Not fair: Wallis hits out at stewards after horse breaks stalls early at Epsom

Charlie Wallis has expressed frustration over a perceived lack of consistency by stewards after Just Glamorous appeared to break the stalls early but was still allowed to compete in the Investec Dash at Epsom.

That contrasted with stewards withdrawing the Wallis-trained Zac Brown after a similar incident led to a false start at Goodwood last month.

In their post-race report at Epsom on Saturday, the stewards stated Just Glamorous had "anticipated the start and accelerated the gate at the same moment as the race had been started".

The Grace Harris-trained six-year-old went on to finish 11th in the race won by 33-1 shot Ornate.

Speaking on Sunday, Wallis said: "It seems our race was brushed under the carpet because of a false start but then in another race it's suddenly okay to do it. There seems to be one rule for one and one rule for the others.

"It should not make any difference what race it happens in. Whether a seller at Chelmsford or the Derby the standards should be the same."

Wallis fails to see a clear difference between the two incidents, and added: "You can clearly see on the replay of Zac Brown that the latches were up and he was just out quicker than anybody else."

A stewards' report after Zac Brown's withdrawal at Goodwood concluded the eight-year-old sprinter had "broken out of the stalls prior to him [the starter] pushing the button to start the race and therefore [the starter] immediately called a false start".

Just Glamorous (red and white sleeves) fades out of contention having broken early in the DashCredit: Andrew Redington

In response to Wallis's assertions Robin Mounsey, the BHA's head of media, said: "We understand where the trainer is coming from as the two incidents do appear to be similar.

"The key difference between them was that at Goodwood the starter reported a false start as he had not started the race at the time when the horse burst the stalls, whereas at Epsom the button had been pushed to start the race, hence why no false start was called.

"As we stated after Goodwood, we'll be looking at the start as part of the usual wash-up following an incident such as this, and we'll factor trainer feedback into that."

Zac Brown's misfortune continued at Chelmsford on Friday, when the son of Kodiac parted company with David Egan after leaving the stalls awkwardly.

Wallis, who started training in 2015, feels especially sorry for owners Porterhouse Ltd/J Goddard, who have been left with questions after events at Epsom on Saturday.

"It is frustrating, especially for the owners," Wallis added. "They have noticed it and read the stewards' report, and there's no further action being taken on it. It just seems very inconsistent.

"My owners have missed out on a day because of a false start and then seven days later it's suddenly fine to do it. We have also had to put the horse through a stalls test – the costs all mount up."

Zac Brown holds an entry at Chelmsford on Thursday.

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