The top contender for today’s Guinness Galway Hurdle, Petrol Head, was disqualified from the key race by command of the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board. This surprising decision was made following the discovery of a forbidden substance in a sample drawn from the Katy Brown’s institution’s horse. It happened shortly after the horse’s victory in the latest race in Bellewstown on July 6th.
At 11am today, LGC laboratories declared their findings and an IHRB announcement stated: “In line with the detection of a banned substance and the resultant IHRB probe into the incident, the IHRB directors have barred Petrol Head from participating in the Guinness Galway Hurdle according to Rule 21 of the racing regulations.
The IHRB won’t provide any additional comments on the issue until the disciplinary proceedings are concluded.”
Petrol Head, racing under the banner of the Orchard Garden Syndicate, was a favourite with bettors early on Thursday, and his odds had been a solid 6/1 prior to his disqualification.
This eight-year-old horse was previously guided by Co Armagh’s Ronan McNally, who received a record-setting 12-year expulsion from horse racing in 2023. This penalty was a result of a prolonged IHRB investigation into the form improvement of horses linked to him.
David Dunne acted as Petrol Head’s trainer prior to McNally’s tenure. Dunne, a contentious figure, was sanctioned with a two-year suspension of his license due to his part in the case that resulted in McNally’s record-breaking ban. The last 18 months of Dunne’s suspension, however, were pending. His penalty was related to rules about racing’s disrepute.
In March this year, Dunne was sentenced to a 15-month prison term for assaulting and unlawfully detaining a stable hand in 2021. He confessed to these crimes which occurred at his yard on May 15th, 2021, when the victim was 18 years old.