Desormeaux Fined, Investigators Called in as Part of New CHRB Protocol

[Wandering Eyes]

Four cracks of the crop at the head of the stretch in the fourth race at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club on Aug. 25 has resulted in a $200 excessive whipping fine for jockey Kent Desormeaux.

In addition, the track’s stewards have asked California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) investigators to look into the Hall-of-Fame rider’s actions in the closing strides of that race to determine if Desormeaux could have ridden his mount more assertively to avoid getting nosed at the wire for second place (click here for video).

The Blood-Horse first reported this story on Sunday, with the veteran jockey denying that he eased up in the final 100 yards aboard Take a Leap (The Factor) in the 1 1/16-mile MSW turf race. “I absolutely had a strong hand ride [until] two jumps past the wire,” Desormeaux told the Blood-Horse.

On Monday, CHRB spokesperson Mike Marten explained to TDN that the Del Mar stewards’ decision to have investigators get involved is part of a work-in-progress protocol shift to cut down on the number of informal hearings between alleged violators and track stewards in California.

Moving forward, Marten said, when track stewards in California notice potential rules violations, they will now more regularly ask CHRB investigators to perform due diligence work–reviewing race replays and interviewing jockeys and trainers, for example–to see if a formal complaint and hearing are warranted. If so, the stewards can then decide if penalization is necessary based on the evidence investigators bring to them.

“They referred it to the investigators to look at the race,” Marten explained via phone after checking with one of the Del Mar stewards. “It’s just a matter going through [a new] process. That’s going to be happening more and more in this manner as we sort of try to formalize the process more and more–fewer informal hearings and more formal hearings. This might be one of the first that they’ve done this way. It’s a matter of trying to improve the process. They’ve just added a dimension to it.”

In this case, Marten added, “Apparently [the stewards] felt more comfortable asking the investigators look at it before they ruled.”

Marten underscored that the stewards still have the power to adjudicate without referral to investigators.

“I don’t want to suggest that they’re going to be referring every case to the investigators,” Marten said. “But because of a new protocol, they are going to be referring more cases to investigators. It would only go to the [full CHRB] board if there was a hearing, a penalty, and an appeal.”

 

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