Auckland TR 25 November 2023 – R7 – Ace Lawson-Carroll

Evidence

This charge arises from the running of Race 7, the Stella Artois 1500 Championship Qualifier.  Senior Stipendiary Steward Mr B Jones filed an Information pursuant to Rule 638(1)(d) alleging the Rider of BELLA LUCE (Apprentice Rider A Lawson-Carroll), permitted his mount to shift outwards when not sufficiently clear of CHANNEL SURFER (J Doyle), which was checked near the 175 metres.

Mr Lawson-Carroll admitted the breach and was assisted at the hearing by his Employer, Mr S Clotworthy.

Rule 638(1)(d) provides:  A Rider shall not ride a horse in a manner which the Adjudicative Committee considers to be careless.

Using the available race films, Stipendiary Steward Mr M Davidson demonstrated the incident and identified the horses and Riders concerned.

Mr Davidson pointed out that approaching the 175 metres, Mr Lawson-Carroll shifted his mount outwards into the running line of CHANNEL SURFER, whose rider Mr Doyle had to take a firm hold and restrain his mount. He said that at the time of the shift, BELLA LUCE was barely a length clear of CHANNEL SURFER. In mitigation, Mr Davidson said that there was some movement from the horses directly in front of BELLA LUCE, specifically REVERBERATIONS, whose Rider Apprentice T Moodley, was trying to find a clear run.

In response, Mr Lawson-Carroll also pointed to the horses in front of him at the time of the shift and he said they contributed to his decision to shift outward. Mr Clotworthy added that SLIPPER ISLAND (M McNab), who was also in front of BELLA LUCE, shifted out and Mr Lawson-Carroll anticipated this.  He also said that Mr Doyle’s mount overreacted to the incident.

Decision

As Mr Lawson-Carroll admitted the breach, the Adjudicative Committee found the charge proved.

Submissions for Penalty

Mr Jones produced Mr Lawson-Carroll’s riding record and identified that this is his seventh breach of the Careless Riding Rule in the last 12 months. He said that his record is poor, and the only mitigating factor is his admission of the breach.

Mr Jones said Stewards assessed the level of carelessness to be at least in the low to mid-range and any proposed suspension should be commensurate with a penalty in that range. He pointed out that Mr Lawson-Carroll was suspended 7 days for Careless Riding on 21 November 2023 and that suspension commences after racing on 25 November and concludes after racing on 8 December 2023.

Mr Lawson-Carroll had nothing further to add in terms of any proposed penalty.  On his behalf, Mr Clotworthy submitted that the breach was low end and there were several mitigating factors.

Some discussion followed concerning the merits of referring Mr Lawson-Carroll to the Rider Skills Review Panel for remedial coaching.  It was determined that he would derive benefit from this.

Reasons for Penalty

After considering the submissions and reviewing the race film, the Adjudicative Committee determined Mr Lawson-Carroll’s carelessness to be in the low to mid-range.

The available films identify some mitigating factor as highlighted by Mr Jones and Mr Clotworthy. Nevertheless, the onus still remains on Mr Lawson-Carroll to take care when electing to shift ground.  Particularly, it is his responsibility to ensure he is his own length and one other when shifting.

Mr Lawson-Carroll’s overall record is assessed as poor.  He will no doubt benefit from assistance given to him by participating in the Rider Skills Review Panel.

After taking into account all the above factors, the Adjudicative Committee considered a suspension of 7 (national) days to be appropriate under the circumstances.

Conclusion

Accordingly, his Licence to ride in races is suspended for a period of 7 days commencing after racing on 9 December 2023, and concluding on 21 December 2023.