Manawatu RC 2 April 2022 – R6 – Sam Weatherley

Evidence:

Following the running of Race 6 (Group 1 Manawatu Sires Produce), the Respondent, Class A Rider Mr S Weatherley, admitted a charge of careless riding which was filed pursuant to Rule 638(1)(d).  The Information alleged that as the Rider of MAVEN BELLE he allowed his mount to shift outwards into the line of WOLVERINE (L Innes) which was hampered near the 75 metres.

Mr Weatherley acknowledged he understood the Rule and confirmed his admission of the breach.

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 head-on film, Stipendiary Steward Mr M Austin identified Mr Weatherley in front on the fence riding MAVEN BELLE with WOLVERINE out in the middle of the track.

Stipendiary Steward Mr K Coppins said that when MAVEN BELLE ran out into the line of WOLVERINE, Mr Weatherley did not do enough to straighten his mount in that he continued to use the whip rather than put his hand back on the reins.

In response, Mr Weatherley agreed that his horse had moved out under pressure, and due to a bit of greenness, but maintained that he did try to straighten it when it got close to WOLVERINE. He said he put his whip away and Mr Innes was hampered only slightly in the incident.

Decision:

As Mr Weatherley admitted the breach the Adjudicative Committee finds the breach proved

Submission for Penalty:

Mr Coppins produced Mr Weatherley’s careless riding record:

1/1/22   Auckland 10 days +$1000

19/11/21 Taranaki 4 days

4/9/21 Waikato 7 days

2/9/21 Cambridge 3 days

Mr Weatherley has had 422 mounts in the past 12 months.

Mr Coppins said Stewards assessed the level of carelessness to be below midrange. He also said that Adjudicative Committees in the Northern region had recently been taking into account the effects of Covid when arriving at penalties.

Mr Weatherley said that he was a busy Rider who often has a full book of rides, but he had missed some riding lately due to sickness. He considers himself a clean Rider and said that he is due to ride his father’s horse in Sydney on April 16th which is the opportunity of a lifetime for him.

Reasons for Penalty:

In the home straight, Mr Weatherley was on the fence and well in the lead. From his position on the rail, he began to move outwards, which he was entitled to do so because he was clear of any other runner. The charge of careless riding arose only from when he got close to WOLVERINE and went 2 strides too far before taking corrective action. Mr Weatherley put his whip away and did not use it again apart from one strike right on the finish line. The Adjudicative Committee determined that Mr Weatherley’s carelessness sat below midrange. We adopted a starting point of 6 days which conforms with the NZTR Penalty Guide (as of 1 March 2022).

The Group 1 status of the race elevated the number of days by 3 to 9 days.

Taking into account Mr Weatherley’s record, which we treated as a neutral factor, we allowed a 1-day reduction for his admission of the breach arriving at an 8- day suspension. For  breaches occurring in “black -type” races particularly where the Jockey has won the race it is common for Adjudicative Committees to impose an additional monetary penalty.

After consideration of all the above factors, an 8-day suspension and a fine was deemed an appropriate penalty.

Conclusion – Penalty:

Mr Weatherley’s licence to ride in races is suspended for a period of 8 days, commencing after racing today and concluding after racing on Thursday April 14th. In addition he is fined the sum of $2000.