Franklin TC – 26 May 2006 – Race 6
ID: JCA22519
Hearing Type (Code):
harness-racing
Meet Title:
Franklin TC - 26 May 2006
Race Date:
2006/05/26
Race Number:
Race 6
Decision: --
Following Race 6 Stipendiary Steward Mr JM Muirhead instigated a protest into the fourth placing of Top Tempo alleging interference with 1150 metres to run
--
Following Race 6 Stipendiary Steward Mr JM Muirhead instigated a protest into the fourth placing of Top Tempo alleging interference with 1150 metres to run to Sky Beauty (placed 6th), Weka Lass (placed 5th), Scotlynn Jane (placed 2nd), Running on Faith (fell), Geld Bromac (lost Driver), Suvarno Hanover (fell), Reality Check (placed 10th), Rhythmic Rose (placed 8th) and Belletti (placed 7th).
----Mr Muirhead sought disqualification of Top Tempo from the race.
----Messrs M Purdon (Trainer), TR Vince (Owner) and M Gregory (Representing GA Rogerson ? Owner) were present to represent the connections of Top Tempo.
----Mr Muirhead was asked to read the relevant Rule and Messrs Purdon, Vince and Gregory were asked if they understood the Rule. They acknowledged doing so.
----The Chairman adjourned the Hearing at that stage so that the Connections of the affected horses could be notified of the Hearing and be given an opportunity to be present. Of those who responded to the notice only one wished to be present.
----Mr S Ballantyne was present and represented the owner of Weka Lass who was placed fifth by the Judge.
----Evidence was given by Stipendiary Steward Mr JM Muirhead and he stated that he witnessed the incident from the Stipendiary Steward's position opposite the winning post and had a very good view of the incident. This was a Group One 1700 metre race from a mobile start and Mr Muirhead said that the horses left the mobile gate at speed. One Dream (F Cooney - Driver) was first out and into the lead followed by Spicey (A Herlihy - Driver) and these two were first and second along the running line prior to the incident. Top Tempo (M Purdon - Driver) was outside in the one out position and Sky Beauty (S Phelan - Driver) was three deep along the running line. There was a gap between Spicey and Sky Beauty but Mr Phelan was endeavouring to move his horse up on to the back of Mr Herlihy and take the three back position. Mr Purdon on Top Tempo challenged for the lead and when he couldn?t get the lead he then moved his horse inwards in behind Spicey to take the three back position. This action forced Mr Phelan on Sky Beauty to take hold of his horse and to run into the vacant passing lane. Mr Purdon was restraining his horse to move into the position behind Spicey and in Mr Muirhead's view he forced Sky Beauty into the passing lane and forced Mr Phelan to take hold of his horse. In Mr Muirhead's opinion the front legs of Sky Beauty were inside the wheel of the sulky on Top Tempo at the start of the incident and that Mr Purdon's actions then dictated
----the line of Sky Beauty and forced Mr Phelan to take evasive action. The action taken by Mr Phelan then caused the horses in behind him to be checked with the Driver of Weka Lass (Mr R Holmes), having to restrain his horse and take evasive action and also the Driver of Scotlynn Jane (Mr M Jones) to restrain his horse. The resulting effect of this was that the horses behind being Running on Faith (Driver Mr P Ferguson) and Geld Bromac (Driver Mr M McKendry) copped the result of the interference of the horses in front being restrained and as a result fell. Suvarno Hanover (Driver TW Mitchell) also fell and there were severe checks to Reality Check (Driver DJ Butcher) Rhythmic Rose (Driver N Thorn) and Belletti (Driver P Jeffries).
----As a result of the fall Mr M McKendry the Driver of Geld Bromac was taken to hospital.
----Mr Muirhead stated that in his view the incident was caused by the actions of Mr Purdon on Top Tempo in that in his inwards movement Mr Purdon dictated the line of Sky Beauty and following horses and forced Sky Beauty into the passing lane and Mr Phelan to restrain his horse and take evasive action. There was then a ripple effect as a result of this action which went back through the field causing the affected horses to take evasive action and as a result of this the incidents occurred. Mr Muirhead also pointed out that in his opinion there was not sufficient room at the time of the incident for Mr Purdon to move his horse inwards.
