Ben Curtis facing at least eight days out for Covid-19 breach at Newmarket

Jockeys' championship contender Ben Curtis is facing at least eight days on the sidelines after being ejected from Newmarket on Friday evening for breaching Covid-19 protocols.

Curtis has been provisionally suspended for 14 days pending a hearing, but the Racing Post understands that the disciplinary panel could be convened as early as Friday with the sport's governing body mindful that a racecourse ban impacts a jockey's ability to earn in a way it does not for a trainer.

The BHA Covid-19 guidelines state: "If an attendee is removed, they will be referred to the BHA and not permitted to enter any racecourse for a minimum of 14 days, or until the matter is either heard by a disciplinary panel or closed by the BHA."

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The BHA on Saturday confirmed that, due to the bank holiday on Monday, any hearing could not take place until Friday at the earliest, but should Curtis be cleared to ride immediately following the hearing the governing body would consider allowing a jockey change for the following day – providing all parties involved were made aware of the possibility of a change at the original booking stage.

Curtis's only option for an earlier return is to apply to the judicial panel chair for an interim hearing on the suspension itself.

Dale Gibson of the Professional Jockeys' Association said: "We haven't got all the information yet. We've asked the BHA for the audio of the inquiry and sought advice from [solicitor] Rory Mac Neice, but we can't really push any buttons until Tuesday due to the bank holiday."

Ben Curtis wins the Group 3 Albany Stakes at Royal Ascot on DandallaCredit: Edward Whitaker

The BHA has implemented racecourse zones restricted to specific groups so that a single Covid-19 positive does not result in everyone in attendance having to quarantine.

Curtis was due to ride four favourites at Hamilton on Friday before that meeting was called off and he switched to Newmarket. He was ejected before his sole ride on the card aboard the Marco Botti-trained Silver Samurai after he entered a zone restricted to owners.

David Egan stepped in to ride the 7-4 favourite, who finished fourth behind Hot Summer.

Curtis, who is Britain's winningmost jockey in the calendar year with a tally of 131, was booked for seven rides at Redcar on Saturday and three at Yarmouth on Sunday. He provisionally had the choice of five rides at Ripon or four at Hamilton on Tuesday, had four rides lined up at Wolverhampton on Wednesday and three at Newcastle on Thursday.

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