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Chris Alford, driver of Amore Vita NZ, pleaded guilty to a charge under Rule 163(1)(a)(iii) in that passing the 500m he directed Amore Vita NZ out and commenced to ease Fiamma wider and in completing the movement caused Fiamma to be checked and subsequently break gait and Jo An Jo, Mykorona, Elegant, Patsy Valentine and Nonparreil, who were following, being checked to varying degrees. In assessing penalty Stewards considered the relevant factors as outlined within the HRV Stewards Minimum Penalty Guidelines placing weight on Mr Alford’s guilty plea, his exceptionally good driving record (1343 drives since last offence), the Group 1 status of the race, the degree of interference involved and the circumstances of the incident where Stewards were satisfied that Fiamma resisting the wider movement of Amore Vita NZ contributed and Mr Alford had taken some corrective measures in an attempt to avoid the incident. Stewards accordingly imposed a 10 day suspension of Mr Alford’s licence to drive in races and a fine of $500. This suspension was ordered to commence midnight 8 January 2022.
Kerryn Manning, driver of Plymouth Chubb, was suspended for a period of 7 days and fined $500 for using the whip in an unapproved manner in that inside the final 200m she applied the whip on more occasions than is permitted. In assessing penalty Stewards considered the relevant factors as outlined within the HRV Stewards Minimum Penalty Guidelines, placing weight on Ms Manning’s prior record and the Group 1 status of the race.
These penalties are ZERO deterrent
I appreciate that harsh penalties affect participants livelihoods but Chris Alford should have got months and with Kerryn's pathetic whip record so should have she - that Gp1 race can never been viewed now without it being a glaring example of horse abuse
Originally Posted by Messenger