----Mr Muirhead pointed out that this was a 1700 metre Group One Speed Race and the horses were being driven at speed at the time and Mr Muirhead was firmly of the belief that the manner in which Mr Purdon drove his horse and tried to take position in the running line was the cause of the incidents that happened in the race.
----Mr Muirhead then called Mr T Taumanu to give evidence by use of the video films of the race. Mr Taumanu pointed first to the back straight camera angle of the incident and stated that in his view the front legs of Sky Beauty were up inside the sulky wheel of Top Tempo prior to the incident. Mr Taumanu showed the incident from the different camera angles and with the head-on film showed Sky Beauty going into the passing lane. Mr Taumanu also pointed out the evasive action that was taken by the various horses behind Sky Beauty and stated that the horses that were affected were climbing into the back of each other.
----Mr Purdon then asked Mr Muirhead if he thought that the interference was as a result of greenness of those horses that were effected and Mr Muirhead's answer was that the incidents would not have happened but for the actions of Mr Purdon. Mr Purdon also asked Mr Muirhead if he noticed Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry jostling for position. Mr Muirhead said that Mr McKendry had eased Mr Ferguson's horse down as he was entitled to do and that at the time all horses were accelerating forward and in Muirhead's view the actions of Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry were not the cause of those horses falling.
----Mr Muirhead then called Mr R Holmes the Driver of Weka Lass as a witness. Mr Holmes stated that his horse was running behind Sky Beauty on the running line and Mr Purdon was looking to come into that line. In Mr Holmes' view Mr Phelan was wanting to keep his position three back on the running line but as a result of Mr Purdon's actions Mr Phelan had to take evasive action and restrain his horse. Mr Holmes said that Mr Phelan's horse Sky Beauty came back rapidly on his horse Weka Lass and he also had to immediately restrain his horse and take evasive action.
----Mr Holmes in answer to a question from Mr Muirhead said that from his position he couldn?t see in front of Sky Beauty and accordingly couldn?t see the distance between that horse and Mr Herlihy's horse. He assumed that Mr Phelan had to take evasive action because of the actions of Mr Purdon.
----Mr Purdon asked Mr Holmes if there was an easing of the pace prior to the incident and Mr Holmes could only reiterate that Mr Phelan had come back on him and he had to take evasive action. In answer to Mr Purdon Mr Holmes said that he could not see Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry jostling for position because they were behind him.
----Mr Vince than asked Mr Holmes if his use of the word "assumed" meant that he was not sure of what happened. Mr Holmes stated that from his position four back on the running line and in his experience he had to assume that certain events had happened ahead of him.
----Mr Muirhead then asked Mr Holmes if he was clear as to what had happened and he confirmed the evidence that he had previously given.
----Mr Purdon then gave evidence as the Driver of Top Tempo. He confirmed that he was in the one out position and he believed that the gap between Spicey and Sky Beauty had widened and he came back in to take that gap. It appeared to him that there was sufficient room. He did hear the legs of Sky Beauty inside him but still felt that there was sufficient room.
----Mr Purdon also suggested that at the time that he moved in that the pace of the field had slackened but although he had to restrain his horse to move into the gap he still felt that the gap was sufficient.
----Mr Purdon also took the opportunity to demonstrate the incident by use of the video films and he pointed out the actions of Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry and the jostling that went on between them. Mr Purdon suggested that the actions of Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry were the cause of the horses falling and being interfered with.
----Mr Purdon also pointed out that in his view there was sufficient room for him in front of Sky Beauty and although Mr Phelan had to take hold of Sky Beauty he was able to run down into the vacant passing lane. Mr Purdon suggested that although Mr Holmes on Weka Lass had to restrain his horse and take evasive action that he too could have run into the vacant passing lane. Mr Purdon also suggested that because these horses were two year old fillies that some of them were "green" in terms of racing and this would have contributed to the problems.
----In answer to a question from Mr Muirhead Mr Purdon said that he took the gap and then heard the legs of Mr Phelan. He did not believe that he took any greater risk because of the status of the race and he said that Mr Phelan could have moved onto his back but he took hold.
