was clearly riding his horse out. He said it was not a requirement that Mr Johnson hit the horse over the final stages but he was required to sit down and ride out with vigour to the finish line as he was in contention for finishing 2nd. He said the film showed that 1.5 to 2 strides from the post Mr Johnson did relax his ride. In conclusion Mr Davidson reminded the Committee that the margin between 2nd and 3rd was a nose.
Mr Johnson had no further comments to make about the incident but did say that he had a perfect run throughout the race and when the leader kicked away at the top of the straight he went after it and that may have cost him running second given it was the horse’s first start for several months.
Reasons for Decision:
The Committee has considered all the evidence from both parties and the replays of the final 50m of the race that were shown at length at both normal speed and in slow motion. The Committee is satisfied that Mr Johnson has relaxed his ride in the final 1.5-2 strides of the race and is therefore in breach of Rule 636(1)(d). Over the final 100m of the race the margin between Mr Johnson on “Assign” and “Shadow King” ridden by Ms Myers was always very narrow with “Shadow King” marginally ahead at that point. At the 70m mark the two horses were neck and neck for second place and they remained that way until just prior to the finishing line at which point “Shadow King” was a nose in front of “Assign”. The Committee believes that the nose margin between second and third occurred because Mr Johnson relaxed his ride for those final 1.5-2 strides.
It is generally accepted that when a horse is being ridden out and fully extended and then ceases to be ridden out that it will quickly relax and shorten stride. It is for this reason that riders should ride their mounts out with vigour to the end of the race when there is a reasonable chance of it running into a position for which there is prize money to be awarded or a dividend to be declared. It is not possible to know for sure that, had Mr Johnson not relaxed his ride for those 1.5-2 strides, he would have finished 2nd in the race. That, however, is not the point. What is, is that he has not shown the required vigour in riding to the end of the race, as can be clearly seen in the film of the last 30m of the race and has therefore breached the Rule. That said, the Committee does not believe there was any deliberate intent on the part of Mr Johnson to stop riding his horse out but rather a lack of judgment being displayed in the shadow of the post.
Submissions for Penalty:
Mr Davidson said Mr Johnson had a clear record in relation to this Rule. When it was pointed out to him that Mr Johnson had breached the Rule at Te Rapa on 1 July 2017, when he was suspended for 3 days for failing to ride out and was beaten a long head for 4th, Mr Davidson didn’t feel that was the same as today’s breach because today related to being beaten for 2nd not 4th.
Mr Davidson said the JCA Penalty Guidelines state that the starting point penalty for a breach of this Rule when beaten for 2nd is a suspension of 4 weeks. Mr Davidson said he had reviewed recent penalties imposed for breaches of this Rule and specifically made mention of the penalties imposed on Ms Wynne on 8 March 2018 (beaten for 2nd by a nose) and Ms Hirini on 12 April 2018 (beaten for 1st by a nose) when both riders were found to be in breach of the Rule and received a penalty of 1 week less than the starting point penalty in the JCA Penalty Guidelines. He said the Stewards believed there should be some consistency with those decisions reflecting that the incident today happened in the final 1.5 – 2 strides of the race. He said if it was possible to categorise the severity of today’s breach the Stewards would place it at the low end. He said Mr Johnson was a busy national rider both last season and this and in conclusion he said it was the submission of the Stewards that a suspension of 3 weeks was an appropriate penalty.
Mr Johnson made no submissions on penalty but did ask that any suspension be deferred until after the Premier 2 Riccarton meeting on Saturday 5 May 2018.
Reasons for Penalty:
The Committee has deliberated at length in considering the penalty to be imposed. The starting point for the breach is a suspension of 4 weeks. Notwithstanding this is Mr Johnson’s second breach of the Rule in the last 12 months we do not see that as an aggravating factor given, that since that last breach, he has had approximately 670 rides.
In mitigation the Committee believes it was a lack of judgment on Mr Johnson’s part that led to the charge being brought, there being no suggestion he deliberately relaxed his ride over the final 1.5-2 strides. The Committee believes that when Mr Johnson relaxed his ride he was at best level with “Shadow King” on his inside and not in front of that horse. That said, we will never know whether he would have beaten “Shadow King” had he not relaxed his ride as he did.
The Committee has considered the consistency issue raised by Mr Davidson and his references to the recent cases involving Ms Wynne and Ms Hirini as detailed above. Whilst every breach of the Rules is different, and the outcome is based on the individual characteristics of the breach, the Committee feels it cannot ignore the fact that 2 breaches of the same Rule in the last 6 weeks have resulted in a penalty being imposed of 1 week lower than the starting point for each breach.
