Horseplayers expressed frustration on social media this week after seeing two cases of crop violations under the new track safety regulations of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority handled differently.
On July 6 at Delaware Park, Mizzen was disqualified from her win in the fifth race and placed last due to a violation by rider Carlos Rojas of the Authority's restrictions on whip use. The official Equibase chart from the race references HISA ruling number P-000-023-236 but does not detail further the nature of the violation. The stewards made no inquiry at the time of the race but did according to the stewards' notes posted on the commission website, did decide after the race's conclusion they would require Rojas to attend a film review.
According to the Authority's track safety regulations (which you can find here), a jockey may use the whip a maximum of six times during a race, in increments of no more than two strikes, and may not raise the whip above his or her helmet. Violations of the crop rule are outlined as follows: Class 3 – one to three strikes over the limit; Class 2 – four to nine strikes over the limit; Class 1 – Ten or more strikes over the limit. All three include fines and suspensions for jockeys, and Class 1 and 2 violations also necessitate the disqualification of the horse from purse earnings.
On July 13 in Belterra Park's fourth race, Perkeo and rider Eder Martinez crossed the finish line second. After a stewards' inquiry, Perkeo was disqualified from her finish and placed last due to excessive whip use by Martinez prior to the race becoming official, which resulted in a change in the parimutuel payouts as well as a loss of purse. For simulcast players, the inquiry was first announced over the track's simulcast feed about 5 1/2 minutes after the horses crossed the finish line.
This, according to a spokesperson for the Authority, was a mistake.
“As anyone might expect, there's going to be some growing pains as we begin to implement HISA,” said the spokesperson. “To be clear, violation of the crop rule does not affect the order of finish or parimutuel wagering; it only affects purse earnings and/or jockey suspension after the fact. This has been well-established in the materials and educational sessions that have been provided to stewards across the country.
“There was some confusion in Ohio on this rule over the last couple of days. This has now been clarified with the Ohio Board of Stewards as of this morning. We look forward to continuing to work with stewards and other stakeholders across the industry as we usher in this new era of safety and ensure everyone is educated on the rules.”
Ohio has entered into a voluntary agreement with HISA to enforce the regulations set forth by the Authority.
The spokesperson said that had this type of situation occurred in a maiden race, the horse keeps its condition.
Predictably, horseplayers who had money on the fourth race at Belterra were upset.
Today, @BelterraPark, in R4 the #4 (the runner-up) was disqualified to last because the horse was whipped 11 times. In other words, if you placed a wager on this horse, you lost!
The dawning of @hisa_us is officially upon us! Horse-people and Horseplayers, any thoughts?
pic.twitter.com/5GcxKUYLTF
— Nick J. Hines aka “Sarge”
(@Hinesite) July 14, 2022
Another racing travesty
The HISA crop rules call for only owner losing the purse. The horse still pays out the mutual to the public. I think I would file a class action lawsuit against HISA,Belterra and the stewards pic.twitter.com/5UJaeHgNZ5— Kenny Cox (@kennycoxracing) July 14, 2022
This rule was never meant to dq horse for betting purposes but as a way of controlling the use of whips. If it's used this way public will stop betting. Let the stewards adjudicate the supposed overuse of whips but leave betting alone.
— jay stone (@jaystone6688) July 14, 2022
But, on the other hand, what if you bet a horse who loses by a nose, with the jock abiding by the rules, while the jock on the winner is wailing away, and has a clear advantage because of that? Should that not be a DQ? Aren't bettors getting harmed then, too? What a mess.
— Jeremy Balan (@jeremybalan) July 14, 2022
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