Stewards were wrong not to ask David Maxwell about the ride at Doncaster which made punters furious

I’M not as nervous about flying as I used to be.

Mind you, it probably helps I no longer binge on episodes of Air Crash Investigation.

Steve Davies

Callum Shepherd rode the first Sunday night winner at Wolverhampton[/caption]

But punters were angered by jockey David Maxwell’s ride at DoncasterPA:Press Association

But did you see the Alaska Airlines plane the other day? The one where the door just fell off mid-flight? What a game.

I was thinking of booking flights to Ireland for the Dublin Racing Festival next month but, on second thoughts, maybe I’ll take the ferry . . .

Fair play to the pilots for getting the plane back down on the ground sharpish before anyone was sucked out.

It’s not been the best of weeks for some pilots over here, though. Yes, I’m looking at you, amateur jock David Maxwell.

Look, I get it, he is a very likeable guy who doesn’t take himself too seriously and he has every right to ride his own horses, no matter how limited he is in the saddle.

But if you ride under Rules against the pros you should face the same level of scrutiny if you give one a bad ride, not sent on your way with a smile and a nod because, what, you’re a bloody nice bloke?

Maxwell ought to have been hauled in by stewards at Doncaster this week after he finished a never-nearer second on his recent £150,000 purchase, Off The Jury.

You wouldn’t exactly describe his riding style as dynamic at the best of times, but a mannequin would have shown more life in the closing stages of the concluding race on Wednesday.

I’m not suggesting there was anything dodgy going on but, as it states in the rules of racing, he should’ve been asked if he took ‘all reasonable and permissible measures’ to achieve the best placing.

I don’t think he did, and the on-course officials should have at least held an inquiry on behalf of punters — but they didn’t.

How they could look at that ride and think it was perfectly okay is beyond me.

There was a pilot of a different kind at Wolverhampton as they staged the first-ever Sunday night meeting, the first of six ‘trial’ fixtures.

I’m not a fan at all, especially when meetings are, quite simply, betting fodder.

There were 405 hardy souls there for the first one but they included owners, trainers, jockeys, officials and sponsors. Paying public? Err, a handful, shall we say?

How about this as for idea to boost betting turnover: CUT DOWN on the amount of racing we have, thus improving field sizes, prize-money and betting interest.

Adding yet more racing is not the answer. I thought jock Callum Shepherd articulated himself well on the telly on Sunday.

He stressed the importance of a healthy work-life balance, and it’s especially true in this demanding industry. After winning the first race Shepherd said: “We don’t need to be here on a Sunday night.

“A couple of hundred quid extra in our pockets, but I don’t think it is healthy.”

Chances are, though, these meetings are here to stay.

If that is the case, why not make them limited to apprentice jockeys so they can gain valuable experience while giving veteran jocks a night off?

And our man Matt Chapman’s idea to pool stable staff from different stables, who are actually keen to earn some extra money on Sunday nights, is a good one.

Sky Sports Racing

Joe Anderson somehow recovered the win at Plumpton despite the mistake above[/caption]

One pilot who did have a memorable week was Joe Anderson, who pulled off a miraculous victory at Plumpton.

If you haven’t seen it, the young jockey was riding Transmission in the big three-mile hurdle when the horse made a terrible mistake in the back straight with well over a circuit to run.

Anderson was thrown completely out of the saddle — but having clung onto the horse’s neck, hauled himself back aboard, rode for the best part of a mile without any stirrups and STILL went on to win.

It was an amazing feat of athleticism — and well and truly banishes the memory of his howler at Worcester back in May, when he mistook the half-furlong pole for the winning line and lost a race.

We salute you, Joe ‘Top Gun’ Anderson.

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