An emotional Mick Fitzgerald fought back tears as he gave his reaction to a photo of Gordon Elliott sitting on a dead horse.
The Meath trainer apologised for the photo last night and said that he will fully cooperate with an ongoing IHRB investigation.
Legendary jockey and TV pundit Fitzgerald, who won the Cheltenham Gold Cup on See More Business in 1999, said he felt "really sad" after reading Elliott's statement.
Speaking on Sky Sports Racing, Fitzgerald said: "My initial reaction to it [the photo] was, 'I hope it's a fake'.
"I just thought it has to be a fake.
"When I read that statement I felt so sad. The number one thing we have to get out to everybody is how much we care about these horses.
"It's so important everybody knows that at the heart of this are people who love these animals.
"It's making me quite emotional because these horses have given me a life that I'm privileged to have.
"It just makes me feel really sad.
"I've been in situations where horses I have looked after or ridden have unfortunately paid the ultimate sacrifice.
"The care and attention they get to the very end - we have to emphasise that people know we care for these horses.
"We want to celebrate them and make them realise how much they are loved by everybody in the sport."
The comments came as Elliott was sacked from his role as an ambassador for bookmakers Betfair.
A spokesperson for the firm said: "While we recognise that Gordon deeply regrets and apologised unreservedly for his poor judgement his actions are completely at odds with the values of the Betfair brand and that of our employees.
"With that in mind, we have decided to discontinue our association with Gordon with immediate effect."
