NZ Metro TC 9 April 2025 – R1 – Colleen Negus

INFORMATION A20435:

Following the running of Race 1, IRT. Your Horse. Our Passion (Amateur Drivers) Mobile Pace, Advanced Amateur Driver, Colleen Negus, denied a charge that, as the Driver of FOVEAUX GAMBLER in the race, she “shifted outwards passing the 1500 metres forcing FRANCO HOFFMAN (Michael House) to race wider on the track” (a breach of the pushout rule).

Rule 869 provides:

(4)   No driver shall during any race do anything which interferes or is likely to interfere with his own horse and/or any other horse or its progress.

(6)   Subject to sub-rule (4) hereof:-

          (b) a horse during any race shall not be forced to race wider on the track;

(c) a horse during a race shall not move ground outwards once the nose of the wider runner coming forward is in line with or past its sulky wheel and until the wider runner going forward is fully past.

EVIDENCE:

Stipendiary Steward, Paul Williams, showed the available video replays of the incident with approximately 1500 metres to run. He showed the field racing in single, with FOVEAUX GAMBLER, driven by Mrs Negus, racing five places back, being trailed by FRANCO HOFFMAN, driven by Mr House. Mr House then drew his runner out to improve and was “well outside” Mrs Negus, when she opted to come out.

Mr House was forced to race 3-wide for some considerable distance, before eventually improving past Mrs Negus to reached the position outside the leader, Mr Williams said.

Mrs Negus said that, when she came out, she was ahead of Mr House. At this point of the hearing, the Adjudicative Committee asked Mr Williams to read the Rule. Mr Williams, to assist Mrs Negus, then showed all of the available video replays. After the Rule was read and explained to Mrs Negus, she accepted that she had breached the Rule.

DECISION:

The charge was found proved.

REASONS FOR DECISION:

The Adjudicative Committee was clearly satisfied that this was a patent breach of the Pushout Rule. Mr House’s runner, FRANCO HOFFMAN, while improving one-out, was forced to race wider on the track, 3-wide, as a result of Mrs Negus moving ground outwards, while the nose of FRANCO HOFFMAN was clearly past the sulky wheel of Mrs Negus’ runner, FOVEAUX GAMBLER. In electing to shift out at that point, Mrs Negus has breached the Pushout Rule. The charge is proved.

SUBMISSIONS FOR PENALTY:

Mr Williams said that Mrs Negus has no breaches of the Rule on her record.

The Penalty Guide starting point for a breach of the Rule is a fine of $200, Mr Williams said. He submitted that the Adjudicative Committee should consider the fact that, as a consequence of the breach, Mrs Negus was able to secure a favourable run in the one-out, one-back position on the back of FRANCO HOFFMAN, until about the 700 metres when that horse commenced to weaken and, also, that Mrs Negus’ runner had finished 2nd in the race. Those were aggravating factors, Mr Williams submitted. His submission was for a fine of $250.

Mrs Negus did not wish to make any submission in relation to penalty.

REASONS FOR PENALTY:

The RIB Harness Racing Penalty Guide (October 2024) suggests a fine of $200 for a first, mid-level breach of the Pushout Rule.

There are aggravating factors to be considered, as submitted by Mr Williams. Those factors warrant an uplift of $50 to the starting point. There are no relevant mitigating factors. Accordingly, the Adjudicative Committee considers a fine of $250 to be the appropriate penalty for the breach.

CONCLUSION:

The Respondent, Advanced Amateur Driver, Colleen Negus, is fined $250.