A race at Windsor was declared null and void on Monday after a blindfolded horse crashed through the running rail, leading to five jockeys being suspended. The incident occurred at the start of the second race on the evening card, a five-furlong handicap for apprentice jockeys with seven runners.
The Martin Dunne-trained Master Zack, who had been blindfolded for loading, reared up just before the gates opened. His jockey, Ryan Kavanagh, remained in the stalls as the horse exited with the blindfold still covering its eyes, veering right and crashing through the plastic rail before being caught. Master Zack was reported to be uninjured. Another runner, Beaumadier, was also left at the start, losing significant ground.
The rest of the field completed the race, with Cabeza De Llave crossing the line first. However, replays showed the starter waving a yellow flag to signal a false start, and a recall man standing in the middle of the track also waved a flag and blew a whistle. Despite these signals, the jockeys continued to the finish.
Tommie Jakes, who was first past the post, told Sky Sports Racing he saw no indication to stop. "I wouldn't have seen the flag. I don't know why it would have been a false start anyway," he said. Chief steward Richard Westropp explained that a false start had been called because the door of stall two had flapped back into the horse's path, and that procedures had been followed.
The stewards handed 10-day suspensions to Jakes, Jack Doughty, Jack Dace, Taryn Langley and Alec Voikhansky for failing to obey the recall flag. Conor Whiteley and Ryan Kavanagh were not banned, with Whiteley having made every effort to pull up and Kavanagh's horse having bolted through the rails.
