Following the performance of Ballydoyle runner The Anvil in Saturday’s St Leger, there was again some debate on whether apparent pacemakers from the bigger stables should be allowed run in the Group 1 races.

The Anvil raced at least 10 lengths clear of his field until he ran out steam at the turn into the straight, some three furlongs from home. He looked very tired when toiling up the straight.

It is safe to say he was not given the chance to win the race even though his form gave him no chance of doing so. Even describing him as a pacemaker is dubious when the rest of the field ignored him.

For many this issue is similar to the furore surrounding the lowly-rated filly Diore Lia being allowed run in the Derby. She could in theory have gotten in the way of some more fancied runners and caused interference.

We know that efficiently-used pacemakers can have a positive outcome on a race. The 1975 King George, often referred to as 'the Race of the Century', was aided by the two pacemakers for Bustino which dragged the race into record time and set up the pulsating finish between himself and Grundy. Similarly the Godolphin team were lauded for excellent use of a pacemaker when Fantastic Light beat Galileo in the 2001 Irish Champion Stakes.

Pacemakers have been used frequently by both Ballydoyle and Godolphin in European racing.

Back in 2008 the Ballydoyle team came under reprimand for the use of the pacemaker Red Rock Canyon in the Juddmonte International won by Duke Of Marmalade at Newmarket.

MELBOURNE

There was the infamous case in the 2008 Melbourne Cup when the stewards did not take kindly to how Honolulu and Alessandro Volta were ridden forwardly when Septimus was the leading Ballydoyle contender.

Racing Victoria’s rules were that every horse should be ridden to secure its best position irrespective of whether its owner has other runners in the race.

We had a similar case in America last month when the stewards in New York denied a Woodward Stakes entry to the Ron Paolucci-owned runner May B after Paolucci admitted he wanted the horse to act as a ‘rabbit’ for contestant War Story. The Daily Racing Form reported that Paolucci called the stewards to notify them of what he was doing and the stewards used that information to deny May B from running against the favourite Gun Runner.

The stewards cited a state rule permitting them to deny entry without notice at their discretion because it was clear the horse was not entered with the goal of winning the race.

Over jumps we had a similar situation in the 1992 Cheltenham Gold Cup when Golden Freeze was allegedly used to upset Carvill's Hill.

The problem is, if we are to prevent the use of pacemakers by big operations such as Ballydoyle and Godolphin, what constitutes a pacemaker?

The Anvil appears to have been used in this way in the Chester Vase, in the Derby where he gave way to stablemate Douglas MacArthur, and in the Irish Derby.

The Anvil may not good enough to win any Group 1 but was Douglas MacArthur then a pacemaker in the Derby? No, on form he could not have been, he’d won the Derrinstown Trial. Neither could Lancaster Bomber be excluded from the 2000 Guineas on the basis that he was a pacemaker, though that is what he turned out to be and for many observers, had a role in making the way clearer for his stable companion and favourite Churchill.

The sport of athletics does on occasion use pacemakers for big track events, where world records are up for grabs. Bullet Train was in effect a pacemaker on many occasions for Frankel and no one objected.

Bullet Train and Frankel after the British Champions Stakes

Calling for a ban on pacemakers is fine, you can see its merits. But if the current rule is implemented the big operations will just find a better class of pacemaker. We'll have to pick our way around them for another while.