By: Barry Lichter
Cambridge trainer Brett McDonald was today charged with administering the pain-killing drug bute to four runners at the Ruakaka trials, including the horse which broke both its front legs and crashed, seriously injuring jockey Christopher Dell.
The Racing Integrity Unit charged McDonald, father of champion jockey James McDonald, and his stable foreman Tanya Donaldson, after a two month investigation over the December 9 incident.
When stewards took post mortem samples from the horse Dell rode, an unnamed three-year-old by Lucky Unicorn out of Lady Franscesca, they found phenylbutazone, a pain killer and anti-inflammatory drug which is banned on raceday and at trials.
The horse fell free of interference during its trial when it broke both its front legs, sending Dell crashing to the ground.
Dell, 22, lay on the track for more than an hour as medics attended to him and he was placed in an induced coma then taken by helicopter to Auckland Hospital. The trials were abandoned.
After further investigations, the RIU gained enough evidence to lay charges in respect of all four horses McDonald took to the meeting.
The case mirrors one in Perth in October, 2002 when an unraced two-year-old broke a foreleg in a trial at Belmont Park.
The horse’s rider Jason Oliver, brother of Melbourne Cup-winning jockey Damien Oliver, sustained horrific injuries and died the following day.
Trainer Steve Wolf was disqualified for two years after phenylbutazone was found in his horse.
Dell told Stuff.co.nz he was shocked when he heard this afternoon about his mount having bute in its system.
“Horses have bute all the time but I don’t know if it’s common at the trials.”
He said the enormity of the disclosure was still sinking in but anger was one of the emotions he was dealing with.
Dell said he was just thankful that he had escaped the crash relatively unscathed.
After being in a coma for nine days, when he had some small brain bleeds but no swelling, he is now about to embark on a fitness programme and start running again.
“I’m pretty much back to normal except I can’t ride or drive or drink.
“I’ve been stood down for six months and don’t know when I can ride work again or ride at the trials but that’s my big goal now. I’m on 89 wins and want to get to 100.”
Dell’s mother Birdie said she couldn’t believe what a miraculous recovery her son had made.
“Chris is a very lucky person, he could quite easily have died.”
When asked what she thought about her son riding a horse drugged with a pain killer, which was presumably masking some injury, she said: “There is that anger there. There are still a lot of questions to be answered for Kevin and I.
“I’m disappointed that something like this could have happened. Hopefully they’ll do something about it so it doesn’t happen again.”
Dell’s plea looks to have been answered already as up to 15 horses were drug tested at Monday’s Avondale trials.
Co-chief stipendiary steward Ross Neal said the RIU was reviewing its testing on trial days but costs and budgets had to be worked out because it was an expensive exercise.
“We have tested at the trials, both in the south and north in the last 18 months,” said Neal but he could not recall the last occasion it was done.
If McDonald and Donaldson are found guilty of what is deemed a serious racing offence, they face disqualification for any period up to life and/or a fine of up to $50,000.