----Mr Muirhead however asked Mr Purdon if he realised that Mr Phelan would have had to have changed his line and he said yes. Mr Muirhead also asked Mr Purdon if he dictated the line of Mr Phelan's horse and Mr Purdon said that Mr Phelan was behind him and Mr Purdon felt that
----he had sufficient room. Mr Purdon did not think that he was necessarily forcing Mr Phelan to take action nor that he was necessarily dictating the line to him and the horses following. Mr Purdon believed that there were two issues and that there should be focus on the actions of Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry.
----Mr S Ballantyne then asked Mr Purdon if he had ever seen a very experienced horseman like Mr Phelan go down into the passing lane without being pushed. Mr Purdon acknowledged that you don?t go into the passing lane unless you have to.
----Mr Purdon then called Mr S Phelan to give evidence and he confirmed that as the Driver of Sky Beauty he was three back in the running line following Mr Herlihy. Mr Phelan confirmed that he was trying to put his horse into the three back position.
----In answer to Mr Purdon, Mr Phelan stated that he thought that there was sufficient room for Mr Purdon but that when Mr Phelan took hold of his horse it raced greenly and ran into the passing lane. In response to a further question from Mr Purdon, Mr Phelan confirmed that the greenness of his horse, the gap closing and the easing of the pace had resulted in him running into the passing lane.
----Mr Muirhead then questioned Mr Phelan and he stated that he had to take hold because Mr Purdon was already in front of him and he would have run into the back of Mr Purdon if he hadn?t have taken hold. Mr Phelan also said that the horse ran in itself and he had only taken a little bit of a hold.
----Mr Ballantyne then questioned Mr Phelan and suggested that he had contradicted himself in suggesting that on the one hand he had had to take hold of his horse but on the other hand that he was trying to get up onto Mr Herlihy's back. Mr Phelan said that both he and Mr Purdon were trying to go for the same gap. Mr Ballantyne asked that if there was sufficient room for Mr Purdon then why did Mr Phelan have to take hold and he again said that he only had to take hold a little bit because his horse was going at such a rate that he would have run into Mr Purdon. Mr Phelan at this stage in answer to Mr Ballantyne stated that his horse had run in itself and he then suggested that his horse had hung in. He also stated that he was trying to keep up behind the other horses.
----Mr Muirhead also asked Mr Phelan that if he had taken hold of his horse was his line being dictated to by Mr Purdon. Mr Phelan asked what dictated meant.
----In answer to questions from the Chairman of this Committee Mr Phelan confirmed that at the time that he took hold his horse was travelling faster than Mr Purdon's horse and further when asked if his horse had run in of it's own accord previously he stated that it had a little bit but not as much as today and that it does wear a pole on the inside. Mr Phelan also suggested that hanging in and running in were the same thing.
----In answer to Mr Vince, Mr Phelan confirmed that Drivers take hold in many races and he agreed that the main reason why he took hold was because the pace slowed.
----Mr M Jones was then called by Mr Purdon and he confirmed that he was the Driver of the second place horse Scotlynn Jane. He stated that he was racing in the parked position at the time of the incident although back from the leader. Mr Jones said that he could see the whole incident and as far as he was concerned Mr Purdon had sufficient room to move into where he did.
----In answer to a further question Mr Jones said that he did not look behind at any horses jostling because he wanted to stay in the position he was and he had a horse outside him.
----Mr Muirhead then questioned Mr Jones and he stated that in his opinion Mr Purdon's manoeuvre was OK. Mr Jones suggested that the manoeuvres of Mr Phelan and Mr Holmes on Weka Lass happened after Mr Purdon had moved into the running line. Mr Jones said he could see everything because it was in front of him and despite the fact that he was a length or two behind Mr Purdon's horse he could see that there was sufficient room for Mr Purdon.
--Mr Jones was also shown the film of the incident and he tried to suggest that Mr Phelan had moved up inside Mr Purdon.
--Mr Ballantyne then questioned Mr Jones and asked if this was a situation of two people going for the same position. The answer from Mr Jones was that we are always going for the same position.
----Mr Purdon then had the opportunity to show Mr Jones the film of the incident and was asked about the actions of Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry. Mr Jones at Mr Purdon's suggestion agreed that the jostling between Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry caused their horses to fall.
