TRUTH BUT FEW CONSEQUENCES
By Ray Paulick
What is the sports world coming to? We have female high school soccer players engaging in a brawl during a game in Rhode Island, a former police officer giving a Little League pitcher in Pennsylvania $2 to bean another kid with a fastball, cheap shots to the groin captured by TV cameras in the recent NIT men’s college basketball tournament, and, in one of the stranger incidents of violence, an owner named David Reynolds attacking jockey Kieren Fallon after a race at Lingfield in England–even though Fallon wasn’t riding his horse, which finished second to last as the betting favorite.
(Fallon, incidentally, provided a good verbal counterpunch, saying Reynolds “hits like a girl”—which does make you wonder who the controversial rider may have battled with in the past. The whole episode must have given Pierre “PEB” Bellocq, the wonderful longtime cartoonist and caricature artist for Daily Racing Form, inspiration to bring back his Equine Comedy. My personal PEB favorite was the one of a jockey tied to a beam inside a racetrack grandstand, with a pile of losing mutuel tickets at his feet, and an unhappy owner or trainer getting ready to light up the tickets as the jock looked on in horror.)
Last Saturday, in clear view of racing fans attending the nationally televised Santa Anita Derby, Eclipse Award-winning jockey Garrett Gomez attacked fellow rider Victor Espinoza after Gomez’s mount, Lookin At Lucky, finished third as the favorite in the race, largely because he was forced to take up along the rail on the final turn when Espinoza’s mount suddenly closed the hole, keeping Gomez and Lookin at Lucky from getting through.
The fight, which occurred after the horses were unsaddled and the jockeys weighing in, was quickly broken up, but then continued a short time later in the jocks’ room. Gomez said Espinoza was exacting revenge for an on-track incident that occurred a week earlier. Espinoza played it straight, saying things can happen when jockeys try to rally up the rail. Gomez felt Espinoza was acting recklessly toward the other jockeys and horses in the race.
"When you’re talking about these kind of horses, there isn’t room for these kind of behaviors,” Gomez told the San Diego Union-Tribune. “I mean, he (Espinoza) endangers my horse — my horse and his horse. He could have done a lot of damage to these horses like that. They’re not toys.”
The next day, stewards suspended Espinoza for three days for his ride and fined Gomez $750 for starting the fight.
If Espinoza was trying to get even with Gomez for an earlier incident—and I’m not suggesting that was his motive; only he knows for sure—it wouldn’t be the first time it’s happened in horse racing.
The worst incident I ever saw occurred at Hollywood Park on May 29, 1981, when Hall of Fame jockey Laffit Pincay Jr. and Frank Olivares rode recklessly throughout a 1 1/16-mile turf race, using their horses almost as weapons against one another.
At the start, Olivares and his mount, Magic Star, crossed over in front of Pincay and Derbyeightywon, causing the latter to steady. Pincay then took off after Olivares as the field came out of the infield chute and onto the main turf course, and veering over on him rounding the first turn, causing Olivares and his mount to check sharply. Olivares then retaliated against Pincay. Neither had any gas left for the actual race and finished third from last and last.
After they unsaddled their mounts, the two jockeys began shoving each other and throwing punches near the winner’s circle. The two had bad blood between them going back five years earlier when Olivares thought Pincay caused him to be thrown from his mount in the 1976 Del Mar Futurity. They went toe to toe after that race, too.
In the 1981 brawl, I was watching from the press box at Hollywood Park as Pincay and Olivares went after each other. No one seemed willing to step in and break it up until the late Jan Siegel, who owned Derbyeightywon with husband Mace, came up behind Pincay and put a full Nelson on him and dragged him away from Olivares. It was quite a sight. The two jockeys were fined just $250 for their behavior. Incredibly, no suspensions were meted out for their dangerous rides.
(Olivares, incidentally, is the father of TVG analyst/reporter Christine Olivares, while Pincay’s son, Laffit Pincay III, is a host/analyst HRTV Not exactly the Hatfields and the McCoys, but interesting how rivalries can continue in unlikely ways.)
Thirty years later, the cost of fighting has gone up somewhat, but $750 is certainly not going to be a deterrent to keep the same thing from happening again some day. Likewise, a three-day suspension for Espinoza from the stewards for “altering course without sufficient clearance” isn’t going to make a jockey think twice about closing a hole and possibly putting other riders and horses at risk. What will it take for stewards to be a little tougher on these riders: a spill where one jockey is severely injured…or worse?
Interestingly, according to Daily Racing Form, California Horse Racing Board steward Scott Cheney began the hearing with Espinoza by saying, “"We don't believe this was anything intentional."
That’s taking innocent until proven guilty to a completely new level.
Copyright © 2010, The Paulick Report
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Tags: David Reynolds, Frank Olivares, garrett gomez, HRTV, Kieran Fallon, laffit pincay, Paulick Report, peb, pierre bellocq, Ray Paulck, Ray Paulick, Rhode Island, tvg, Victor Espinoza
April 7th, 2010 at 8:14 am
My money is on Christine Olivares!
