Choisir set for July Cup assault
The Paul Perry-trained four-year-old proved a revelation at Royal Ascot when he won both the King’s Stand Stakes and the Golden Jubilee Stakes under Johnny Murtagh.
The jockey said afterwards that he would win everything in Europe if he stayed here for the big sprints but his participation in the Newmarket showpiece had been in some doubt as he had been expected to be sold.
However, the trainer’s son Shannon, who has been supervising the colt’s training at Geoff Wragg’s yard, said yesterday: “He runs next week and is a bit tighter and more race-fit as the July Cup will be his third run back.
“Johnny Murtagh will ride him again and I’m hoping to win.
“I don’t know what else he needs to do now to prove his (European champion sprinter’s) title, the others are going to run out of races to catch him soon.”
There has been much speculation about whether Choisir will be sold but Perry jnr said he is not aware that any deal has been done.
“I’ve just been told we’re running and to get the horse there the best we can,” he added.
Meanwhile a total overhaul involving both the restructuring and expansion of the security department has been recommended to the Jockey Club in Britain after the conclusion of a five-month investigation into its effectiveness.
The joint initiative between the British Horseracing Board and the Jockey Club was set to to explore the future of security work at Portman Square in the light of last year’s damning Panorama and Kenyon Confronts programmes, which accused the sport of being rife with cheating.
But, while the Security Review Group found understaffing and outdated working practices in the department, they were unable to identify evidence for the implied accusation that the Jockey Club failed to take action that they could and should have against those who were breaking the rules.
The Review Group made a total of 36 recommendations to enhance the integrity of British horseracing, which it concludes is “crucial to the future success of a sport which supports a multi-billion pound racing and betting industry”.
Among the most significant is that all persons licensed or registered by the Jockey Club, including all owners, jockeys and trainers, should have to register details of their betting accounts with bookmakers or exchanges.
This would “enable an audit trail of any transaction to be available to the Security Department or an enforcement agency in the event of any corrupt or malpractice. It would have a particular deterrent value because, if made a condition of the grant of a licence or registration, any proven abuse of the system would place that person’s licence or registration in jeopardy”.
Instead of creating a new database, details would simply be added to existing files held by Weatherbys on all licensed persons.
The Security Department itself would become computerised, with an improved filing system and more staff liaising more closely, adopting a “more consultative and open approach” with other racing authorities.
An established protocol would be set up for liaison arrangements with the police, a recommendation which comes in response for the lack of communication between the two bodies which hampered previous criminal cases involving racing.
Another important recommendation from the Review Group is a review of the position of the trainer in relation to breaches of the non-trier rules.
It concludes that “the fine that follows a successful prosecution of a trainer is rarely as harsh a penalty as that for the owner. Larger fines should be considered...and suspension in more serious cases”.
If it is decided to implement all of the recommendations, then the Security Department would take on a much more public and visible role, continually monitoring betting patterns and intelligence and trying to act more as a visible deterrent to potential wrongdoers.
