Sheikh Mohammed
Trainer Mahmood Al Zarooni is in serious trouble after drugs were found to be present in 11 horses under his control. His boss Sheikh Mohammed who is also boss of Dubai is said to be appalled. The drugs were found in unbeaten filly Certify and this has prompted bookmakers to say that they will refund all losing ante-post bets. This is seriously unfair for those who placed bets via bookmakers but at least it is a gesture.
Saeed Bin Suroor the retained trainer of Sheikh Mohammed other string of horses will not have the authorities doing drug test on his trained horses but it has not been ruled out. To be frank I cannot see why they would not do drug test on his horses. Sheikh Mohammed is a big noise but 11 horses is a lot of horses to be wrong on. There must have been some communication between the staff and vets. These horses are trained at Newmarket which is the home of UK horse racing. Therefore the vets and staff will more than likely come from that area and all are involved in horse racing and the governance of horse racing.
This has been a embarrassment for Sheikh Mohammed as he has taken a stand against Lasix the drug used by US trainers, and, he now has to now rethink his strategy for his business. Will he stay in the UK and have the smell of corruption surrounding Mahmood Al Zarooni also engulfing him personally? Will he bring in another trainer or place Mahmood Al Zarooni with Saeed Bin Suroor? These are big questions since Sheikh Mohammed is a big player in UK horse racing.
There has always been a whiff of a problem involving horse racing and drugs but this is the biggest trainer to be named. Apparently drugs in horses are common practice and to avoid the trainers involved would be impracticable for punters. Why would a punter avoid a horse that has been treated with performance enhancing drug?