Not only did Kerrin McEvoy lose the Group One Railway Stakes on protest, the jockey was hit with a 28 day ban for Saturday’s interference.
McEvoy steered New Zealander He’s Remarkable in the Group One race at Ascot in Perth but celebrations were put on hold when Luckygray’s rider Shaun O’Donnell fired in a protest.
After a lengthy hearing, stewards declared Luckygray the winner after deeming McEvoy had caused interference to horses on his outside approaching the home turn.
The retained rider for Sheikh Mohammed’s Darley Australia, McEvoy holds a one-win lead over Jim Cassidy as he strives for his first Sydney premiership.
He will ride in Sydney on Wednesday then join Cassidy on the sidelines with the latter hit with a five week ban last week for overuse of the whip.
The trip to the west didn’t end well for McEvoy who had to settle for second in the other Group One race of the feature meeting when Rarefied was overhauled by Ortensia.
A prolific twitter user, McEvoy showed he still had a sense of humour.
“Well a disappointing end to a grt days racing,losing a G1 race in the stewards room is quite hard2swallow,28days suspension to unclog throat” he tweeted.
Ortensia’s win in the Winterbottom Stakes was a triumph for jockey Craig Williams who is well acquainted with the ups and downs of racing.
Williams was on the verge of history this spring to become the first jockey to take out the Caulfield Cup, Cox Plate and Melbourne Cup in the same year.
But a suspension cost him the ride on French horse Dunaden in the Melbourne Cup with Christophe Lemaire riding the horse to a narrow victory.
Williams leaves on Tuesday to take up a six-week contract in Japan where he has been successful in previous visits.
AAP TURF
