Junior Alvarado, who rode the horse Sovereignty to victory at this year’s Kentucky Derby, is considering an appeal against the fine and ban he received for overuse of his whip during the race.
The jockey was found to have used the whip “more than the permitted amount” the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) said on Saturday. Under HISA regulations, jockeys are allowed to strike their horse six times during a race; Alvarado used the whip on Sovereignty eight times. It was his second such offense in the last 180 days, meaning his fine was doubled to $62,000 – 20% of his winnings from the Kentucky Derby. Alvarado was also banned for two Kentucky racing days, on 29 and 30 May.
The jockey has 10 days to lodge an appeal and he denies that he overused his whip.
“I didn’t abuse the horse,” he told the Daily Racing Form. “Nobody can tell me, even if they can prove that I hit the horse two extra times, it was in an abusing way, it’s just ridiculous. The punishment doesn’t fit the crime and I don’t think there was any crime.”
Alvarado said he will weigh up whether an appeal is worth his time, or whether to put the incident behind him.
“I would like to just get it over with and put it behind me, I don’t want to carry this one extra day, but at the same time I don’t want to give up that easily like they were right,” Alvarado said. “I would like to move forward and fix something. As everybody can see, it’s unfair the penalties we’re facing. Maybe [by appealing] we can get something good out of this.”
The 38-year-old rode Sovereignty to a thrilling victory in last weekend’s race, pulling away from the heavy favorite Journalism down the final stretch. Sovereignty will not compete in this month’s Preakness Stakes, the second leg of US horse racing’s Triple Crown.
