Racing’s ruling body has refused to engage with detailed allegations that it failed to properly disclose relevant material to John Wainwright’s defence team during the disciplinary proceedings which the Yorkshire trainer faced recently. Wainwright was cleared of corruption on Thursday, prompting angry exchanges between the British Horseracing Authority and his lawyer, Harry Stewart-Moore, over the way the case had been handled.
That anger has yet to dissipate and this week the solicitor spoke of two main areas of concern in which it believed the BHA had failed in its obligations to disclose relevant material to the defence well in advance of the final hearing. In both cases, Stewart-Moore alleges the material was only passed to him once the disciplinary hearing was under way.
The first instance concerns a meeting of 16 April 2015 between Adam Carter, a jockey who was found guilty of corruption offences when the case concluded last week, and Paul Beeby, the BHA’s head of investigations. The meeting took place immediately before Carter changed his story to implicate Wainwright but, according to Harry Stewart-Moore, it was not mentioned on a BHA list provided to the defence which was supposed to detail all contact between the BHA and Carter.
Secondly, Stewart-Moore said there was an internal BHA email dating from the summer of 2015 in which a member of BHA staff expressed concern that Carter was being allowed to continue riding, despite by then being a jockey who claimed to have stopped a horse on the instructions of a trainer. He suggested that Carter had begun to ride recklessly, raising the prospect of his being a danger to himself and others.
From 18 April to 27 July that year, Carter was found guilty of careless riding on four occasions by raceday stewards, racking up 11 days of suspensions. He also breached the whip rules four times, accumulating 19 days of suspensions.
The BHA offered a flat denial to the suggestion that it had failed in its obligations on disclosure but declined to offer any detailed response to Stewart-Moore’s allegations. A spokesman said: “The disciplinary panel were aware of the points being raised but there was no finding of any procedural impropriety. The suggestions of impropriety around disclosure are without foundation.
“A fair and open process was followed and the BHA will be publishing further details around our revised disclosure policy in due course”.
Churchill will be fit for what looks a serious test in today’s Juddmonte International at York, his trainer, Aidan O’Brien, has said. The horse has not been seen for two months, since he was a disappointing fourth at Royal Ascot. “Obviously, we would have preferred if we had a run, but that’s the way it is,” O’Brien said.
The colt had been due to line up for Goodwood’s Sussex Stakes on 2 August but was withdrawn because of soft going. “He seems to have been well since,” the trainer added. “He hasn’t done an awful lot because it’s not long ago and he was fit going to Goodwood. Obviously, we would have preferred if we had a run, but that’s the way it is.”
Wednesday’s tips by Chris Cook
Carlisle 1.35 Poet’s Pride 2.05 Picture No Sound 2.40 Yes You 3.15 Show Palace 3.50 Brother McGonagall 4.25 Im Dapper Too 4.55 Kashmiri Sunset 5.25 Goninodaethat
Bath 1.45 Our Lord 2.15 Go Roo 2.50 Eugenic 3.25 Just Fred 4.00 Satisfy 4.35 Delagate This Lord 5.10 Hope Is High 5.40 Nutini
York 1.55 Robot Boy 2.25 Fleet Review 3.00 Venice Beach 3.35 Ulysses 4.15 Shrewd (nb) 4.50 Kalagia
Worcester 5.00 The Geegeez Geegee 5.30 Ink Master 6.00 Star Foot 6.30 Forgotten Hero 7.00 Oscar’s Song 7.30 Cliffside Park 8.00 Aristocracy (nap)
Kempton 6.15 Azezati 6.45 Munstead Star 7.15 Dubai Elegance 7.45 Mazyoun 8.15 Denmead 8.45 Morello
