Controversy over restricted races in Irish jump racing could have been averted with a little bit of diplomacy

This month Horse Racing Ireland announced a schedule of 60 restricted races, designed in response to a handful of trainers' domination of Irish jump racing.  

What was supposed to be a 'good news' story has become contentious. The trainers targeted by the proposed changes have reportedly threatened litigation with what seems unseemly haste, given their position of privilege in the overall scheme. 

While many view the modifications benignly as a measure of positive discrimination, a cohort also sees the proposals as mere tinkering around the edges of a system that is endemically flawed, heavily loaded in favour of the 'superstables'.