Wellington RC 18 March 2023 – R6 – Wiremu Pinn

Evidence:

Following the running of Race 6, the Respondent Class B Rider, Mr W Pinn admitted a charge of careless riding which was filed pursuant to Rule 638(1)(d).  The Information alleged that he permitted his mount to shift outwards when not sufficiently clear, crowding MAZZOLINO onto SKEW WIFF resulting in MAZZOLINO being checked approaching the 400 metres.

Apprentice Rider Mentor, Ms K Clapperton was present to assist.

Mr Pinn 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 Judicial Committee considers to be careless.

Using the head-on, side, rear and drone footage Stipendiary Steward, Mr N Goodwin demonstrated the incident and identified the horses and Riders concerned.

He said Mr Pinn was racing in a position adjacent to  the running rail. To his outside and back were Mr Grylls (MAZZOLINO) and Mr Bosson (SKEW WIFF). These 2 Waikato Stud runners were racing tightly together. Mr Pinn proceeded to angle out 2 ½ horse widths pushing Mr Grylls onto Mr Bosson.

In response, Mr Pinn explained that he knew Mr Grylls was to his outside, but he thought there was plenty of room for him to come out. He said he didn’t move “that much” and was following the Te Akau horse across. Mr Pinn suggested Mr Bosson may have moved in slightly contributing to MAZZOLINO being sandwiched.

Decision:

As the Respondent admitted the breach the Adjudicative Committee finds the breach proved

Submission for Penalty:

Chief Stipendiary Steward, Mr Oatham produced Mr Pinn’s riding record:

14/5/22 – 4 days

12/10/2 – 4 days

22/10/22 – 7 days

3/12/22 – 5 days

14/1/23 – 8 days

The Respondent has had 394 mounts in the past 12 months.

Mr Oatham said Stewards assessed the level of carelessness to be in the mid-range.  MAZZOLINO ran 4^th and a question mark could be raised whether the interference cost that runner third place.

Mr Pinn said while he did not believe the incident was entirely his fault, as a few other things had happened, there was no doubt that he had moved out when not clear.

He advised that any suspension could begin immediately, however after speaking with his agent and being told that he had engagements through until Saturday March 25^th, he sought a deferment to any proposed suspension.

Reasons for Penalty:

After considering all submissions the Adjudicative Committee determined Mr Pinn’s carelessness to be slightly below mid-range and adopted a 6-day (suspension) as the starting point. This conforms with the NZTR Penalty Guide (as of February 2023).

The Respondent’s riding record is treated as an aggravating factor and an uplift of 1 day was applied.

Rule 920(2) empowers an Adjudicative Committee in imposing a penalty to have due regard to such matters as it considers appropriate including: (a) the Status of the Race; (b) the stake payable in respect of the Race.; and / or (c) the consequences.  On this occasion due to the Group 1 status of the Race the Committee applied a further uplift of 3 days. In addition, Mr Pinn ran 5^th earning $400 in stake money.

Finally, the Adjudicative Committee acknowledged Mr Pinn’s admission of the breach and credited him 1 day.

After consideration of the above factors a 9-day suspension and a $200 fine were imposed.

Conclusion:

The Respondent’s request for a deferment is granted and his licence to ride in races is suspended for a period of 9 days commencing after racing on Saturday March 25^th and concluding after racing on Wednesday April 12^th.