Russell lands four-day ban for punching horse

Jockey Davy Russell has been banned for four days following an appeal over an incident when he hit his mount at Tramore.

Russell was originally given a caution with no further punishment from the referrals committee after appearing to strike Kings Dolly before a race on 18 August.

However, after an internal review, the Turf Club said the registrar of the Irish National Hunt Steeplechase Committee had asked the appeals body to look at the findings “on the grounds that it was unduly lenient”.

Russell, twice champion jockey in Ireland and winner of the Cheltenham Gold Cup in 2014 on Lord Windermere, had argued he wanted the horse to concentrate and that it was inappropriate to use the whip under the circumstances. But the rider’s actions were heavily criticised, including by the RSPCA, who felt that Russell deserved a stiffer penalty.

David Muir, equine consultant for the RSPCA, hopes lessons will be learned.

He said: “Davy Russell has gone through the system for the past two weeks, which has let racing down. If four days was the punishment on the day, there would have been no furore.

“I’ve no complaints over the punishment, but there needs to be a clear line of what is acceptable. Punching horses in the head is obviously not and the penalty needs to be clear. Hounding a jockey is not right, which is what has happened here, so the Turf Club and BHA need to learn from this.”