Jockey club to investigate Fallon switch
A late jockey switch involving Kieren Fallon and a raw apprentice at Brighton yesterday sparked a controversy and has been referred to Jockey Club headquarters in London for investigation.
Champion jockey Fallon won the seller on the gambled-on Hanton as a last-minute replacement for 7lb claimer Karl Bowman, who had only ridden once in public before.
Bowman was reported to be stuck in traffic and did not arrive in time for the M&M Office Supplies One Year Anniversary Selling Stakes.
Punters who placed their bets early on morning paper favourite Costa Del Sol received a shock when the champion was announced the partner for Hanton, who is trained at Newmarket by Mark Wallace.
Fallon has ridden several winners for Wallace this season, including a double on two juveniles at San Siro in Milan earlier this month.
Bowman, 20, was issued with his licence in March and on his only ride in public finished sixth at Doncaster later that month.
Hanton opened at 5-2 and touched 5-1 on course before being backed down to 7-4 market leader, with bets of £2,750-£1,000, £2,250-£1,000 (twice) and £2,000-£1,000 (three times) among those recorded.
Fallon needed all his strength to get the unraced two-year-old home by a neck from Costa Del Sol after the youngster had shown signs of greenness when mounting her challenge at the furlong marker.
The filly attracted plenty of interest at the subsequent auction before being retained by connections for 28,000 guineas, a record for the course and well clear of the previous best of 15,000.
After an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the late jockey change, stewards’ secretary Jeremy Ker said: “The stewards held an inquiry because they felt that the somewhat irregular betting patterns warranted it, in that she was backed down from 10s in the morning to favourite.
“They interviewed the trainer, Bowman – the jockey who didn’t turn up – when he eventually got here, the trainer’s secretary, who was doing the driving for the jockey, and Kieren Fallon, who eventually rode the horse.
“They also heard evidence from the clerk of the scales over the timings of what had gone on in the weighing-room.
“Having done all that they established that, quite correctly, the clerk of the scales had allowed the change of jockeys, because the declared jockey wasn’t here a quarter of an hour before the start of the race, and it was immediately announced that Kieren would take the ride.
“However, because all the aspects of the betting in the morning weren’t available to the stewards, they referred the matter to Portman Square for further investigation.”
Jockey Club rules allow for the replacement of a rider under such circumstances and put no ability restriction on the substitute chosen.
John Maxse, the Jockey Club’s director of public relations, said: “The decision to refer means that the Jockey Club’s security department is now in a position to complete the inquiry armed with the evidence given on the day by the relevant people.
“But obviously our own inquiries can now cross-check their evidence with anything else relevant, from off-course betting information to any other factors.
“In view of the subsequent result and backing for the horse, I can understand the suspicions.
“It is only right that we take the time to thoroughly conclude our investigation, to see if there is any evidence which can back up such suspicions. But it is not sufficient to rely on those suspicions alone.”
