Hayes joins Qld boycott

SOUTHERN racing giant Lindsay Park will not run any horses in Queensland during the winter carnival because of concerns over the integrity of the state’s racing industry.

Hall of Fame trainer David Hayes who heads Lindsay Park, has come out in support of Aquis Farm which announced on Thursday it would not race its horses in Queensland until integrity issues were addressed.

Aquis is one of Queensland racing’s biggest investors and has naming rights to the Gold Coast Turf Club track and has a showpiece racing and breeding operation at Canungra.

Owned by the Hong Kongbased Fung family, Aquis also has a base in the NSW Hunter Valley and has interests in high- profile horses including Magic Millions 2YO Classic winners Sunlight and Houtzen.

Lindsay Park is one of the country’s biggest stables.

Hayes said he fully supported the stance taken by Aquis.

“We are not planning to go and we will rest the horses,” Hayes said.

“It’s a shame because it’s a great carnival but not if it’s not a level playing field.”

Lindsay Park trains multiple Group 1 placegetter Fundamentalist for Aquis, which is donating any prizemoney earned by horses it races in partnerships and not fully under its control, to charity.

The Lindsay Park and Aquis boycotts come as Toowoomba trainer Ben Currie is involved in a drawn-out legal battle over 42 allegations raised by stewards.

Currie faces 28 charges emanating from a raid on his Toowoomba stable a year ago.

Stewards heard 14 of the charges last month but the remaining 14 have yet to be heard with another delay because of a steward’s illness.

Other charges against Currie relate to alleged swab irregularities and use of jiggers but he continues to train on a stay.

He is scheduled to appear in the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal on Thursday to ask for another extension.

Queensland Racing Integrity Commission chief Ross Barnett said no date had been set for the resumption of the inquiry into the 28 charges.

“Due to the illness of a stewarding panel member, the 14 charges remain to be heard. A new schedule of hearings is being negotiated with Currie’s lawyers,” Barnett said.

Currie has six horses nominated for the Doomben meeting on Saturday.