Royal Ascot-winning trainer George Weaver facing suspension after filly tests positive for diabetes drug

Royal Ascot-winning trainer George Weaver has been provisionally suspended after a drug commonly used to treat diabetes was shown in a post-race sample of one of his horses in the US.

Metformin, a medicine commonly used to treat type 2 diabetes, is a banned substance for horses and was found in a B sample of Anna's Wish after she finished third in a $100,000 stakes race at Aqueduct in March. The trainer's attorney Andrew Mollica has since alleged the horse's groom was the source of the metformin. 

Weaver, who won the Queen Mary with Crimson Advocate last summer and also trains smart sprinter No Nay Mets, is unable to enter horses while some have already been sent to other trainers. The stable's two high-profile sprinters have entries at Royal Ascot next month, with Crimson Advocate as short as 16-1 for the Commonwealth Cup.

The Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (Hiwu) has the power to enforce up to a two-year ban, although it recently gave another trainer Mike Lauer a a 75-day ban and $2,600 fine for a similar case in which a horse was exposed to metformin from its groom.

Trainers Jonathan Wong and Angel Castillo Sanchez received metformin suspensions of 24 months and 18 months respectively, while the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (Hisa) chair Adolpho Birch has previously stated it is correct to treat the drug as a banned substance as studies show it has "performance-enhancing effects".

Weaver's attorney vowed to fight the case and the hearing is expected to take place in a few weeks before a final decision is made shortly after.

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