Racing: Jockey in trouble after headbutting his horse

LONDON - Jump jockey Paul O'Neill is to be investigated by racing's regulators after butting his horse before a race.

The Horseracing Regulatory Authority (HRA) looked at video footage of the incident, which took place at Stratford racecourse on Sunday, and decided to hold an inquiry.

O'Neill, 26, had been unshipped from the horse, City Affair, before the start.

The pair went on to finish fourth.

"It was a stupid mistake and I apologise to the public," O'Neill was quoted as saying in yesterday's Daily Mail.

"The peak of my riding cap touched him [City Affair] but it wouldn't have hurt him at all. There was no power in it.

"I'm annoyed with myself."

No footage of the incident was available to racecourse stewards but it was captured by TV channel At The Races.

"O'Neill will have to appear before the disciplinary panel next week," Paul Struthers of the HRA told the newspaper.

"It is clear from the footage, which we requested, that he headbutted the horse but there was minimal contact."

- REUTERS