Champion trainer Paul Nicholls has demanded the BHA show “a bit of backbone” and stand up for horse racing in another blast over the introduction of the new whip rules before the Cheltenham Festival.
The 13-time champion’s call to delay the implementation of stricter measures until after the major spring jumps meetings fell on deaf ears with the rules coming into force in mid-February.
One of his jockeys Lorcan Williams was among the first to breach the reduced whip stroke limit when collecting an 18-day ban that has ruled him out of the Cheltenham Festival.
But the timing of the changes still rankles with Nicholls who said he has been “livid all along with the timing of it.”
“I’m actually disappointed with the way the BHA has handled it - talk about shooting the Industry in the foot,” he said in a podcast for Betfair.
“There are people in the BHA who need to take a real look at themselves,” he said. “Are they doing the right thing for the industry? Because I think they are letting us down and I think this whole thing is wrong.
“We don't want to appease people who don’t understand the game. We’ve got to stand up for ourselves and say, ‘look, this is where we are, it’s not a welfare issue’. We need a bit of backbone, the BHA need a bit of backbone to stand up for us all the time instead of appeasing to the wrong people.
“There’s a lot of us trainers who have kept quiet and are very, very annoyed with the way it’s been handled. That’s not just trainers either, a lot of owners are upset about the whole thing and it will drive people away if they are not careful.”
He went on: “Nothing seems to be simple with the BHA these days, which is sad because they’ve got a tough job to do. But I honestly think they need to take a look at themselves and see what they are doing towards the industry. They need to be a little more proactive at getting things right.”
Changes to whip rules were introduced after a long consultation process involving representatives across the sport. The permitted number of whip strokes was reduced to seven over jumps and six on the Flat with increased penalties for offences, including possible disqualification, measures which were agreed by jockeys.
David Jones, chair of the Whip Consultation Steering Group, said: "This is not about appeasing those who wish to see the sport banned, or attempting to convert them. It is instead about ensuring that racing takes control of its own destiny, and ensuring that we safeguard the sport against changing perceptions amongst its future audiences.
“Racing has so much to be proud about. We all look forward to celebrating the magnificent horses and people and the wonderful stories that our sport produces in the coming weeks.”
