True that, but I wonder how cognizant Repole was then, if it hadn’t been one his horses that Lopez was riding or interfering with at the time of those incidents. If it was, then yes, he should have done some research.
Good to see what looks to be some progress in stopping the reckless jockeys anyway.
This.
His reckless & dangerous riding should be a higher concern than using the whip an extra time, yet many get hung up on the “whip use violations” instead.
Not to say they (whip use violations) should be ignored either, but his riding infractions should definitely carry more weight.
There are a few other top jockeys that also have a history of careless riding, but never really get set down for it.
Hopefully this will be a turning point in what is expected, allowed & how violations are handled.
Maybe it’s easier to suspend him for something as black and white as the use of the whip on the face/neck long after the finish line. Complete with video evidence of it.
He’s been set down several times for dangerous riding and I’m afraid they won’t do anything about it until he kills a jockey. Then it’ll be clear (and too late) that he shouldn’t be riding. I think he’s been given too many chances already.
I’m glad he’s going to have some time to get help.
With HISA in the picture now, I hope dangerous riding will be penalized more severely.
Irad Ortiz should be on their radar.
The BloodHorse article is an eye opener. Jockeys shouldn’t have to ride against dangerous riders like him. And for the following he only gets 30 days and that is called a stiff penalty? Oh hell no, that was a wrist slap.
"Here’s Lopez, at Gulfstream Jan. 31, 2019, blithely shifting into the path of another horse without so much as a glance, causing riders Romero Maragh and Carlos Montalvo to fall. Maragh broke his back and Montalvo broke an ankle. Lopez got a stiff suspension of 30 days for that one because, according to the stewards, “After multiple times of being either reprimanded or fined or suspended, we came to the conclusion that we needed to do more.”
Yes. It seems they are waiting for him, and some other well known reckless riders, to kill someone. I have hope that HISA will change this.
Irad Ortiz comes immediately to mind.
See post #23 above. 
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