Swinburn win led to Dettori inquiry

CONTROVERSY has besieged Walter Swinburn's victorious comeback aboard Talathath at Windsor on Monday after Eric Gadsden, owner of third placed Cape Pigeon, criticised the ride given to his horse by Frankie Dettori.

Dettori took the 11 year old to the front from the start of the handicap, but appeared to spare his mount once headed by the winner over a furlong out.

After Cape Pigeon had finished, beaten a length and a short head, the stewards called upon Dettori to explain his actions. But they accepted his account that the gelding had had no more to give.

Gadsden, however, is far from satisfied and has threatened to bring to an end his activities as an owner.

Cape Pigeon's trainer, Gerald Cottrell, said. "Having looked at the film, I think Mr Gadsden has a point. I think he gave the horse a tender ride over the last two furlongs he didn't look hard pushed to me.

"We all have some funny ideas and can look at things through rose tinted spectacles, but he didn't seem to be making much effort. To put it mildly, he gave it a tender ride, and you wouldn't know the old horse has had a race.

"The owner is most disgruntled upset, and you can see his point."

Dettori, however, who himself returned from injury last Friday, rejected Gadsden's comments. "I explained it to the stewards and they seemed to accept my explanation, so he had better read the report. If I did anything wrong, I went too fast throughout the first part of the race.

The incident is not the first time that a "dream comeback" has been marred by controversy.

Last October the Jockey Club looked into the victory of Jibereen marking the return from serious injury of Declan Murphy in a Flat versus National Hunt jockeys' challenge at Chepstow.

On that occasion Murphy was allowed to dictate the pace from the start of the seven furlong race and was never challenged, landing some substantial bets in the process.

Having investigated the matter, the Club decided that no breach of the rules had been committed and took no further action.

The Club press officer, John Maxse, yesterday ruled out further scrutiny of the Windsor race by the disciplinary committee.

"The stewards on the day asked Frankie Dettori why Cape Pigeon had not been subjected to vigorous riding in the closing stages and accepted his explanation that the horse had no more to give," he said.

"There are no plans to hold and other inquiry into the race."

Dettori, out with a broken elbow for two months, came in from the cold at sunny Salisbury yesterday when Altamura became his first winner since he returned to the saddle last Friday.