Racing chief’s proposals for F1-style mics and earpieces for jockeys in races

Andrew Jones, boss of Racing Victoria, believes that radical new ideas need to be considered to attract a younger fanbase to the sport

A top racing official is proposing jockeys are mic'd up during races just like drivers are in Formula 1.

In motor racing's elite competition drivers and their pit team communicate between each other during a Grand Prix over radios and their conversations broadcast as part of the TV coverage.

A similar idea is under consideration in Australia by administrators exploring radical ways to to bring a younger fanbase to the sport.

In Victoria, home of the world famous Melbourne Cup, betting revenue has declined by 15 per cent year-on-year.

As a result the state’s regulator has looked to other sports for inspiration, not only motor racing, but cricket as well.

A racing league based on Australia’s Twenty-Twenty competition, the Big Bash, involving the major stables is another of the concepts on the table, plus a series of whip-free races.

Jones said, in an interview with industry broadcaster Racing.com, said: “You've got to make racing as fan-friendly as possible and mics and earpieces are not new.

“So in Formula 1, everybody's watched Drive to Survive. The cars weigh as much as horses, they're going five times faster, 300kms an hour.

“That is a properly dangerous sport and they're communicating with the pit crew all the time. Now, is that a direct analogy to racing?”

The proposals have not been universally welcomed with a leading trainer describing the ideas as “desperate” and the boss of the state’s owners’ association dismissing them as a "hotchpotch of poorly conceived ideas and thought bubbles".

However Jones argued they were necessary to make sure racing remained relevant to young people as “we don't have a monopoly on their attention and we don't have a monopoly on the wagering dollar anymore and we have to fight for it.”