----In response to a question from Mr Dooley, Mr Jones suggested that Mr Ferguson should have been in behind Weka Lass but Mr Jones did acknowledge to Mr Muirhead that Drivers are entitled to ease other horses down pursuant to the Regulations.
----Mr Jones in response to a question from the Chairman of this Committee did state that the jostling between Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry did not cause their horses to fall.
----Mr Purdon, Mr Ballantyne and Mr Muirhead were then given an opportunity to sum up.
----DECISION
----After listening to the evidence and submissions this Committee finds that Mr Purdon moved Top Tempo from the one out position to three back on the running line in a manner which caused Mr Phelan on Sky Beauty, Mr Holmes on Weka Lass and the other affected Drivers to take evasive action. This resulted in severe interference to a number of horses with three of those horses falling. Rule 1008A provides that the standard of proof in matters such as these is on the balance of probabilities.
----We find that Mr Purdon and his horse were at fault for the following reasons:
--------A. The actions of Mr Purdon in moving Top Tempo into the three back position with the resulting actions of the horses behind.
----B. The evidence presented at this Hearing. We might also say that we were dissatisfied with Mr Phelan's evidence and would have expected a better standard from him. We accordingly did not give great weight to his evidence. We also had concerns about parts of Mr Jones' evidence.
----C. The actions of Mr Purdon bearing in mind the type of race, the fact that Mr Purdon placed great store on the greenness of some of the fillies in this race and the weather conditions.
----D. The evidence as a whole.
----E. The submissions made.
----Having taken all those matters into account the Committee finds that the protest is upheld and Top Tempo is accordingly disqualified from fourth position in the Magnus Benrow Sire Stakes Fillies Championship.
--------BJ Scott
--Chairman
JCA Decision Fields (raw)
Dmitry: This section contains all JCA fields migrated from the raw data.
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: ecd91151ff40086f85c23afc85be1a52
informantnumber:
horsename:
hearing_racingtype: harness-racing
startdate: 26/05/2006
newcharge:
plea:
penaltyrequired:
decisiondate: no date provided
hearing_title: Franklin TC - 26 May 2006 - Race 6
charge:
facts:
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
reasonsfordecision:
Decision:
--Following Race 6 Stipendiary Steward Mr JM Muirhead instigated a protest into the fourth placing of Top Tempo alleging interference with 1150 metres to run
--
Following Race 6 Stipendiary Steward Mr JM Muirhead instigated a protest into the fourth placing of Top Tempo alleging interference with 1150 metres to run to Sky Beauty (placed 6th), Weka Lass (placed 5th), Scotlynn Jane (placed 2nd), Running on Faith (fell), Geld Bromac (lost Driver), Suvarno Hanover (fell), Reality Check (placed 10th), Rhythmic Rose (placed 8th) and Belletti (placed 7th).
----Mr Muirhead sought disqualification of Top Tempo from the race.
----Messrs M Purdon (Trainer), TR Vince (Owner) and M Gregory (Representing GA Rogerson ? Owner) were present to represent the connections of Top Tempo.
----Mr Muirhead was asked to read the relevant Rule and Messrs Purdon, Vince and Gregory were asked if they understood the Rule. They acknowledged doing so.
----The Chairman adjourned the Hearing at that stage so that the Connections of the affected horses could be notified of the Hearing and be given an opportunity to be present. Of those who responded to the notice only one wished to be present.
----Mr S Ballantyne was present and represented the owner of Weka Lass who was placed fifth by the Judge.
