Bowen Suspended 30 Days for ‘Intentional’ Bumping at Belterra; Penalty Halved for Not Appealing

[Wandering Eyes]

Rocco Bowen was suspended 30 days by the stewards at Belterra Park Tuesday for “intentionally” engaging in “rough riding” when finishing second aboard the 3-10 favorite during the stretch run of the $75,000 Miss Southern Ohio Stakes last Friday. But because the veteran jockey has agreed not to appeal the ruling, the penalty has been cut in half, to 15 days.

Bowen's agent, Cory Hayes, confirmed to TDN that the reduced suspension will be in effect from Sept. 29 through Oct. 13.

“It's pretty self-explanatory in the [ruling],” Hayes said. “I'm a little biased on how I think it should have played out. But the stewards, they made their decision, and that's the game we have to play, that you go with what they say.”

On Sept. 19, Bowen was riding the 3-year-old filly Parlay (National Flag), with whom he has partnered for two state-bred stakes victories on the turf this summer at Belterra. He made the lead midway through the 1 1/16-miles grass race, but was confronted by the 12-1 Green Lady (Tough It Up) and jockey John McKee in the stretch.

According to the Equibase chart, Parlay “drifted out near the eighth pole then drifted back in near the sixteenth pole and bumped Green Lady twice in the final sixteenth and was denied the win.” (Video).

After a next-day hearing involving both Bowen and McKee, the stewards wrote in the ruling that Bowen had “intentionally guided his horse towards the inside rail to make contact with jockey John McKee.”

Bowen is currently the leading rider based on earnings at the summer meet at Thistledown. He rides less frequently at Belterra (21 mounts so far this season), the other Ohio track that is active at this time of year.

Albin Jimenez, the standings-topping rider this meet at Belterra, was also recently penalized by that track's stewards. Jimenez is appealing a one-year suspension for “failure to give his best effort to obtain a winning performance and conduct detrimental to the best interests of racing” while riding a 7-10 favorite to a second-place finish Aug. 21. Although a stay of his suspension has been granted, Jimenez has not had a mount since Aug. 22.

And just last Thursday, the Belterra stewards suspended jockey Eddie Jurado 10 days (reduced to five if no appeal gets filed) for holding his whip in front of another jockey's mount in a Sept. 13 race, causing that rival to check to avoid being hit. Jurado's mount went on to win the race, but was disqualified because of the incident.

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