Hills not to appeal ban

Richard Hills has decided not to appeal against the seven-day ban imposed on him by the Leicester stewards for his ride on El Dececy on Tuesday.

The jockey was found guilty of dropping his hands close to home behind the winner Celtic Step in the EBF Apollo Maiden Stakes.

Hills was adjudged to have eased up in the final strides before the line, allowing Jimmy Fortune on Western Adventure to snatch second place by a short head.

As a result, the stewards suspended him for seven days under rule 158 (September 16-22) for dropping his hands.

Hills said: “Basically the stewards got me on a technicality. In order to appeal, I would have to prove that Jimmy Fortune was already in front of me before the line. And while Jimmy would state that he was, it would be very hard to prove it looking at the camera angles.

“I would definitely appeal if I thought I could turn it around but the way the rules are written at the moment it would be very hard not to. It was a harsh decision.

“The rules should be looked into as they shouldn’t have one mandatory suspension for the offence in question.

“I didn’t deserve seven days for dropping my hands for half a stride. I didn’t stop riding and sometimes it’s hard to judge when you’re heading towards the finishing line at 35mph.

“And if, on appeal, Portman Square had deemed I should have been second, then they could have moved the ban up to 10 days. It’s a joke, so I decided I can’t win, and will have to take a week off.”