----Evidence was given by Stipendiary Steward Mr JM Muirhead and he stated that he witnessed the incident from the Stipendiary Steward's position opposite the winning post and had a very good view of the incident. This was a Group One 1700 metre race from a mobile start and Mr Muirhead said that the horses left the mobile gate at speed. One Dream (F Cooney - Driver) was first out and into the lead followed by Spicey (A Herlihy - Driver) and these two were first and second along the running line prior to the incident. Top Tempo (M Purdon - Driver) was outside in the one out position and Sky Beauty (S Phelan - Driver) was three deep along the running line. There was a gap between Spicey and Sky Beauty but Mr Phelan was endeavouring to move his horse up on to the back of Mr Herlihy and take the three back position. Mr Purdon on Top Tempo challenged for the lead and when he couldn?t get the lead he then moved his horse inwards in behind Spicey to take the three back position. This action forced Mr Phelan on Sky Beauty to take hold of his horse and to run into the vacant passing lane. Mr Purdon was restraining his horse to move into the position behind Spicey and in Mr Muirhead's view he forced Sky Beauty into the passing lane and forced Mr Phelan to take hold of his horse. In Mr Muirhead's opinion the front legs of Sky Beauty were inside the wheel of the sulky on Top Tempo at the start of the incident and that Mr Purdon's actions then dictated
----the line of Sky Beauty and forced Mr Phelan to take evasive action. The action taken by Mr Phelan then caused the horses in behind him to be checked with the Driver of Weka Lass (Mr R Holmes), having to restrain his horse and take evasive action and also the Driver of Scotlynn Jane (Mr M Jones) to restrain his horse. The resulting effect of this was that the horses behind being Running on Faith (Driver Mr P Ferguson) and Geld Bromac (Driver Mr M McKendry) copped the result of the interference of the horses in front being restrained and as a result fell. Suvarno Hanover (Driver TW Mitchell) also fell and there were severe checks to Reality Check (Driver DJ Butcher) Rhythmic Rose (Driver N Thorn) and Belletti (Driver P Jeffries).
----As a result of the fall Mr M McKendry the Driver of Geld Bromac was taken to hospital.
----Mr Muirhead stated that in his view the incident was caused by the actions of Mr Purdon on Top Tempo in that in his inwards movement Mr Purdon dictated the line of Sky Beauty and following horses and forced Sky Beauty into the passing lane and Mr Phelan to restrain his horse and take evasive action. There was then a ripple effect as a result of this action which went back through the field causing the affected horses to take evasive action and as a result of this the incidents occurred. Mr Muirhead also pointed out that in his opinion there was not sufficient room at the time of the incident for Mr Purdon to move his horse inwards.
----Mr Muirhead pointed out that this was a 1700 metre Group One Speed Race and the horses were being driven at speed at the time and Mr Muirhead was firmly of the belief that the manner in which Mr Purdon drove his horse and tried to take position in the running line was the cause of the incidents that happened in the race.
----Mr Muirhead then called Mr T Taumanu to give evidence by use of the video films of the race. Mr Taumanu pointed first to the back straight camera angle of the incident and stated that in his view the front legs of Sky Beauty were up inside the sulky wheel of Top Tempo prior to the incident. Mr Taumanu showed the incident from the different camera angles and with the head-on film showed Sky Beauty going into the passing lane. Mr Taumanu also pointed out the evasive action that was taken by the various horses behind Sky Beauty and stated that the horses that were affected were climbing into the back of each other.
----Mr Purdon then asked Mr Muirhead if he thought that the interference was as a result of greenness of those horses that were effected and Mr Muirhead's answer was that the incidents would not have happened but for the actions of Mr Purdon. Mr Purdon also asked Mr Muirhead if he noticed Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry jostling for position. Mr Muirhead said that Mr McKendry had eased Mr Ferguson's horse down as he was entitled to do and that at the time all horses were accelerating forward and in Muirhead's view the actions of Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry were not the cause of those horses falling.
----Mr Muirhead then called Mr R Holmes the Driver of Weka Lass as a witness. Mr Holmes stated that his horse was running behind Sky Beauty on the running line and Mr Purdon was looking to come into that line. In Mr Holmes' view Mr Phelan was wanting to keep his position three back on the running line but as a result of Mr Purdon's actions Mr Phelan had to take evasive action and restrain his horse. Mr Holmes said that Mr Phelan's horse Sky Beauty came back rapidly on his horse Weka Lass and he also had to immediately restrain his horse and take evasive action.
----Mr Holmes in answer to a question from Mr Muirhead said that from his position he couldn?t see in front of Sky Beauty and accordingly couldn?t see the distance between that horse and Mr Herlihy's horse. He assumed that Mr Phelan had to take evasive action because of the actions of Mr Purdon.
