'How can the sport sell itself when horses aren't there?' - Ralph Beckett calls on BHA to crack down on lack of paddock appearances

Ralph Beckett has backed calls for action to ensure horses spend more time in Britain's paddocks before going out to race. The Classic-winning trainer is critical of the BHA for failing to act in this area and for allowing standards to slip over time.

"How can the sport sell itself to the racegoing public when horses aren't even in the paddock?" Beckett asked. "On a wider point, there's a bigger regulatory issue that some horses are in the paddock and some aren't. How's that working for anybody?

"Last year, before a Listed race at Sandown, one trainer had two runners, neither of whom made it to the paddock. I watched them get legged up on the rhododendron walk. One of them won.