Under BHA rules excessive use of the whip does not carry a disqualification. Simple as thatExcessive and illegal use of the whip on the run-in.
Fined £400. Plus 9 day ban (bit irrelevant seeing as he has retired).
So why was he not disqualified?
He won it through cheating and inflicting unnecessary punishment on the horse.
ANY misuse of the whip doesn't carry a disqualification from that race, The jockey could get a lifetime ban but he won't be disqualified.Yes but he was done for excessive use of the whip AND whipping the horse in an illegal place (presumably on the neck?)
So it wasn't just a case of hitting the horse too many times. He also hit it in a place which is outlawed
The only way to stop it is to ban it altogetherIt has been looked at many times and the only answer is to disqualify the horse, nine day ban 400 quid fine peanuts when you have just won the grand national. I think that a study was done a few years ago and a whole load of top races would have had the platings altered had the rules of the whip changed.
The whip itself has changed so that there is more of a cushion to it, but it still looks unsightly when some jockeys just go eyeballs out with it. One of the greatest jump jockeys of all time John Francome used the whip very sparingly and the ride on Sea Pigeon to win the champion hurdle in the mid 1980,s was a masterclass of how to get the best out of a horse without recourse to the whip.
Mark Walsh (2nd) used the correct amount of hits with the pro-cushIt looked to me that both front runners were at it near the end...