----Mr Purdon asked Mr Holmes if there was an easing of the pace prior to the incident and Mr Holmes could only reiterate that Mr Phelan had come back on him and he had to take evasive action. In answer to Mr Purdon Mr Holmes said that he could not see Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry jostling for position because they were behind him.
----Mr Vince than asked Mr Holmes if his use of the word "assumed" meant that he was not sure of what happened. Mr Holmes stated that from his position four back on the running line and in his experience he had to assume that certain events had happened ahead of him.
----Mr Muirhead then asked Mr Holmes if he was clear as to what had happened and he confirmed the evidence that he had previously given.
----Mr Purdon then gave evidence as the Driver of Top Tempo. He confirmed that he was in the one out position and he believed that the gap between Spicey and Sky Beauty had widened and he came back in to take that gap. It appeared to him that there was sufficient room. He did hear the legs of Sky Beauty inside him but still felt that there was sufficient room.
----Mr Purdon also suggested that at the time that he moved in that the pace of the field had slackened but although he had to restrain his horse to move into the gap he still felt that the gap was sufficient.
----Mr Purdon also took the opportunity to demonstrate the incident by use of the video films and he pointed out the actions of Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry and the jostling that went on between them. Mr Purdon suggested that the actions of Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry were the cause of the horses falling and being interfered with.
----Mr Purdon also pointed out that in his view there was sufficient room for him in front of Sky Beauty and although Mr Phelan had to take hold of Sky Beauty he was able to run down into the vacant passing lane. Mr Purdon suggested that although Mr Holmes on Weka Lass had to restrain his horse and take evasive action that he too could have run into the vacant passing lane. Mr Purdon also suggested that because these horses were two year old fillies that some of them were "green" in terms of racing and this would have contributed to the problems.
----In answer to a question from Mr Muirhead Mr Purdon said that he took the gap and then heard the legs of Mr Phelan. He did not believe that he took any greater risk because of the status of the race and he said that Mr Phelan could have moved onto his back but he took hold.
----Mr Muirhead however asked Mr Purdon if he realised that Mr Phelan would have had to have changed his line and he said yes. Mr Muirhead also asked Mr Purdon if he dictated the line of Mr Phelan's horse and Mr Purdon said that Mr Phelan was behind him and Mr Purdon felt that
----he had sufficient room. Mr Purdon did not think that he was necessarily forcing Mr Phelan to take action nor that he was necessarily dictating the line to him and the horses following. Mr Purdon believed that there were two issues and that there should be focus on the actions of Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry.
----Mr S Ballantyne then asked Mr Purdon if he had ever seen a very experienced horseman like Mr Phelan go down into the passing lane without being pushed. Mr Purdon acknowledged that you don?t go into the passing lane unless you have to.
----Mr Purdon then called Mr S Phelan to give evidence and he confirmed that as the Driver of Sky Beauty he was three back in the running line following Mr Herlihy. Mr Phelan confirmed that he was trying to put his horse into the three back position.
----In answer to Mr Purdon, Mr Phelan stated that he thought that there was sufficient room for Mr Purdon but that when Mr Phelan took hold of his horse it raced greenly and ran into the passing lane. In response to a further question from Mr Purdon, Mr Phelan confirmed that the greenness of his horse, the gap closing and the easing of the pace had resulted in him running into the passing lane.
----Mr Muirhead then questioned Mr Phelan and he stated that he had to take hold because Mr Purdon was already in front of him and he would have run into the back of Mr Purdon if he hadn?t have taken hold. Mr Phelan also said that the horse ran in itself and he had only taken a little bit of a hold.
----Mr Ballantyne then questioned Mr Phelan and suggested that he had contradicted himself in suggesting that on the one hand he had had to take hold of his horse but on the other hand that he was trying to get up onto Mr Herlihy's back. Mr Phelan said that both he and Mr Purdon were trying to go for the same gap. Mr Ballantyne asked that if there was sufficient room for Mr Purdon then why did Mr Phelan have to take hold and he again said that he only had to take hold a little bit because his horse was going at such a rate that he would have run into Mr Purdon. Mr Phelan at this stage in answer to Mr Ballantyne stated that his horse had run in itself and he then suggested that his horse had hung in. He also stated that he was trying to keep up behind the other horses.
