Failed doping test put the brakes on Petrol Head's Galway run

The Galway Hurdle, one of the feature events of this week's Galway Festival, was embroiled in controversy yesterday after Petrol Head, who had been backed from 16-1 to 5-1 clear favourite for the €270,000 (£228,000) handicap, was scratched on the orders of the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB) due to a failed dope test after a win at Bellewstown last month.

- Greg Wood

Petrol Head was due to run for trainer Katy Brown yesterday, but was previously owned and trained by Ronan McNally and was among the horses involved in a disciplinary case in 2023 which saw McNally banned from racing for 12 years for "causing serious damage to the interests of horse racing in Ireland".

The IHRB said in a statement yesterday that it had received confirmation "at 11am... of the presence of a prohibited substance in the sample [taken from Petrol Head] at Bellewstown [on 6 July]. As a result of this confirmation and following the IHRB investigation into the matter, the directors of the IHRB have withdrawn Petrol Head from the Galway Hurdle under the provisions of the Rules of Racing."