Trainer Katy Brown blasts IHRB, insisting ‘they didn’t want that horse to run in that race, they were afraid he would win’
Petrol Head, now in the care of Kildare trainer Katy Brown, has been central to an IHRB investigation in recent years with the consequences of that resulting in disqualification from his first 10 races – which included one win – due to the concealment of his ownership.
Petrol Head was initially trained by David Dunne before moving to Ronan McNally, who is now serving a 12-year ban for breaches of integrity with the final four years suspended after an appeal.
Now in the ownership of the Orchard Garden Syndicate, the eight-year crept in at the bottom of the weights for the €270,000 day four feature after his ‘win-and-you’re-in’ victory at Bellewstown on July 6 but he was dramatically taken out by officials in Ballybrit this afternoon having been backed into favourite.
“Following notification from LGC Laboratories of a screening finding in a post-race sample taken from Petrol Head at Bellewstown on 6 July 2024, the IHRB immediately commenced an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the screening finding,” a statement by the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB) read.
“At 11am on Thursday 1 August, the IHRB received confirmation from LGC Laboratories of the presence of a prohibited substance in the sample taken at Bellewstown.
“As a result of this confirmation of a prohibited substance and following the IHRB investigation into the matter, the Directors of the IHRB have withdrawn Petrol Head from the Guinness Galway Hurdle Handicap under the provisions of Rule 21 of the Rules of the Racing.
“The IHRB will not be commenting any further on the matter until the disciplinary process is complete.”
Brown was not best pleased, however, and the Friarstown handler insisted to the Racing Post that she had not administered any prohibited substance to the horse while she was also adamant that Irish authorities did not want Petrol Head to compete in the Galway showpiece.
“There is no connection there,” Brown told the Racing Post when asked if the horse still had links to McNally.
“That horse was leased by the Orchard Garden Syndicate. They own other horses with me as well, that have always been with me.
“So there’s no connection there, no connection whatsoever. Horse racing is full of rumours, that’s the way it’s always been. The lads who own that horse actually lease that horse off somebody and basically, we’ve been completely hard done by.
“The hair samples go back a while, so therefore I definitely didn’t give the horse anything anyway. They (the IHRB) didn’t want that horse to run in that race, they were afraid he would win.
“I feel completely hard done by. I’d like to know how many other hair samples are being taken from that race. They obviously knew I was going for the Galway Hurdle after the horse ran in Bellewstown and they didn’t stop until they got some little inkling somewhere.
“I brought that horse to the beach on Monday down in Wexford. I was followed to the beach by the IHRB. I went to Lissadell vets with the horse, I was followed up there by the IHRB. You have no idea what’s been going on the last week.
“I’ve had a nightmare of a week with the IHRB. They’ve been chasing me around the country. They’ve been harassing my staff. Obviously I know they were looking for medical records for the Galway Hurdle, all the way back to January.
“They never told me until 12 o’clock that the horse couldn’t run, and basically all that showed up in that horse’s sample was clenbuterol, which is a syrup. It actually showed up in a hair sample, not in the urine.
“My opinion is they’re only like this because of the horse’s previous owner and trainer. That horse has a profile. I’m not an eejit. I know rumours going around and whatever.
“That horse is always going to have a profile. I was lucky enough to get to train him but I just feel, because of who used to own and train him, I’m getting the backlash of it.”
