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IT’S
very unfortunate to see a good and promising rider being
meted a very stiff fine of a one-year suspension.
Yes, it
happened on Sunday when jockey John Anthony Guce was
given a one-year forced vacation from racing after “he
had to pull his mount to a stop” a few meters before
reaching the finish line in one of the races at the San
Lazaro Leisure Park.
Onboard
the second favorite Headspin, jockey Guce eased his
horse while accelerating in the mad dash for home and
stopped in the final 150 meters of the race. His
attention was called by the board of stewards and was
asked to explain his action.
Guce
said that “he felt unevenness in the horse’s stride” and
added that “he thought his mount was about to fall.” But
when examined by the club and the Philippine Racing
Commission (Philracom) veterinarians, they found nothing
wrong with the horse. Thus, the “stewards did not accept
the jockey’s explanation and suspended him for 52 racing
weeks for stopping his mount without justifiable reason
and penalized him under PR 12.A of the New Racing Rules.
One year
is a very stiff penalty for a rider whose bread and
butter is riding horses everyday. No ride means no
earnings for him and his family. A rider gets 12 percent
of the total winnings of the horse, that range from
P120,000 to P140,000 in an ordinary race.
Guce
immediately filed an appeal with the Philracom and
reiterated his earlier reason with the board of
stewards. He even filed an added certification from a
private veterinarian who stated that the horse was under
antiinflammatory drugs for its hind leg the past several
weeks before the race.
The
appeal is now being taken up by a Philracom committee
which had already dispatched its own veterinarian to
check on the condition of the horse.
This is
very important because if there is really something
wrong with the horse, it would be a very big factor in
the resolution of the said appeal.
This
case is similar to another case in the past where a
rider suddenly pulled the horse to stop a few meters
away from the finish line after he found out that there
was something wrong with his mount and was meted a
one-year suspension. It was found out later that the
horse in question really had an injured leg. The
jockey’s one-year suspension was reversed afterward.
****
Because
of time constraint on Monday, we were not able to list
down the winners in the annual elections of the
Philippine Race-Horse Trainers Association that was held
at the
Santa Ana
Park.
Reports
that reached us have it that Kap. Pablito “Abong” Guce,
who challenged the presidency of Rogelio “Mang Eyo”
Catajan, gained the upperhand in the said elections
after his “Matapat Na Pangkat” won six of the 11 seats
for the board.
Kap
Abong led his men that included Nestor Manalang, Edwin
Vittali, Abelardo “Boy” Vicente, Rey Henson and Caloy
Macaraig. On the other hand, Mang Eyo was reelected to
the board together with his four other partymates that
included Andoy Florentino, Dr. Panfilo Oliva, Loreto
Domingo and Conrado Vicente. With six seats from the
possible 11 in his pocket, Kap Abong is expected to be
the next president when the new board convene this
Monday and elect among themselves the new set of
officers.
****
GOLF
among the local industry players?
Why not,
said some of the people who would like to organize
golfing games among the local horseracing
players—owners, jockeys, trainers and many
others—involved in this multibillion-peso industry. We
are one of those organizing a fellowship-like golf
tournament that could be held once or twice a year in
order to promote camaraderie among the said players of
the industry.
We are
hoping that there are several players of the industry
out there who would be supporting us in this endeavor.
Meanwhile, start practicing now in order to hone your
game, huh?
****
ALTHOUGH
one old but very prominent racetrack in the United
States is celebrating its anniversary next month, there
are doubts it will still continue operating next year.
The
racetrack is
Hollywood
Park,
where the famed local El Maestro Jesus Guce had his
apprenticeship for almost three months during his
heydays. Hollywood Park, one of the beautiful racetracks
in the California circuit, is celebrating its 70th
season but there are questions whether the owner Bay
Meadows Land Co. (BMLC), which bought the racetrack
three years ago, will extend its promise to continue
racing there.
BMLC
assured the California racing industry in 2005 that it
would continue for at least three years. That period
ends this September.
BMLC is
currently going through the entitlement, or zoning,
process for the Hollywood Park property with the city of
Inglewood. It is unknown how long that will take, and
then the plans will have to go through the design and
approval process. Ultimately, Hollywood Park will likely
give way to retail shops and residential areas that will
include a variety of single-family and condominium
housing. Liebau said one set of plans he has seen would
keep the infield lake in place and includes parkland.
Hollywood’s
70th anniversary includes a full stakes schedule
highlighted by the June 28 Hollywood Gold Cup (Grade I),
July 5 American Oaks (Grade II), and July 5 CashCall
Mile (Grade III), all $750,000 events. The ninth Cal
National Gold Rush day for California-bred runners was
held on April 27, which offered 10 stakes worth a total
of $1.3 million, and Lava Man run in the $150,000 TVG
Khaled Stakes.
Unlike
the recently completed Santa Anita meeting, which
experimented with a Thursday through Monday week,
Hollywood
is running the traditional Wednesday through Sunday
week. The 60-day meet will conclude on July 13. |