----Mr Muirhead also asked Mr Phelan that if he had taken hold of his horse was his line being dictated to by Mr Purdon. Mr Phelan asked what dictated meant.
----In answer to questions from the Chairman of this Committee Mr Phelan confirmed that at the time that he took hold his horse was travelling faster than Mr Purdon's horse and further when asked if his horse had run in of it's own accord previously he stated that it had a little bit but not as much as today and that it does wear a pole on the inside. Mr Phelan also suggested that hanging in and running in were the same thing.
----In answer to Mr Vince, Mr Phelan confirmed that Drivers take hold in many races and he agreed that the main reason why he took hold was because the pace slowed.
----Mr M Jones was then called by Mr Purdon and he confirmed that he was the Driver of the second place horse Scotlynn Jane. He stated that he was racing in the parked position at the time of the incident although back from the leader. Mr Jones said that he could see the whole incident and as far as he was concerned Mr Purdon had sufficient room to move into where he did.
----In answer to a further question Mr Jones said that he did not look behind at any horses jostling because he wanted to stay in the position he was and he had a horse outside him.
----Mr Muirhead then questioned Mr Jones and he stated that in his opinion Mr Purdon's manoeuvre was OK. Mr Jones suggested that the manoeuvres of Mr Phelan and Mr Holmes on Weka Lass happened after Mr Purdon had moved into the running line. Mr Jones said he could see everything because it was in front of him and despite the fact that he was a length or two behind Mr Purdon's horse he could see that there was sufficient room for Mr Purdon.
--Mr Jones was also shown the film of the incident and he tried to suggest that Mr Phelan had moved up inside Mr Purdon.
--Mr Ballantyne then questioned Mr Jones and asked if this was a situation of two people going for the same position. The answer from Mr Jones was that we are always going for the same position.
----Mr Purdon then had the opportunity to show Mr Jones the film of the incident and was asked about the actions of Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry. Mr Jones at Mr Purdon's suggestion agreed that the jostling between Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry caused their horses to fall.
----In response to a question from Mr Dooley, Mr Jones suggested that Mr Ferguson should have been in behind Weka Lass but Mr Jones did acknowledge to Mr Muirhead that Drivers are entitled to ease other horses down pursuant to the Regulations.
----Mr Jones in response to a question from the Chairman of this Committee did state that the jostling between Mr Ferguson and Mr McKendry did not cause their horses to fall.
----Mr Purdon, Mr Ballantyne and Mr Muirhead were then given an opportunity to sum up.
----DECISION
----After listening to the evidence and submissions this Committee finds that Mr Purdon moved Top Tempo from the one out position to three back on the running line in a manner which caused Mr Phelan on Sky Beauty, Mr Holmes on Weka Lass and the other affected Drivers to take evasive action. This resulted in severe interference to a number of horses with three of those horses falling. Rule 1008A provides that the standard of proof in matters such as these is on the balance of probabilities.
----We find that Mr Purdon and his horse were at fault for the following reasons:
--------A. The actions of Mr Purdon in moving Top Tempo into the three back position with the resulting actions of the horses behind.
----B. The evidence presented at this Hearing. We might also say that we were dissatisfied with Mr Phelan's evidence and would have expected a better standard from him. We accordingly did not give great weight to his evidence. We also had concerns about parts of Mr Jones' evidence.
----C. The actions of Mr Purdon bearing in mind the type of race, the fact that Mr Purdon placed great store on the greenness of some of the fillies in this race and the weather conditions.
----D. The evidence as a whole.
----E. The submissions made.
----Having taken all those matters into account the Committee finds that the protest is upheld and Top Tempo is accordingly disqualified from fourth position in the Magnus Benrow Sire Stakes Fillies Championship.
--------BJ Scott
--Chairman
sumissionsforpenalty:
reasonsforpenalty:
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hearing_type: Old Hearing
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raceid: ee29c2aa24f5c7c07264416bcebd7189
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race_title: Race 6
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meetdate: 26/05/2006
meet_title: Franklin TC - 26 May 2006
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