Jockey Joseph Azzopardi has been banned for six weeks after a stewards' review of Sunday's Group 2 Perth Cup in Western Australia, reports The Guardian.
Stewards ruled that Azzopardi's careless riding resulted in the death of the horse Chili Is Hot; the jockey pleaded guilty after multiple video angles showed his mount, Buster Bash, shifted out in front of Chili Is Hot, causing that rival to clip heels and fall. The incident also caused Dom To Shoot to fall, but that horse escaped with minor injuries. Jockeys Peter Knuckey (Chili Is Hot) and Jordan Turner (Dom To Shoot) were each dislodged as well, but were cleared from injury.
“It is the worst moment in my racing career,” Azzopardi told the stewards' inquiry on Monday, according to 7news.com.au. “It was not intentional and I was trying to control Buster Bash, who was riding waywardly.”
Among the factors stewards considered when handing down the six-week ban were:
- The seriousness of the incident,
- Resultant consequences with Chili Is Hot sustaining fatal injuries in the fall and jockeys Peter Knuckey and Jordan Turner being dislodged,
- The significance of the race being a feature Group 2 event where increased penalties apply,
- The incident resulted in the race being declared void,
- His prior record under the rule with his most recent careless riding suspensions being incurred in November and July 2022,
- The degree of carelessness being in the mid range by allowing his mount to shift outwards in the early stages, where the field was compact and riders still finding their positions,
- The high degree of interference,
- His guilty plea and remorse for the incident.
Read more at The Guardian.
The post Western Australia Jockey Banned Six Weeks For Careless Riding After Horse Dies In Perth Cup appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