April 7th, 2010 at 8:33 am
It is likely, you left out the most bizarre of the post Santa Anita Derby incidents. By all accounts (I was not there personally) Jill Baffert really disgraced herself with her tirade after the race. She, apparently, went off on Espinosa verbally abusing him in front of tons of shocked fans. Those who I spoke with, said they fined the wrong person. Jill should have gotten days for her complete lack of class.
April 7th, 2010 at 8:34 am
Isn’t this called “raceriding?” I am SURE neither jock wants to cause harm to themselves , anyone else,or to their horses. BUT if you are trying to move up the rail in a full field of horses, you gotta think, you may get stopped along the way. That’s the “chance” you take for being there. Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn’t. Seems like Garrett and Jill wanted Victor to accomodate them! That’s absurd. And penalizing Victor, was also absurd. Bad ride and poor sportsmanship on Garrett’s part. Stewards should have taken their time to think this one through before they handed out judgment.
April 7th, 2010 at 8:37 am
FYI - Fallon is a boxer. They should have a series for American jockeys and show it on ESPN.
Kieren Fallon is looking forward to a fight with Johnny Murtagh, who replaced him as first jockey to the powerful Ballydoyle stable in January 2008. It is the kind of news that would hardly surprise followers of racing, such is Fallon’s record for attracting controversy, but on this occasion there is nothing to worry about – relations between the two men are perfectly amicable and, when they set about each other, it will be in a charity boxing match at the end of the new Flat racing season.
Innocent though the event may be, it is bound to fascinate those who have spent years watching the pair competing for the turf’s greatest prizes, as well as those who remember that Fallon thoroughly bested a fellow rider in a weighing-room dust-up at Beverley in 1994. The challenge, this time, has come from Murtagh and Fallon is happy to oblige him.
“Hopefully he won’t back down,” says the six-times champion jockey, grinning, as he waited for a ride at Kempton Park this week. “I think it’s going to be scheduled for the autumn, in Ireland. He still relishes the idea of me coming over. It’ll be a good night and make a lot of money.
“We’ve been always good friends, we never had cross words or anything. It’s a great idea.”
April 7th, 2010 at 8:38 am
My favorite sports altercation story was when South Carolina guard John Roche punched Maryland coach Lefty Driesell in the nose during a game. Someone wrote it was like a kid bunching Bozo. The incident led to South Carolina leaving the ACC.
April 7th, 2010 at 8:55 am
“The worst incident I ever saw occurred at Hollywood Park on May 29, 1981″
Did you already forget about the jockey fight during the race at Philly Park a few months ago?
April 7th, 2010 at 9:15 am
ITP…sorry, I was referring to incidents I’ve seen in person and not on video tape. Nothing against Philadelphia Park, but I wasn’t there in January. That was a terribly dangerous incident and the stewards properly gave out lengthy suspensions.
April 7th, 2010 at 9:30 am
“…when Espinoza’s mount suddenly closed the hole”….
Quite a different choice of words than the stewards’ “angled to the rail”, Ray.
Somehow I knew you’d keep this story going days after every other paper put it to rest…….and that you’d blame Gomez. What? No poll?
April 7th, 2010 at 9:31 am
Who polices the Stewards? Do the Racing Commissions ever assess the performance of Stewards? Here in Canada it is almost impossible for the general fan to find out decisions of the Stewards and as far as I know there is no way to determine how their performances are evaluated. Any comments?
April 7th, 2010 at 9:40 am
Mr. Deblinger. . . it was big man John Ribock who clocked Lefty,
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1084442/3/index.htm
but Terps got revenge over No. 2 Gamecocks 31-30 in overtime next time.
April 7th, 2010 at 9:52 am
The saddest part of the incident is Gomez’s statement: “When you’re talking about these kind of horses, there isn’t room for these kind of behaviors,” Gomez told the San Diego Union-Tribune. The implication seems to be that if “cheaper” horses were being ridden, then the behavior and risk is fine! Sad, very sad!
April 7th, 2010 at 9:55 am
Why try to make this more of a big deal than it was?
Jockeys, generally, behave fairly well towards each other - certainly better than many other sports professionals. But what goes around comes around - as Gomez implies. Read Arcaro and Shoemaker to see what it used to be like before the camera patrol.
Most of the interference issues, in Britain at least, are due to sloppy riding rather than “race riding” or dangerous riding.
When you see the head on film here you would think that most of the horses were loose judging by the paths they steer - it makes you wonder how they stay between “the bushes” during their morning work with, supposedly, far inferior riders at the helm!
If interference meant automatic disqualification [which to a greater extent it does in America and France] then jockeys would make more effort to keep straight.
April 7th, 2010 at 9:57 am
When riding a thousand pound horse, just like driving a 2 ton vehicle, one should never have “road rage” and take it to the next level, endangering everyone in the race (or on the road.)
