The Jockey Club in Britain will hold a meeting in "the near future" to decide whether to withdraw Graham Bradley's licence to ride after the jockey was charged with conspiring to cheat by police yesterday.
The 38-year-old, winner of the Irish Grand National in 1985 on Rhyme `N' Reason, the Cheltenham Gold Cup in 1983 on Bregawn and the 1996 Champion Hurdle on Collier Bay, was charged after answering bail at Charing Cross police station in London yesterday morning, in connection with his riding of Man Mood, pulled up 4 to 7 favourite in the two-runner Oliver Cromwell Handicap Chase at Warwick on November 5th 1996, won by 5 to 4 chance Drumstick.
Charlie Brooks, the gelding's former trainer and arrested with Bradley on January 8th this year, was told he would face no further action after answering bail yesterday afternoon.
The action against Bradley, who will appear before Bow Street magistrates this morning, is the first of its kind against a jockey or trainer during the police investigation into horse-doping and race-fixing, which saw riders Jamie Osborne, Dean Gallagher, Leighton Aspell and Ray Cochrane all arrested before being released without charge.
Both Brooks, who was in South Africa at the time, and Bradley were re-bailed by police on March 10th to return to Charing Cross yesterday.
After news of Bradley's charge had circulated, the Jockey Club's press office issued a statement which read: "The Metropolitan Police today announced that Graham Bradley, a licensed jockey, has been charged with conspiracy to cheat, in connection with the running of Man Mood in the Oliver Cromwell Handicap Chase at Warwick on November 5th 1996.
"In view of the serious nature of the charge, he will be asked to attend a meeting with the stewards of the Jockey Club at which they will consider what, if any, action is to be taken under the Rules of Racing.
"Graham Bradley will have the opportunity to be legally represented at the meeting which will be held at a date in the near future."
Asked as to when the meeting was likely to take place, Jockey Club press officer John Maxse replied: "We are trying to arrange a suitable date, and I anticipate that we will be able to hold a meeting before the end of the week."
Bradley is free to ride until his suitability to continue in possession of a jockey's licence is discussed at Portman Square, but has no mounts booked at Cheltenham today.
The action, if any, referred to in the Jockey Club statement is most likely to take the form of a suspension of Bradley's licence to ride - those issued to Osborne, Gallagher and Aspell were all revoked a day after their arrest on January 27th 1998 before being returned a week later.
