Frankie Dettori and Oisin Murphy to miss July Cup meeting after breaching whip rules at Royal Ascot
Frankie Dettori will miss the chance to land the only British Group 1 he has yet to win after he was ruled out of riding in next month's July Cup for breaking the whip rules at Royal Ascot.
Dettori will sit out the whole of the July meeting at Newmarket after he was found to have used his whip once above the permitted level of six strikes from two furlongs out on Queen Anne runner-up Inspiral last Tuesday. The ban will run between Thursday July 13 and Saturday July 15, as well as Monday July 17 to Friday July 21.
His suspension means he will not complete the full set of top-level races in Britain in the summer sprint highlight as he is set to retire from the saddle at the end of the year. His wins in the King's Stand and Sun Chariot Stakes came before those races were elevated to Group 1 status.
Dettori had been set to maintain his partnership with Kinross in the July Cup, who he has won two Group 1s on for owner Marc Chan and is 6-1 for the 6f Group 1, but connections are now on the lookout for a new rider.
Chan's racing manager Jamie McAlmont said: "It is a dampener for everyone, and for us very much so. We're still looking forward to this race with Kinross and were very much hoping to be able to provide Frankie with a full house of Group 1s in Britain, but it's out of our hands now. The decision who rides will be up to Marc. We'll see who's available and he will make that call."
It is the second suspension Dettori picked up at this year's royal meeting, where he rode four winners including Courage Mon Ami in the Gold Cup, having been given a nine-day careless riding ban on the King and Queen's Saga in the Wolferton Stakes. That ban is due to run between July 4 and 12 and he is set to miss another big-race ride next month on Coral-Eclipse favourite Emily Upjohn at Sandown.
Oisin Murphy will miss the July meeting having picked up an eight-day suspension for using his whip once above the permitted limit of six strikes in the final two furlongs aboard Valiant King, who finished runner-up in the King George V Stakes last Thursday. His suspension will run between Tuesday July 11 and Saturday July 15, as well as Monday July 17 to Wednesday July 19, and rules him out of riding July Cup favourite Shaquille, with whom he teamed up to win the Commonwealth Cup at the royal meeting.
James McDonald has been suspended for 14 days and fined £400 for his ride on fourth-placed Artorius in the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Stakes on Saturday after was found to have used his whip twice above the permitted level.
Daniel Muscutt was the final jockey found in breach of the rules at the BHA's whip referrals committee and he will also sit out the July meeting. Muscutt was found to have used his whip once over the permitted level aboard fifth-placed Canberra Legend in the Hampton Court Stakes on Thursday. His suspension will run from July 11-15 and July 17-19.
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