After considering all this matters the Committee has decided that, on this occasion, a period of suspension is an appropriate penalty. Mr Johnson is suspended for 3 weeks. The Committee approves his request for a deferment of the commencement of the suspension in terms of Rule 1106(2).
JCA Decision Fields (raw)
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Data from these fields should be mapped appropriately to display amongst the standard fields above; please make note of any values below that are missing in the above standard fields but should be there.
hearingid: 2a8d8e713cd629b53df1230e527e2d92
informantnumber: A8162
horsename:
hearing_racingtype:
startdate: no date provided
newcharge: Failure to ride out to finish
plea: denied
penaltyrequired: 1
decisiondate: 30/04/2018
hearing_title: Marlborough RC 29 April 2018 - R 7 - Chair, Mr P Williams
charge:
facts:
Following the running of race 7, the “Peter Yealands Wines Marlborough Cup Open 1950”, Information A8162 was filed by Stipendiary Steward, Mr M Davidson under Rule 636(1)(d). The Information stated “C Johnson (Assign) failed to ride out to the finish of the race where there was a reasonable chance of finishing 2nd. Mr Johnson was beaten a nose for 2nd.”
Rule 636 (1) (d) states “A person…..being the Rider of a horse in a Race, must ride his horse out to the end of the Race if there is a reasonable chance of it running into a position for which there is prize money to be awarded or a dividend to be declared”.
At the beginning of the hearing Mr Davidson read out the Rule. Mr Johnson confirmed he understood the Rule under which he was charged and also that he did not admit the breach.
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
Stipendiary Steward, Mr McLaughlin, using the side-on film from approximately the 100m mark, identified Mr Johnson racing alongside “Shadow King” approximately 3 lengths behind “Overtheriver”. He said from the 100m mark to approximately 2 strides from the winning post Mr Johnson could be seen to be riding with an acceptable amount of vigour and was racing neck and neck with, and next to, “Shadow King”. He said 2 strides from the post Mr Johnson’s body position clearly changed and “his backside will rise” which resulted him relaxing his ride for those two strides. He said it was the Stewards' view that Mr Johnson’s action in relaxing his ride over those last two strides cost him running 2nd. Mr McLaughlin confirmed the margin between 2nd and 3rd was a nose and this was confirmed by the photo finish of the end of the race and official margins given to the Committee.
Mr Johnson said that during the final 100m of the race he did not feel he stopped riding his horse. He said he was under heavy pressure turning for home trying to chase down the leader and this was the horse’s first race day start since mid November. He said just prior to the 100m he felt he was clearly in 2nd place and then “Shadow King” got alongside him and then slightly in front and looked like it would run past him. Mr Johnson said he was continuing to use the whip and he felt his horse was starting to go up and down on the spot and getting no more out of him. Mr Johnson said that whilst he stopped using the whip 2 strides out he did not feel he had stopped riding him out and actually thought the horse had found a little bit more at the end of the race.
The Chairman asked Mr Johnson if he had any comments on the visual evidence presented by the Stipendiary Stewards in relation to the final 2 strides of the race. He said he believed the film showed he was still pushing his horse. He said he had “come up” on the final stride when the horse had come off the ground and when further questioned as to why he stood up he said he didn’t feel he had. In support of this Mr Johnson asked for the film to be paused 2 strides from the post and he said at that point he felt he was pushing his horse out to the finish. He reiterated that he felt his horse was also going up and down in the wet ground and added that he was aware how close he was to “Shadow King” on his inside.
In summing up Mr Davidson said at the 50m mark Mr Johnson was clearly riding his horse out. He said it was not a requirement that Mr Johnson hit the horse over the final stages but he was required to sit down and ride out with vigour to the finish line as he was in contention for finishing 2nd. He said the film showed that 1.5 to 2 strides from the post Mr Johnson did relax his ride. In conclusion Mr Davidson reminded the Committee that the margin between 2nd and 3rd was a nose.
Mr Johnson had no further comments to make about the incident but did say that he had a perfect run throughout the race and when the leader kicked away at the top of the straight he went after it and that may have cost him running second given it was the horse’s first start for several months.
reasonsfordecision:
The Committee has considered all the evidence from both parties and the replays of the final 50m of the race that were shown at length at both normal speed and in slow motion. The Committee is satisfied that Mr Johnson has relaxed his ride in the final 1.5-2 strides of the race and is therefore in breach of Rule 636(1)(d). Over the final 100m of the race the margin between Mr Johnson on “Assign” and “Shadow King” ridden by Ms Myers was always very narrow with “Shadow King” marginally ahead at that point. At the 70m mark the two horses were neck and neck for second place and they remained that way until just prior to the finishing line at which point “Shadow King” was a nose in front of “Assign”. The Committee believes that the nose margin between second and third occurred because Mr Johnson relaxed his ride for those final 1.5-2 strides.
