Another week, another war of words between the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) and the Professional Jockeys Association (PJA): two bodies which seem to be, for the moment at least, in a state of perpetual antipathy.
The latest dispute concerns the BHA’s announcement last week that the 3lb Covid allowance for riders, which has been in place since June 2020, will be replaced by a general 2lb rise in the weights from 26 March. The allowance was introduced when racing emerged from lockdown in June 2020, but with weighing-room saunas off-limits to maintain social distancing. Jockeys – or the 250 or so who responded to a survey – subsequently voted to keep the saunas closed, but apparently in the expectation that the 3lb allowance would be retained.
