Denis Quinn relief over token £1 fine for maliciously doped runner in 2017

Denis Quinn has spoken of his relief after being fined a token £1 by the BHA's disciplinary panel, who accepted one of the trainer's horses had been doped in a malicious and deliberate attempt to damage him.

The investigation took place after the Quinn-trained Murdanova tested positive for bute following a race at Wolverhampton in 2017.

The racecourse received a tip-off hours before the October 28 race through an anonymous call suggesting Murdanova had been given bute, with the caller claiming Quinn had been overheard saying the horse would win as he had "given it something" the previous day.

Murdanova, who finished third at 17-2 in a 7f handicap, was tested after the race and returned a positive for phenylbutazone, an anti-inflammatory which is a prohibited raceday substance.

Following the investigation, the panel accepted Quinn had not administered bute to Murdanova and recognised it was done "deliberately and maliciously by a third party or parties without the trainer's knowledge".

In its findings, the panel said that interviews at Quinn's yard persuaded the BHA to take the "exceptional position which it has in this case, to the effect that individuals hostile to Mr Quinn administered bute to Murdanova. Having reviewed that evidence, the panel was convinced of this also".

Wolverhampton: where Murdanova ran in October 2017Credit: Nathan Stirk

During interviews at the yard an individual admitted making an earlier tip-off call to the BHA about the same horse being doped before a race at Wolverhampton on September 23. Murdanova was tested but the results returned negative.

It also emerged Quinn suffered damage to the tyres of a vehicle he owned and there was a break-in at his yard, in which three horses were let out of their stables. Quinn alerted police, who issued a police information notice to an individual.

Quinn was fined a nominal penalty of £1 for presence of a prohibited substance. This rule states trainers are responsible for the positive tests of horses in their care, regardless of proven involvement.

The trainer said on Wednesday: "It's been a kick in the teeth, it's been difficult. There's a problem for trainers now. If someone in the yard falls out with you they don't just walk out and call you something. They're smarter about things now, there's been cases where they've been putting something into a feed and calling you out.

"We, as trainers, need to be protected from this and the people that would do that have to be warned off.

"It's terrible that they'd do that. What worries me is that they could've given something to the horse and they could've died. It causes danger to the jockeys too.

"The BHA were very good to me, they were lenient and felt my pain. They've dealt with this in a good way, and I appreciate their help."

Since the incident, the Newmarket trainer has endured a tough time with the two highest-rated jumpers at his Stockbridge Stables, Shining Romeo and Stonecoldsoba, suffering fatal injuries at the races but Quinn is determined to change his fortunes.

"I'm genuine and I've never had any fines before I came over [from Ireland]," he said. "People appreciate that and they're putting their faith into me again and my yard is filling up again, which is great. We're putting this all behind us."

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