The New York State Gaming Commission will not hear appeals filed by the connections of two horses involved in the controversial running of last Saturday’s $500,000 Great White Way division of the New York Stallion Series at Aqueduct. The commission, via letter, informed the representatives of the horses Brick Ambush and The Big Torpedo that the decisions made by the stewards were judgment calls “based on questions of fact, which the stewards are empowered to make . . . and the decision is therefore not appealable to the Commission.” In its letters, the commission cited rule 4039.20, which states, in part, “the stewards are vested with the power to determine the extent of disqualifications in case of fouls.” In the Great White Way, Antonio of Venice, ridden by Manny Franco, was along the rail approaching the quarter pole. Franco, looking for room, took his horse off the rail and in doing so appeared to interfere with The Big Torpedo who then appeared to interfere with Solo’s Fury, with that horse being checked hard by Jose Lezcano and ultimately finishing last. The Big Torpedo finished fourth. Brick Ambush, ridden by Junior Alvarado, was four wide approaching the quarter pole and ultimately had to settle for second behind Antonio of Venice, who rallied past Brick Ambush and Heavyweight Champs, who finished third. The stewards posted the inquiry sign and ultimately ruled that it was Brick Ambush who, pressuring from the outside, caused the interference. The stewards disqualified him from second, and placed him last behind Solo’s Fury. Heavyweight Champs was moved to second, and The Big Torpedo was elevated to third. Brick Ambush is owned by Dean Reeves and trained by Danny Gargan. Reeves said he spoke to the stewards Sunday and after he was not satisfied with their reasoning for the disqualification, he opted to file an appeal. Since the disqualification was made, Reeves said Sunday he’s heard from multiple people, including racing officials, questioning the decision made by the stewards. “If there had been a few people, even myself, who thought, ‘tough break it looks like you might have interfered some’ then I would have moved on,” Reeves said. “There’s been other stewards, racing officials, all kinds of people who said this is the worst thing they’ve ever seen.” Thomas Albrecht, representing the ownership group of The Big Torpedo, filed an appeal of the decision to not find interference by Antonio of Venice, which could have elevated their horse to a higher placing and thus a bigger share of the purse. Drew Mollica, the attorney representing Reeves, said Monday he will research if he has other legal remedies to continue to fight the decision. “I’m in the process of consulting with my client and researching it,” Mollica said. “It is our opinion that these egregious decisions need to be reviewed. To hide behind the fact that we’re just not going to do it speaks volumes about the state of our industry.” Tom Morley, trainer of The Big Torpedo, said the decision by the Gaming Commission not to hear these appeals is wrong. “The integrity of racing in the state of New York is under major scrutiny over the decision made on Saturday afternoon at Aqueduct, and the Gaming Commission has simply put a brick wall up, citing cases from nearly 100 years ago,” Morley said. The stewards on Sunday notified Alvarado of a three-day suspension for his ride on Brick Ambush. On Monday, agent Mike Sellitto said that Alvarado will accept the days and serve them Jan. 1, 4, and 5. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.