Additional discussions are being held to address the issues that surround the new UK whip rules, which are due to begin on Jan. 9, 2023 for National Hunt racing, with a four-week “bedding-in” period, the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) announced on Friday evening.
Under the new rules, winning horses face disqualification if their jockey does not follow the new regulations. It has been agreed that to address concerns regarding the impact of potential disqualification of runners on raceday for betting purposes, any potential decisions regarding disqualification will now be made by the whip review committee away from raceday, and will therefore not affect the outcome of a race for betting purposes.
The “bedding-in” period allows jockeys to ride without being subject to the new sanctions. Beginning on Feb. 6, the new rules begin. For Flat racing, the “bedding-in” period begins on Feb. 27, with full implementation of the rules due to start on Mar. 27. Under the revised rules, a jump jockey who uses their whip 12 or more times–with 11 strikes or more for Flat jockeys–in any race could be disqualified. In addition, if the races are Class 1 or Class 2 races under both codes, as well as any race worth £27,500 on the Flat or £20,000 over jumps, the jockey also faces a potential 28-day ban.
Some leeway may be allowed if it is deemed riders were using their whip in the interests of safety or if it has been used down the shoulder with both hands on the reins. It has also now been decided that, should they wish, Flat jockeys may use the jump version of the whip–which has a longer padded section–in response to concerns raised by some jockeys regarding the use of the whip in the backhand-only and the risk of landing it in the incorrect place.
It is understood further representations made to the British Horseracing Authority include concerns over the backhand-only rule.
A spokesperson for the BHA said, “The BHA has always understood the challenges involved in any review of the use of the whip in horse racing.
“From the moment we launched a consultation in July 2021 we constantly engaged with all interested parties, especially jockeys and their representatives, to ensure we listened to the views of those most affected.
“It was because of that readiness to engage that we agreed to extend the initial timescales for implementation of new rules beyond autumn 2022, allowing as many people as possible to influence and shape the technical discussion phase.
“In the past few days, however, further representations have been made to the BHA, including some themes which were not raised as part of the initial consultation or technical discussions.
“In light of this latest information, the BHA and the chair of the Whip Consultation Steering Group have agreed to continue dialogue to explore options that address the concerns being raised, while still delivering our core objective of a more considered and judicious use of the whip for encouragement, and improved perception of whip use.
“It is right that those discussions are allowed to take place away from the glare of publicity but we will look to provide an update as soon as possible in light of the existing timelines for the 'soft launch' of revised rules on Jan. 9, 2023.”
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