Melbourne Cup jockey Jye McNeil has received an 18-meeting suspension following his ride on Valiant King in the Melbourne Cup.
Racing Victoria stewards said that McNeil caused interference at the 2500m mark, affecting Presage Nocturne ridden by Stephane Pasquier and Vauban under Blake Shinn.
According to stewards, ‘Rider Jye McNeil (Valiant King [GB]) pleaded guilty to a charge of careless riding … in that near the 2600m he rode his mount in, resulting in Presage Nocturne (IRE) and Vauban (FR) racing unnecessarily tight for some distance.’
Presage Nocturne’s jockey Rider Stephane Pasquier later told stewards “that his mount raced tight inside Valiant King (GB) in the early stages and he felt the horse did not appreciate racing in restricted room.” According to stewards, “S. Pasquier added he was of the view this was the primary reason Presage Nocturne (IRE) did not finish its race off. A post-race veterinary examination did not reveal any significant findings.”
McNeil’s penalty was heightened under Racing Victoria’s feature race guidelines. McNeil’s suspension begins on November 7 and concludes on November 23, allowing him to return to racing on November 24.
Earlier in the day, Neil Farley was suspended for seven meetings – November 6 to 11 – for breaching whip regulations aboard Pittsburgh Pirate, who finished second in Race 2.
Veteran jockey John Allen also received suspensions for two separate incidents. He was found guilty of careless riding aboard Kaleo in Race 8 and Windstorm in the final race, resulting in cumulative bans totaling 18 meetings. Allen’s suspension also runs from November 7 to 23.
