FORMER champion jockey turned trainer Richard Hughes sparked something of a debate lately when suggesting, among other things, that while the winners of handicaps should naturally be raised in the weights, the placed horses should not, in order to increase their chances of winning subsequently.

This view certainly seemed to gain approval from within the ranks of the training fraternity, and the feeling seems to be that small owners are being punished by the handicapping system, which sees many moderate horses prevented from winning by the attentions of the handicapper. It’s extremely easy to rubbish the idea, as the idea of a handicapping system which gives an unfair advantage to a group of horses cannot be realistically called fair and equitable.