"There's no real blame game here" - Paddy Flood on the Bellewstown abandonment Bellewstown's 300th anniversary fixture was cut short after just two races on Tuesday evening when three horses slipped on the same part of the track. Irish champion jockey Dylan Browne McMonagle was taken by ambulance to hospital in Drogheda after the Joseph O'Brien-trained Mosel went wrong inside the final two furlongs of the opener, a race in which Ken Condon's Star Of Beauty also slipped at halfway but stayed upright under Billy Lee. Jockey coach, former jockey and now lead race analyst, Paddy Flood, who rode at the track many times, went through the footage on the latest episode of the Jockey Angle and made it clear that he doesn't hold the racecourse responsible. Race replays are FREE to watch from all Irish tracks and a selection of premier British tracks sponsored by William Hill. An unfortunate night for the track Anyone who's been to Bellewstown knows how hard they work, how much they put into the track. In my opinion and I rode there plenty of times, they always wanted to do what was best for riders and horses. So for me, there's no real blame game here. I think the weather has just played its part, and the ground is so hard that even when you're putting water on it, it's not soaking in. It's basically just sitting on top. Billy Lee's escape I want you to keep an eye on this horse here in the purple with the pink spots - Billy Lee riding Star Of Beauty for Ken Condon. You could see Billy before this happened; his body language was that he wasn't too happy. He maybe could feel his horse starting to shift, and basically the horse's front end started to shift and then his back end went as well. He's extremely lucky to stay upright. Billy, at that stage, for the good of the horse and everyone else, just decided that the gig was up. The right call in the end Unfortunately, Bellewstown had to abandon after the second race, when two more did basically the very same as Billy Lee's horse did there. They did get five races the next day over jumps, until one horse slipped up and came down, and I'm nearly sure the majority of the riders wanted to ride on. But to be fair, they just called it, and the IHRB just called it. They couldn't risk having another incident like Dylan's. All riders are up and in one piece, thankfully, that's the main aim of the game. A disappointing couple of days in Bellewstown, but I'm sure they'll be back bigger and stronger next time.
