Stewards out of line on rule on riding tactics following Stradon's success from out in front

NATHAN Exelby asks: why do stewards persist with the charade of a rule that deals with change of riding tactics?

The front-running riding of Stradon raise questions about the consistency of stewards on new tactics.

WHY do stewards persist with the charade of a rule that deals with change of riding tactics?

Eyebrows were raised when Stradon led at a frantic speed and kept going to win at Doomben on Saturday.

Stewards were not notified of a change and some rivals felt under the rule, it was a clear change of tactics. One rival in particular was seething, pointing out they had been fined previously for similar events.

When questioned, winning jockey Ryan Wiggins said he thought he would be third or fourth in the run, but with Jackson Morris also kicking up on Blakey Boy, he couldn't get Stradon to come back underneath him.

"I tried to take hold from the 900 to the 700m, but I was having a battle with him so I just decided to let him slide," Wiggins said.

"He's a hard-going horse anyway."

Stewards noted the explanation and Wiggins conceded had he been beaten, more serious questions would have been asked.

It was a sensible outcome.

Trainer Lindsay Gough's instructions were to be positive from the middle draw. The horse ended up leading at the pace he did because Morris had clear intentions of leading himself.

As an aside, Stradon's early speed figures from his previous run in the red hot Love Rocks race had him near the lead anyway.

Racing is the only sport in the world where you have to flag your intentions before heading into battle. Fancy an NRL or AFL coach having to notify rivals of their tactics before a game.

Jockeys and trainers are professionals. Punters are fully aware of who trains and rides their choice in a race and can decide if those people are capable of getting the job done.

In most cases, change of tactics come with a series of provisos and "ifs" and "butts" anyway.

If stewards deem post-race that tactics were prejudicial to the chances of a certain horse, then deal with it.

At the moment, it's just a bit of lip service that advantages some and disadvantages others.