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Woods or Wire: who copped the worst slap?

Trainer Sean Woods received a slap on the wrist for slapping a horse on the face prior to the Classic Cup – an act hardly entering the realms of extreme animal cruelty, but nonetheless it wasn’t a good look.

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Sean Woods, pictured here with recent Class Five winner Highland Dragon, was fined HK$3,000 for the "improper act" of slapping Wire To Wire before the start of the Classic Cup on Sunday. Photo: Kenneth Chan

Australian journalist Michael Cox had considerable experience as a writer and radio broadcaster in his homeland, covering thoroughbred and harness racing as well as other major sports, before making the move to the Post in 2011.

Published: 8:11pm, 20 Feb 2014Updated: 12:14pm, 23 Feb 2016

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Trainer Sean Woods received a slap on the wrist for slapping a horse on the face prior to the Classic Cup – an act hardly entering the realms of extreme animal cruelty, but nonetheless it wasn’t a good look.

Wire To Wire was heading out for his first start in Hong Kong and you can’t blame him for being a little hesitant. He was 68-1 and hopelessly overmatched by a couple of stars in Designs On Rome and Able Friend. He didn’t need to do any form to know he was going to get his butt kicked. But when he dug his heels in and didn’t want to head onto the track, Woods resorted to his drastic measures.

Some trainers are admired for their “hands on” approach, but a face slap is not acceptable. It was hardly the work of Monty “Horse Whisperer” Roberts, but nor was it Mongo knocking out a horse in Blazing Saddles. It clearly came from a place of frustration. Had the unruly action been caught on camera would the fine handed out by stewards have been more than HK$3,000? Modern society doesn’t accept this sort of thing – at least, when it is on the nightly news they don’t. However hypocritical and politically correct racing’s critics may be, it could have been a PR nightmare.