Getting the needle: Recoletos left 'hysterical' by tests before Queen Anne

After Recoletos had produced a career-best performance to be second behind Alpha Centauri in the Prix Jacques le Marois on Sunday, trainer Carlos Laffon-Parias revealed the reason he had failed to give his running in the Queen Anne Stakes the time before – a fear of needles.

Laffon-Parias had previously hinted at his dissatisfaction with the preliminaries ahead of the Queen Anne but, debriefing the media on Sunday after the Marois, the Arc-winning trainer gave full details of the ordeal suffered by Recoletos for the first time.

"In England, unfortunately, things didn't go as planned," said Laffon-Parias. "The vets came to take a blood test an hour and a half before the race, something I've never seen before. Recoletos detests needles and became hysterical. It explains why he under-performed."

Recoletos (far left) had a bad reaction when tested, according to his trainer Carlos Laffon-PariasCredit: Charlie Crowhurst

Seasoned observers of the son of Whipper might not have thought him any more on his toes at Ascot than usual, but his trainer believes the nervous energy expended during and after the visit of the BHA's vets meant his race was run before the start.

Recoletos was well fancied at Ascot as the 6-1 third favourite, but finished seventh behind 33-1 winner Accidental Agent. He returned to form at Deauville, going down by two and a half lengths to Alpha Centauri, while conceding both the weight-for-age and sex allowances. Accidental Agent was tenth of 11.

There was no mention of Recoletos – or of any interview with Laffon-Parias – in the stewards' report following the Queen Anne.

The BHA will not comment on why individual horses are tested, but it points out that its strategy is a combination of intelligence-based and random sampling.

Watch: Recoletos disappoints in the Queen Anne Stakes

Pre-race sampling is very much on the increase, with 700 tests taken last year compared to only 195 in 2015.

BHA head of media Robin Mounsey said on Monday: "Pre-race testing is an important part of our equine anti-doping strategy. We've increased the number of pre-race samples we've taken in the past few years and the emphasis on pre-race testing is something we intend to further develop going forwards.

"Pre-race testing is used in Britain and other racing jurisdictions to detect and deter the use of methods or substances that might be administered prior to racing that might enhance a horse’s performance.

Carlos Laffon-Parias: 'The vets came to take a blood test an our and a half before the race, something I have never seen before.'Credit: Edward Whitaker

"For certain methods and substances it's essential the sample is taken directly before competition as they would not be detectable immediately post-race."

He added: "Hundreds of thousands of pre-race blood samples have been taken from horses over decades across the world; this includes runners in virtually all major racing nations contesting the most important races in the international calendar.

"Over the past two years runners – and often subsequent winners – of many of the best Group races in Britain have been pre-race tested."

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