BHA ignoring the rules of racing as it attempts to clear up Lohn mess

As a mark of how seriously the BHA takes the integrity of racing, opting to prosecute the Jim Best non-trier charges again next week is an expensive statement of intent. The case has already drained many tens of thousands in legal fees (including for Best's counsel) and, with a five-day rehearing next week and a late change of barrister for the BHA, is set to add another enormous legal bill to the regulator's balance sheet.

It would have been cheaper and, in the long-term, easier for the BHA to drop the charges against Best, who is accused of ordering jockey Paul John to stop two horses, charges which he denies. Yet concluding this case will be a significant sign that racing's disciplinary system, which underpins the sport's integrity, is functional and reliable again. Win or lose, justice will be done, and be seen to be done.

That is sorely needed after the crisis that began seven months ago when it emerged the former disciplinary panel chairman Matthew Lohn had also undertaken work for the BHA, rendering many convictions, including Best's, unsound due to an appearance of bias. The BHA must now show that it can, and will, strive to run the sport to the highest standards of fairness.