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The race in question was Delaware Park's third on June 23. Appeal to the City, the horse ridden by Rose reacts awkwardly to a left handed whip strike just before the finish. Rose was suspended six months and was denied a stay to allow him to continue riding until an appeal and is responsible for the bills accrued as a result of the incident.
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Bury
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Disgraceful performance from Rose. He may have been mad when she tried to duck in toward the gap where the chute comes onto the main course, but that is no excuse.
It will be interesting to hear what his appeal is based on.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NBFmTT50Y0
This is the head-on.
I will at least entertain the dialogue that it was an accident.
It could be an accident in the sense that he struck the horse in front of where he intended to because he used a similar manner after the injury-inducing hit. The video doesn't look good. But one is right to question the motivation at the time.
We are quick to blame Kent Desormeaux for not trying to get the best possible finish (even if that meant fourth aboard Big Brown) and here is Jeremy trying to keep his horse in the exacta and I think it is plausible that he struck the horse where he did by physical accident. The two left-handed wrist whips were similar in motion to the one in question.
No excuses for the damage done and he deserves punishment - but a degree of plausibility - yes, I believe.
Now, is the bar set for jockeys being responsible for injuries caused during a race when the jockey makes a bad decision? Going to a tight spot and going down? Whip welts? This could be the start of a slippery slope.
Pat,
I agree we should wait to hear his reasons, if any. However, since the ruling included a requirement for anger management, it would appear the stewards had evidence that was the cause, fueled by frustration when the filly ducked in.
There is a difference between accident, carelessness, and willful actions caused by intention. Stewards should be able to sort those out case-by-case.
Jockey's whipping a horse in the head is not completely uncommon, as its often a way to get them to shape-up. However, in light of all the recent press in horse racing, it seems as though there's an underlying move towards cleaning the game up. This is probably the stewards trying to make an example out of a situation and saying how everyone needs to shape-up or ship-out.
I just don't see how whacking a horse in the eye could be considered an accident. Think how about many times a jock whips a horse in his life... it's second nature to them. Whipping a rival? That seems more likely.
I encourage you all to watch the head-on - watch the horse react to the facial strike and the motion that generated it - then watch the next two whip strikes.
Whereas Travis mentioned that "I just don't see how whacking a horse in the eye could be considered an accident...whip[ping] is second nature to them." That being the case, considering that such an incident rarely happens, it would be an extreme oddity. But the same logic could also indicate an accident. I'm withholding personal judgment until we hear more...and you know we will.
I just went back and watched the replay for the tenth time and it's just brutal. I've watched thousands of races and I've never seen a horse react like that unless he or she broke down. How do you go for the shoulder, and hit the head? I don't get it.
Yeah, it's bad. But it is so bad, that I really want to hear Rose's thoughts, and those of the owner/trainer as to his mindset when he came back from the ride. It is so difficult to comprehend, so absolutely absurd, that I need some sort of full disclosure from the parties involved before I cast full judgment.
I don't think it's difficult to comprehend:
- Horse loses the lead.
- Horse gets hit in the eye.
- Horse cocks head hard to the side, and veers out.
- Despite all this, the horse hit again... and again.
Travis - the horse didn't have the lead when hit in the face, nor when hit on the shoulder in the final seconds of the race. He was trying to hold the exacta at this point.
Either way though.
I'll agree - either way, it's real bad.