El-Issa suspended for two months

Gold Coast jockey Bobby El-Issa was at the centre of another controversy at Eagle Farm when he was suspended for two months for failing to ride out runner-up My First Affair to the finish in the Ormiston College Quality.

His suspension starts on September 10 and will conclude at midnight on November 10.

El-Issa indicated he would appeal immediately.

He was hauled before stewards and questioned as to why he stopped riding My First Affair who went down by a nose to the Bryan Guy-trained Eleda in the 1200-metre fillies and mares race.

El-Issa initially denied he stopped riding My First Affair but, under questioning from acting chief steward John Hackett, conceded he could have hit the mare with the whip a few more times before the post.

"I thought I had won but I may have stopped riding a stride before the line," El-Issa said.

"I didn't see the other horse (Eleda) out wide until the death and to be honest I was caught napping.

"But it didn't cost me the race. She was doing her best past the post and she got beaten by a better horse."

My First Affair's trainer Maryann Thexton also gave evidence and agreed with stewards that El-Issa stopped riding two strides short of the finish line.

"He (El-Issa) should have ridden her for another two strides," Thexton said.

"It's hard to say whether it cost her the race but you could say it did."

El-Issa is already in trouble with Queensland stewards who will reopen an inquiry on Monday week into his riding tactics on the Jon Walk-trained Miss Twist at Doomben last Wednesday.

At an inquiry on Friday, stewards denied a request from El-Issa to have legal representation present when the inquiry resumes.

The former Sydney jockey was involved in a heated confrontation with Walk and owner Harry Hayes at Doomben before stewards summoned all parties to an inquiry to explain El-Issa's ride on Miss Twist.

El-Issa was told to settle Miss Twist back in the field but he disobeyed his riding instructions and rode the mare hard out of the barrier with the whip in the XXXX Gold Handicap (1640m.)

Miss Twist led by five lengths before compounding to finish at the tail of the field, 13 lengths from the winner Falzig who is trained by Thexton.