Irish jockey Ruby Walsh has threatened to restrict his riding in Britain after being given a five-day ban for breaching new whip rules at Aintree.
He was deemed to have exceeded the eight-strike limit over jumps when winning on 7-1 chance Edgardo Sol.
Walsh and unhappy colleagues considered not riding in the following race as a protest but eventually took part.
"If that ride deserves five days this game is done for," said the furious 32-year-old Walsh.
Walsh struck his mount nine times, one above the new maximum, in the two-mile handicap chase which he won by a nose from The Cockney Mackem.
The former Grand National and Cheltenham Gold-Cup winning rider later told Racing UK: "If that's the bans you are facing for ordinary races, it's not worthwhile coming to ride here.
"I thought I was inside the limit. I thought I gave the horse a nice ride. The punishments don't fit the crime."
The following race started five minutes late as riders debated whether to boycott the contest.
Aintree steward Robert Earnshaw said: "The jockeys had a discussion and were slightly reluctant to come out.
"I and [fellow steward] Adrian Sharpe went into the changing room and with the help of [champion jockey] AP McCoy persuaded them to come out."
On Friday, the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) had agreed to amend the new whip rules.
But some riders are still unhappy with the penalties, and the Professional Jockeys Association (PJA) was forced to call on its members not to take strike action.
BBC racing correspondent Cornelius Lysaght said: "It's a sign of how high feelings are running about the regulations that came into place 12 days ago, and which were amended on Friday, that jockeys due to ride in the following race were initially reluctant to take part, in support of Walsh."
The ban rules Walsh out of racing from 5-9 November, with the first day of the suspension meaning he misses the Down Royal card which features the Grade One JNwine.com Champion Chase.
Edgardo Sol's trainer Paul Nicholls said on his Twitter account: "Nice day with three winners ruined by Ruby's five-day ban after awesome ride on Edgardo Sol.
"And Ruby just told me he can't ride Kauto Stone and The Nightingale at Down Royal on November 5. Beyond a joke."
Meanwhile, Frankie Dettori will miss the second day of the Breeders' Cup after he was handed a seven-day ban for careless riding at Newbury.
Dettori found trouble when riding Saeed bin Suroor's Willing Foe in a handicap race, where he was ruled to have hampered Right Step with two furlongs to go.
Right Step's jockey Harry Bentley ended up on the floor but emerged from the incident unscathed.
Stewards found Dettori made a manoeuvre to his right when not sufficiently clear, and his suspension means he will miss the showpiece final day of the Breeders' Cup fixture at Churchill Downs on 4-5 November.
Dettori had been re-routed to Newbury when Encke, his intended mount in Doncaster's Racing Post Trophy, was declared a non-runner.
