Owner’s tainted race call

RACING Victoria should release details of every race involved in the Aquanita doping scandal so affected parties can get the “natural justice” they deserve, says prominent owner Terry Henderson.

Life bans handed out on Thursday to disgraced trainer Robert Smerdon and his coconspirators put the results of potentially hundreds of races between 2010 and 2017 in doubt.

The work done by RV stewards to catch, charge and penalise the cheats within a relatively short period has been applauded by many in the industry.

But Henderson, who has been a strong voice since the Aquanita Eight were first exposed, believes RV could enhance its standing by releasing details of every race it believes was run with horses that had been “topped-up”.

He said armed with that knowledge, owners and trainers could then decide whether to pursue compensation in some form.

“My views are very clear. I think it is incumbent on Racing Victoria to release the information that relates to the charges in respect of the specific races that have been brought forward,” Henderson said. “Having done that, and having waited for the appeals process to pass, then Racing Victoria or indeed individual owners would have the right to assess if their horses have been impacted or not.

“At this stage, many owners, including ourselves, are not aware if some of their horses had been affected.

“Racing Victoria has to be given the opportunity to digest what has happened, then make a decision on what it is going to do. But I would hope they would put it out there for everyone to assess from their own point of view.”

Henderson said in the absence of a public release of the information he would seek the information privately. He said it was not about recouping money, noting the complexity of such an exercise, but more about “natural justice”.

“At worst, should they not release it, what we would be doing is writing a letter to [chief steward] Terry Bailey and saying that as a matter of natural justice would he kindly advise us if any of our horses finished in the placings of those races that were the subject of the inquiry,” he said.

“I think it is reasonable that they tell us what they know or don’t know.”