Training under the Lap

Owner Arnold banned by BHA for three months


RACEHORSE owner and professional punter Stephen Arnold, whose horses have won 20 races this year, has been banned by the BHA for three months after admitting to ten breaches of the rule which bans owners from laying their runners.

Arnold, whose horses race under the banner of rakebackmypoker.com, will be disqualified from Friday.

The BHA announced on Thursday that Arnold had admitted to breaching rule (e) 92.2 laying his own horses on ten occasions. Full reasons for the ban are to be released in due course.

While Arnold admitted to the offences in advance of Thursday's BHA disciplinary hearing he claimed there was no corrupt intent. He said that in each instance he laid the horses on Betfair in order to back them for substantial sums at the best price available with bookmakers.

The charges stemmed from a BHA investigation into the Brown Pete affair at Wolverhampton in December 2012, when another three of Arnold's horses were withdrawn from a race won by Brown Pete amid claims of transport problems. Arnold afterwards admitted winning around £130,000, together with his associates.

The ten races at the centre of the BHA inquiry all took place on the all-weather. They featured nine of Arnold's horses between June 18, 2012 and March 15 this year. In all but one of the races Arnold was either a net backer on Betfair, or placed equal bets.

Speaking last month, Arnold told the Racing Post: "I'm being charged with so called laying, but it's not what I would describe as laying horses and not what I understood to be laying horses.

"Everybody knows horses crash on Betfair for a matter of pounds in the morning and all the bookies follow suit, so if I fancied one of mine I would try to hold the price out for a few pounds. Once we had got our money on with bookmakers I would then back the horse to make sure I couldn't profit from it losing, believing that wasn't laying horses."

Earlier this week, Arnold moved his 21 horses under the rakebackmypoker.com banner from trainer Violet Jordan to Ann Stokell.

On Thursday Arnold tweeted: "Huge thanks for all the support I have been shown in very difficult times. It's disappointing to get a ban but at least I can lease the horses to stay in the yard with Ann Stokell and no staff will lose their jobs, so I am happy about that as that was a big worry for me."

rob faux Wrote:

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> Len Sham Wrote:
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> > Flash Harry Wrote:
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> > > These happen for many many year but many more
> > > owners are under the lap than trainer
> >
> >
> > Flash do you really think that their are still
> > owners nowadays that own horses under the
> lap..:S
> > just a question...
>
> Len, I will say that I have heard the names of
> partners mentioned in winning interviews that are
> not named in the
> Computaform..............................have to
> assume they are under the lap!


Rob i think sometimes its a bit of an adrenalin rush having a winner, and everyone is thanked including the stable cat()

I think the NHA should bring Jesus and his father God in for questioning. They have been thanked many times as part of the winning team.

Another cat amongs the pigeons how many horses got silent partner thats races under the lap but the horse never even gets near a racetrack

Rockspider Wrote:

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> Another cat amongs the pigeons how many horses got
> silent partner thats races under the lap but the
> horse never even gets near a racetrack


phantom horses don't cost much to feed