It is generally accepted that when a horse is being ridden out and fully extended and then ceases to be ridden out that it will quickly relax and shorten stride. It is for this reason that riders should ride their mounts out with vigour to the end of the race when there is a reasonable chance of it running into a position for which there is prize money to be awarded or a dividend to be declared. It is not possible to know for sure that, had Mr Johnson not relaxed his ride for those 1.5-2 strides, he would have finished 2nd in the race. That, however, is not the point. What is, is that he has not shown the required vigour in riding to the end of the race, as can be clearly seen in the film of the last 30m of the race and has therefore breached the Rule. That said, the Committee does not believe there was any deliberate intent on the part of Mr Johnson to stop riding his horse out but rather a lack of judgment being displayed in the shadow of the post.
Decision:
The Committee finds the charge proved.
sumissionsforpenalty:
Mr Davidson said Mr Johnson had a clear record in relation to this Rule. When it was pointed out to him that Mr Johnson had breached the Rule at Te Rapa on 1 July 2017, when he was suspended for 3 days for failing to ride out and was beaten a long head for 4th, Mr Davidson didn’t feel that was the same as today’s breach because today related to being beaten for 2nd not 4th.
Mr Davidson said the JCA Penalty Guidelines state that the starting point penalty for a breach of this Rule when beaten for 2nd is a suspension of 4 weeks. Mr Davidson said he had reviewed recent penalties imposed for breaches of this Rule and specifically made mention of the penalties imposed on Ms Wynne on 8 March 2018 (beaten for 2nd by a nose) and Ms Hirini on 12 April 2018 (beaten for 1st by a nose) when both riders were found to be in breach of the Rule and received a penalty of 1 week less than the starting point penalty in the JCA Penalty Guidelines. He said the Stewards believed there should be some consistency with those decisions reflecting that the incident today happened in the final 1.5 – 2 strides of the race. He said if it was possible to categorise the severity of today’s breach the Stewards would place it at the low end. He said Mr Johnson was a busy national rider both last season and this and in conclusion he said it was the submission of the Stewards that a suspension of 3 weeks was an appropriate penalty.
Mr Johnson made no submissions on penalty but did ask that any suspension be deferred until after the Premier 2 Riccarton meeting on Saturday 5 May 2018.
reasonsforpenalty:
The Committee has deliberated at length in considering the penalty to be imposed. The starting point for the breach is a suspension of 4 weeks. Notwithstanding this is Mr Johnson’s second breach of the Rule in the last 12 months we do not see that as an aggravating factor given, that since that last breach, he has had approximately 670 rides.
In mitigation the Committee believes it was a lack of judgment on Mr Johnson’s part that led to the charge being brought, there being no suggestion he deliberately relaxed his ride over the final 1.5-2 strides. The Committee believes that when Mr Johnson relaxed his ride he was at best level with “Shadow King” on his inside and not in front of that horse. That said, we will never know whether he would have beaten “Shadow King” had he not relaxed his ride as he did.
The Committee has considered the consistency issue raised by Mr Davidson and his references to the recent cases involving Ms Wynne and Ms Hirini as detailed above. Whilst every breach of the Rules is different, and the outcome is based on the individual characteristics of the breach, the Committee feels it cannot ignore the fact that 2 breaches of the same Rule in the last 6 weeks have resulted in a penalty being imposed of 1 week lower than the starting point for each breach.
After considering all this matters the Committee has decided that, on this occasion, a period of suspension is an appropriate penalty. Mr Johnson is suspended for 3 weeks. The Committee approves his request for a deferment of the commencement of the suspension in terms of Rule 1106(2).
penalty:
Mr Johnson is suspended from the close of racing on Saturday 5 May 2018 to the close of racing on Saturday 26 May 2018.
hearing_type: Hearing
Rules: 636(1)(d)
Informant: Mr M Davidson - Stipendiary Steward
JockeysandTrainer: Mr C Johnson - Licensed Jockey
Otherperson: Mr J McLaughlin - Stipendiary Steward
PersonPresent:
Respondent:
StipendSteward:
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