Behaviour by both was rather classless, but I do think Garrett Gomez got a slap on the hand, because $750 doesn’t even amount to his losing mount fees for one day. Both men got off lightly.
And, mind you, these are full grown MEN and supposedly professionals. Both should know better than to behave like kids.
April 7th, 2010 at 10:01 am
You should have all been at “Brutal Park” over the winter. All the jocks in the room tried to kill each other. For further details on this and how the stewards reacted (or in this case chose favorites and didn’t react) head over to my newsletter’s myspace site at http://www.myspace.com/holeinthewallweekly or become a fan on Facebook by typing in keyword: Hole In The Wall. The article is titled: Why They Call It Brutal Park. Hope You All Enjoy.
April 7th, 2010 at 11:37 am
When I started handicapping and playing Cal track, it obvious to me how reckless the jocks rode there compared to other tracks. The impression I got the Stewart’s condoned what was going on and I thought they were very selective on the inquires, plus Infractions out of the gate didn’t exist with them.
April 7th, 2010 at 11:45 am
If you think you’re gonna get off the rail on a favorite in a major race like that….especially in CA??? GOOD LUCK!!!
April 7th, 2010 at 11:50 am
Gomez did not get shut off — he got impeded with. If you did not see the race then don’t comment. Gomez was IN THE HOLE when Espinoza came over. They were nearly even when the incident took place. Atkinson, who was right behind Gomez said he thought he was going down when Looking At Lucky went to his knee’s. Espinoza should have gotten more day’s than he got, endangering all who were behind him! Gomez was justified, even though it cost him $750. Don’t think Espinoza will be riding for Baffert anymore.
April 7th, 2010 at 11:56 am
Too bad the jocks silly antics on Saturday have taken the attention off the fact that Sidney’s Candy is one impressive horse. Pulling away from the field like that on pro-ride is something you don’t see very often, plus he was speeding up from the half mile to home. I don’t think anybody was getting within 4 lengths of that horse even if everybody had a perfect trip.
April 7th, 2010 at 12:28 pm
Ironically, jockey safety is a major concern for jockeys, yet some persist in running up into spots where they clip heels, get cut off and are required to check sharply. Owners have been complaining for years about career ending injuries as a result. Sooner or later an attorney representing a disabled jock is going to sue the stewards and the racing commission for not taking appropriate action to discourage reckless riding at every level. Fines and suspensions must be substantial to provide an effective deterrent.
April 7th, 2010 at 1:51 pm
gomez pulled the exact same stunt on espinoza two weeks earlier and had no problem doing it. I guess garrett thinks it’s okay because he is the big man on campus in CA. If I were gomez I would be careful of getting an assault charge, He doesn’t wan’t to go back to jail. That would be his second strike in a three strike state and with his bad temper there would likely be a third strike. watch out gomez, keep your nose clean, you’re not above everyone else, the racing world doesn’t revolve around you.
gomez played a lot of dirty pool on shane sellers when they were both a arlington about 10 years back. gomez is definitely the one with the need to be put in check here.
April 7th, 2010 at 2:59 pm
I personally don’t care what these pin heads do to each other when they’re not horseback. Give them pistols and have a duel. Thin the herd. But, if they cause injury to one of the horses during their riding vendetta, it better not be my animal involved. Can owners sue a jock for malpractice? If not, maybe a good ass whipping is in order to get their attention…and I don’t “hit like a girl”.
April 7th, 2010 at 4:58 pm
Am I the only one who would love to read the chart from the HP 1981 race? I wonder what the caller wrote….!
April 7th, 2010 at 6:15 pm
This incident probably cost Caracortado a spot in the derby. He had to check as a result etc. and Gomez pinned him to the rail earlier as well.
April 8th, 2010 at 12:06 am
Mudge, Jill’s “tirade” was way overblown and much shorter in duration than reported. She apologized to Victor for the place and timing of the conversation a short time later. I don’t blame her for being upset for Lucky, who almost went down. That poor horse is proving to be quite the athlete for all the wrong reasons. Jill’s passion and love for all horses, that she wears on her sleeve, is refreshing IMO.
It is standard race riding practice to never do what Victor did, and come over on purpose with a horse that was done, and he admitted the horse was done. A jock is suppose to keep a straight course at a minimum on a horse with no chance.
As for Gogo, that is his DERBY horse, and he is tired of other jocks “riding” him, not to mention his own life was threatened. I guess Paul Atkinson didn’t think it was such a bad place for Garrett to be since he was following him up the rail on Caracortado.
And Lucky is Lookin’ at the Roses;)
April 8th, 2010 at 1:03 am
#21 I had a similar conversation with an owner of Ron Boss’s one day. He wanted to sue someone for getting beat on one of his which “should have won”. I pointed out that, taking thaty to its logical conclusion, if his horse performed very poorly, and if the rider had had the chance to ride the eventual winner, then he himself might be liable for the jockey’s winning %, in that his total misrepresentation of his horse’s chance had been instrumental in the rider suffering financial loss!
This is a storm in a teacup, why make it anything more?