Star jockey William Pike has been ruled out of the remainder of this week’s Ascot Racing Carnival after breaking his wrist in an electric scooter accident.
The Australian had previously been ruled out for the start of the 2024 season after suffering a broken heel while working on the track.
Pike was due to board Western Empire for Saturday’s Sport-Gold Rush race, with the G&A Williams-trained horse entering the race as the favorite.
But the champion rider underwent surgery on his arm and reportedly fell off his scooter in what is being described as a “harmless incident”.
Pike will be replaced by Billy Egan for Saturday’s Group 3 1400m race.
“I was riding a scooter on Monday afternoon around Perth crossing a road,” Pike’s manager Dale Verhagen told Racing WA.
‘It was going incredibly slow and it was a fairly harmless incident.
“He was going 10 to 15 kilometers per hour and he landed badly and broke his wrist.
“At first, without talking to him, he was upset, but even he said himself, ‘I wish I had done something dumber, but I was actually being very sensible.’
You probably take more risks weekly on the farm than you do on that scooter.
“It’s full of plaster and it’s a bitter pill to swallow.”
His coach has confirmed that he underwent surgery on the wrist injury and could be out for “eight to ten weeks.”
More to follow…