21 day ban for McMahon Owner-rider Paul McMahon was given a 21-day riding suspension following a British Horseracing Authority disciplinary panel hearing today. Amateur McMahon was referred to the BHA after breaching the new whip regulations when winning a bumper at Cheltenham on October 15 on his own horse, Clondaw Warrior, trained by John "Shark" Hanlon. The disciplinary panel found McMahon had used the whip 17 times for non-safety purposes during the course of the race, and suspended him from November 2 to 22 inclusive. County Carlow-based Hanlon was left very unhappy with the new whip regulations, hitting out at the authorities while also stating he will consider how many runners he has in England. He said: "It's very, very disappointing for Paul. It was a dream come true for him to ride a winner in Cheltenham and it was my biggest day in England as well, so for this to happen is terrible. I'm disgusted. "He only hit the horse six times behind the saddle and the only reason he was giving him slaps down the neck at the finish was to keep him off the other horse that was alongside him. "If he hadn't done that, they'd have done Paul for careless riding, so it's just ridiculous to be honest. I think it's a very sorry state for English racing to be in and it's the people on top that are making it that way. "I had runners in Chepstow the other day and Brian Hayes, who rode for me, got suspended. When he came into the winner's enclosure I told him he could be in trouble. Fair enough, he got a ban, he broke the rules. But the rule is wrong when you can't slap a horse down the neck to keep it straight. "I had entries in Carlisle on Sunday, but they won't be running and I won't be coming to England as much as I have in the past. I'm going to have to have a good think about it, but I don't think I'll be having any runners in England for a while."
