The Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB) have said they have no desire to amend the whip rules for jockeys in Ireland following the British Horseracing Authority’s announcement of 20 changes to the rules, which are set to be introduced this autumn.

The key changes to the rules are that a rider may only use his or her whip in a backhand position and the introduction of a sanction of disqualification if the rider goes four times above the current threshold.

The whip rules were last amended in 2011, when a limit of strikes was introduced - seven strikes on the flat and eight for jumps. Once adjusting to the new rules, riders largely followed them, but on numerous occasions, breaches were made in big races.

These races were said to be behind the BHA’s motivation to change the ruling as it was largely observed that most riders would take large suspensions to win the biggest races, which led to an unfair situation where a rider abiding by the rules could feel hard done by.

For example, this year’s Grand National winner, Noble Yeats, would have been disqualified under the new rules as his rider Sam Waley Cohen went above the new threshold.

His nine-day suspension and £400 fine was rendered inconsequential considering he retired immediately after the race.

In Ireland, the whip rules were last amended in 2019, when a limit of nine strikes was introduced by the IHRB. It means that Irish-based jockeys will have to alter their riding when they ride in Britain, which could have an effect at the big meetings like Cheltenham.