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INPHO/Billy Stickland
Hearing

Are you sitting comfortably? Aidan O'Brien facing wait for punishment decision

The Ballydoyle trainer is in hot water after ‘the Cape Blanco affair’.

AIDAN O’BRIEN IS facing a week-long wait before he learns his punishment in the wake of the Cape Blanco affair at York in May, according to PA this afternoon.

The Ballydoyle trainer was initially charged with ‘acting in a manner prejudicial to the conduct and/or good reputation of racing’.

This arose after he instructed his employee, Pat Keating, not to bring the horse in front of the official vets as part of their examination of the colt after his Dante success.

After that charge was later amended, O’Brien admitted to ‘acting in a manner prejudicial to the conduct of horseracing in Great Britain’ at a disciplinary panel hearing which concluded today.

He also admitted to encouraging and/or causing Keating to refuse to comply with two instructions given by the York stewards.

Keating admitted to being twice in breach of a rule regarding his failure to comply with the instructions.

An announcement is now expected next week.

O’Brien explained at the time that he had refused the request to submit the colt to a second veterinary inspection as he was worried Cape Blanco had suffered a recurrence of an injury and was being prepared for a flight home, PA explains.