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Melbourne Cup runner-up hit with massive £11,000 fine moments after race as four jockeys get banned

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MELBOURNE Cup runner-up Patrick Moloney has been hit with a whopping £11,000 fine – more than a third of his take-home pay.

The 29-year-old jockey, who has 609 career wins, pleaded guilty to a charge of careless riding when moving across the track in the closing straight.

Moloney, on the left of shot in the navy silks with gold patch on the arms, was fined £11,000 for careless riding

Moloney sacrificed a hefty chunk of his £30,000 payday and was one of four jockeys banned on Melbourne Cup day.

The £2.5million first-place prize in the feature was won by 20-1 outsider Gold Trip, co-trained by English-born David Eustace and tipped up by Sun Racing columnist Matt Chapman.

But, as ever, Australia’s biggest race was not without controversy.

Moloney, who has the nickname ‘ginga ninja’ and career winnings of £14.2million, was aboard 25-1 second-place Emissary.

The jockey shifted ground when looking to get past Duais, but Moloney’s actions caused that horse to bump into Nunerian.

That horse then clattered into Young Werther, with all three affected getting severely checked in the process.

Moloney claimed Duais ‘overreacted’ as a consequence of his actions by Racing Victoria stewards at Flemington racecourse disagreed.

The jockey will be banned from Thursday until November 17 – a two-week spell on the sidelines.

Daniel Moor, who finished sixth on 60-1 Daqiansweet Junior, broke whip rules and was also fined just over £1,000 and banned for a week.

Riders Damian Lane and Blake Shinn were also suspended for breaking whip rules and careless riding respectively on earlier races on the card.

Up to 100,000 of the world’s most glamorous racegoers braved the ‘rain bomb’ and cold conditions to see the top equine athletes in action.

Manchester United legend Sir Alex Ferguson was among the dignitaries who also got in on the action.

The Old Trafford legend, 80, looked in great spirits cheering home the runners from a VIP area.

But drama hit the Melbourne Cup in the run up to the race when a vandal broke onto the track and pumped 1000 litres of an unknown substance onto the pristine turf.

Police were contacted and an investigation is underway.

Fortunately the idiot’s actions had no impact on racing as heroic ground staff got the track safe in time for racing.

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