Mornington Winner Disqualified After Losing Lead Bag
- Thursday, 15 August 2002 00:00
Stewards had no option but to overlook the winning performance of the Jim Marconi trained Royal Rule, who had originally won the first race by three quarters of a length.
It is understood the lead bag fell out of the horse's gear during the middle stages of the Super Vobis 3YO Colts and Geldings Maiden Plate (1200m) after the saddle had shifted in the early stages of the race.
Young rider Lonagan Milham could only look on in dispair as he weighed in one and a half kilograms light and he was still a touch more than half a kilo short when the bridle was added to the saddle.
Bounty Beat, the original runner up in the race, was elevated to the winners position, while all other placings were lifted by one.
The unusual occurence isn't totally rare. Only yesterday a horse in New Zealand who'd finished third was disqualified after is was found the lead bag had been left out of the horse's gear when it was being saddled at the Rotorua meeting.
That horse's rider had weighed in 2.25 kilograms light and even if the bridle had of been called for, it would have still been well short of its carded weight.