IN what is a bit of a lull for racing action, the case of the three-year-old filly who ran in, and won, a juvenile maiden at Yarmouth late last month, has been the focus of much discussion.

The case against Charlie McBride, who saddled the wrong horse at Yarmouth, was heard in front of a disciplinary panel on Thursday. That McBride was fined £1,500 was no surprise, but his cheerful statement to the press that he would pay a large chunk of that fine from money he won backing Mandarin Princess (who turned out to be older stablemate Millie’s Kiss) added an extra element of farce to what has been an embarrassing episode for British racing.