Where there’s smoke in Victorian racing, there’s Terry Bailey
IT seems that whenever there is controversy in Australian racing, chief steward Terry Bailey is in the thick of the action.
Controversy, constant headlines and strong opinions is all part of his job, but is there more than meets the eye to the man who can’t seem to catch a break?
Being one of the head figures for Racing Victoria comes with its fair share of challenges, but the latest ruling regarding disgraced jockey Danny Nikolic threatens to push Bailey over the edge.
We look at the Nikolic saga and all the other recent headline-grabbing stories surrounding the Racing Victoria chief steward.
Danny Nikolic calls out “corrupt” Bailey
Banned jockey Danny Nikolic hasn’t made many friends over the last few years within the thoroughbred industry, but he’s made one enemy in Terry Bailey.
Nikolic reportedly abused and used prolific language towards Terry Bailey, who Nikolic described as “corrupt”.
When facing the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal late last year, Nikolic stated that Bailey was out to get him and end his career by promoting “vicious lies”.
Bailey stated that he would likely quit his job if Nikolic was to be reinstated as a jockey in Victoria.
“In my opinion the position between Danny Nikolic and I is untenable,” Bailey said in October.
“It (working together) would be very, very difficult in the circumstances.
“If Danny Nikolic is given a licence then he’s given a licence. Maybe it will be me that will have to move on.”
We can’t simply take Danny Nikolic’s word for it as there are more trusting figures in Australian horse racing, but Bailey appears to have personal vendettas with numerous figures in the sport and it’s not a healthy look for the integrity officer.
Included in those personal vendettas is Danny O’Brien and Mark Kavanagh, who were found not guilty of cobalt-related charges last week.
O’Brien labels Terry Bailey a “bully”
It can’t be nice for Terry Bailey to be called “corrupt” and a “bully”, but that’s the situation that faces the chief steward.
Trainer Danny O’Brien has since stated that he was bullied by Terry Bailey during the lengthy cobalt-related investigation.
“The bullying and vilification of both Mark and I and our families by Terry Bailey and his integrity department has been quite incredible,” O’Brien stated.
O’Brien continued to criticise Bailey for lying throughout the process. These are serious accusations about someone who is meant to be cleaning up the sport.
“At the moment we have a head of integrity, Terry Bailey, who is a man who tells lies,” O’Brien alleged.
“He lied to his CEO, and his chairman, when confronted about putting a spy in Peter Moody’s stable, he lied to the racing public in December of 2014 when he informed them that the previous Spring Carnival had been the cleanest ever, when he was well aware of these test results. And he has come along here on oath and told these truths to his honour Justice Garde.
“Now when it became acceptable in racing in Victoria for stewards to behave like that, I do not know.”
Having claims that the head of integrity is lying and using bullying tactics is something that needs to be addressed by an independent board.
We’re not making claims that Terry Bailey is not telling the truth, but when multiple sources are making similar claims, it’s hard to sweep under the rug.
Bailey hiring security?
Terry Bailey was seen on track at Flemington last Saturday with Monjon security boss John Moncrieff on his arm, which sparked questions as to why he was there.
Bailey stated that Moncrieff was on hand to check his security duties, but Racing Victoria spokesman Shaun Kelly said Moncrieff had made appearances as Bailey’s chaperone last spring.
After a high-profile hearing that week, was it any surprise that Bailey felt the need to possibly hire help? He appears to be a man with a target on his back, which was the case in 2015 when Bailey’s home was the investigation of a shooting.
Police were called to Bailey’s residence after it came under heavy gun fire in the evening whilst Bailey and his family were “out the back of the house”.
“It was such a warm night that we were outside when we heard this burst of bullets,” Bailey said.
“Just as we ran, neighbours came running when they heard the gunfire.”
Racing Minister Martin Pakula stated the following after the incident:
“There’s been extra security provided for Terry and his family and I’ll simply say this to those involved: if anybody thinks that Terry Bailey or racing integrity officials will be deterred in any way from providing and ensuring the highest standards of integrity for Victorian racing, they have another thing coming,” Pakula said.
Whether or not a racing personality had something to do with the shootings, it’s concerning times for Terry Bailey who is set to come under scrutiny regarding the O’Brien/Kavanagh investigation.
The old saying goes, “Where there’s smoke, there’s fire” – we just hope these allegations against Terry Bailey aren’t entirely factual for the sake of Victorian racing.