Sean Levey and Oisin Murphy have received lengthy suspensions for repeated breaches of the whip rules.
The BHA judicial panel dished out suspensions of 26 and 15 days to Levey and Murphy, with eight and five days suspended respectively.
Murphy, who was crowned champion jockey in Britain for the fifth time in his career on QIPCO British Champions Day last month, was referred to the panel on account of the totting up procedure having used his whip once above the permitted level on Gladius at Newmarket on October 11.
The rider informed the raceday stewards that he had “miscounted”, with the panel’s conclusion stating: “As a very experienced and extremely able and skilful jockey, he must realise that ‘miscounting’ the number of occasions on which he used his whip is a very hollow and unattractive explanation, and may well not be accepted in relation to any further excessive use of the whip, and that further contraventions of the Rule are likely to result in the imposition of longer periods of suspension.”
Adjudicating panel member Clement Goldstone KC was also critical of multiple Group 1-winner Levey who was also referred under the totting up procedure for using his whip (also once) above the permitted level aboard Crafty Blue at Southwell in late-September.
Goldstone issued a warning to Levey that he could face an even longer suspension for any future violations, stating: “He must realise that there will come a time when a judicial panel may well be driven to conclude that he either cannot or will not control his use of the whip in accordance with the rules and that only a long suspension, to be served in its entirety, can serve as an adequate punishment. He would be well advised to heed this warning.”
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