DOOM MAY 19 - CUP PROTEST BUT NO CONTROVERSY

By Graham Potter | Monday, May 21, 2012

The protest that delayed the official ‘all clear’ after the running of the Doomben Cup on Saturday ultimately provided little more than nuisance value to the connections of the race winner Mawingo.

The protest against Mawingo being declared the winner basically translated into a bold attempt by Peter Moody to hijack the big race quinella after his runners Lights Of Heaven and the short-priced favourite Manighar had claimed second and third spot, coming home a short-neck and 1.75 lengths respectively behind the Anthony Freedman trained four-year-old.

The incident that prompted the protest occurred early in the race at the front of the field when the leaders were leaving the home straight with a full circuit still left to gallop. Mawingo shifted in. Manighar was inconvenienced and his rider Luke Nolen checked his progress. Fast-forward to the race finish and Mawingo toughs it out in spirited fashion to hold off the determined challenge of Lights Of Heaven with Manighar, wider on the track, only whacking away for a third placed finish. Peter Moody asks to view the race video. He then procedes to lodge a protest on behalf of Manighar against Mawingo.

It was always going to be a big ask for Moody to get the decision given how far from home the interference occurred, the level of interference, and the margin that Mawingo held, and was maintaining, over Manighar at the line. Moody though, is never half-hearted in any task he undertakes and, as expected, once the decision to protest had been made, he tackled the race result head-on in his usual forthright manner. When giving his evidence at the protest hearing, Moody was in it to win it … and he held nothing back.

“Going past the winning post for the first time, jockey Rawiller has shown absolutely nil care or regard to the horse on the inside … which was my horse Manighar,” Moody stated. “Rawiller took up horse’s rightful running with no pressure applied from the outside whatsoever.

“We were aiming to land in a spot third on the fence. It was a position we weren’t afforded and should have been afforded that position.

“The margin suggests that the winner (Mawingo) won by 1.75 lengths. I think that totally has no relevance in this situation whatsoever. Rawiller took my horse’s rightful running and then enabled his horse to get the gun run, the split at the top of the straight and he dives through and wins. My horse had to go searching for a run back in the centre of the track where no horse has made ground all day.”

But while Moody was his forceful self, eloquent and to the point, jockey Nash Rawiller is as seasoned a professional as Moody and he wasn’t about to allow the Moody argument time to get any traction. His rebuff was immediate.

“I just want to say that this is the most outlandish and frivolous objection I have ever been involved in,” started Rawiller.

“There is no evidence on the film that I have taking up his running whatsoever. If you have a look at the back-on shot, which is the only shot that gives you any indication whatsoever that there was any form of interference from my part, it clearly shows I am still racing a horse off the fence.

“From my perspective, I’ve had a look back to my inside, after Manighar’s checked and gone across my heels, and I’m still racing one off the fence. That clearly shows to me that his horse has not taken the turn or resented racing inside of me.

“I’m racing one off the fence. It’s come out across my heels and three strides later I’m able to cross over. After that, the race is history.

“All I am saying is there is no carelessness on my part whatsoever. It’s all the horse inside me. He caused it to himself.

Mawingo’s trainer Anthony Freedman also had his say.

“To me this (protest) is ambitious at best. Luke (Nolen, the rider of Manighar) is looking for a covered ride. He is looking for horses to cross from the outside, which they did.

“It may have cost him, whether it is Nash’s fault or not, it may have cost him a neck. I think Manighar then raced like a pretty dour mile-and-a-half horse. He couldn’t even hold his spot behind us … he let Scenic Shot in third spot. To me that was a case of a horse racing flat and tired at the end of a long prep … and he was well beaten.”

The Stewards Panel duly considered the evidence before handing down their decision. When doing so Chief Steward Wade Birch pointed out that consideration was given to Rule 136 (2) which states: ‘If a placed horse or rider causes interference to another placed horse, and the stewards are of the opinion that the horse interfered with would have finished ahead of the first mentioned horse had such interference not occurred, they may place the first horse mentioned immediately after the horse interfered with.’

Birch continued saying that when assessing the incident the stewards found that Mawingo did cause interference to Manighar.

So, for just that brief pause between sentences, there was a flicker of hope for the Moody camp, but that flame was quickly extinguished when Birch confirmed that the stewards had reached the conclusion that, ‘bearing in mind the margin between the two horses at the finish and the position at which the incident took place, stewards could not be satisfied that had the interference not occurred, Manighar would have beaten Mawingo to the finishing line and therefore have dismissed the objection and declared correct weight on the judge's placings.

It was the outcome that most people on track thought would be clear-cut.

Interestingly enough though, Birch was quoted in a subsequent interview as saying, "the two lengths margin at the finish between Mawingo and Manighar had been a pivotal point in the decision to deny trainer Peter Moody's protest. If the margin between the two horses had been a length or less I'd say we probably would have a different Cup result."

Remember Moody, with his savvy killer instinct, had been aware of that potential flaw in his argument and had put into evidence the his view that the margin between the horses ‘had no relevance to this situation whatsoever.’ If he had been successful in having that aspect set aside, the big payday and a career equalling ninth Group I winner for the season could have been his.

In the end though, the glory and a thoroughly deserved success went to Mawingo, trainer Anthony Freedman, who was landing his first Group 1 win in his own right, jockey Nash Rawiller and a host of owners who got to celebrate winning the Doomben Cup twice at the track … once past the post, and once after the protest hearing!

Don’t fall for the controversy line. It was a big race that was keenly contested and the post race debate between the combatants had been hard but without malice.

It had been a stirring battle both on and off the track, but hardly controversial.

*This story had an interesting sequel later in the day at Doomben as indicated by this extract from the official Stewards Report.

‘N. Rawiller, the rider of Mawingo, was found guilty of a charge of careless riding under AR. 137(a) in that approaching the turn out of the front straight he failed to make sufficient effort to prevent his mount from shifting in resulting in Manighar being tightened for room and when being restrained shifting out across the heels of Mawingo losing ground. N. Rawiller's licence to ride in races was suspended for a period of 10 meetings, with the term to commence at midnight on Sunday, 20 May, and expire at midnight on Friday, 8 June 2012. In considering penalty, stewards were conscious of the evidence provided by the rider of Manighar (L. Nolen), who informed stewards that the racing manners of Manighar had contributed to the amount of ground lost.’

Now, let’s do a double-take on that last sentence. Luke Nolen informed stewards that the racing manners of Manighar had contributed to the amount of ground lost.

There was no mention of that in the original enquiry itself. I guess maybe it all comes down to whether you are in a protest hearing and you are being a professional doing a job trying to get the right result for your horses’s connections or whether you are at a riding inquiry trying to help a mate out and get him off a suspension!

**Rawiller was one of five riders to pick up suspensions on the day. Peter Mertens was handed an eight meeting suspension. Opie Bosson, Vlad Duric and Paul Hammersley all picked up seven meetings.

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