Oisín Murphy admits to Newmarket pub ‘fracas’ before failing breath test

Murphy’s failed breath test on October 8 was his second in just over two years, following a positive at Salisbury in June 2019, a few days before Royal Ascot

Jockey Oisín Murphy after winning the Gamble Responsibly With Casumo Handicap on Whitehaven during the Casumo Flat Finale at Haydock Park Racecourse yesterday. Picture: Nigel French/PA

Sat, 16 Oct, 2021 - 14:23

Greg Wood

Oisín Murphy, who is long odds-on to be crowned champion jockey for the third season in a row at Ascot on Saturday, has admitted to being involved in a “fracas” in a pub in Newmarket last week, a few hours before he was stood down from riding at the town’s racecourse after failing a pre-racing breath test for alcohol.

News of the incident, on the evening of October 7, emerged in the Daily Mail on Friday evening and is the latest of several stories to appear in recent months which seem to cast a poor light on the champion jockey’s professionalism away from the track.

Murphy’s failed breath test on October 8 was his second in just over two years, following a positive at Salisbury in June 2019, a few days before Royal Ascot.

He also tested positive for cocaine when riding in France in July 2020 and was subsequently banned from riding for three months, but escaped the six-month suspension that is normal for a first offence after a disciplinary panel accepted that the positive was the result of “environmental contamination” during sex with a user of the Class A drug.

Murphy is not just an outstanding jockey but also an excellent, articulate communicator of the finer details of race-riding, who has built up a strong social media presence as a result. His Twitter account has 50,000 followers and he engages with his fans on a daily basis.

He retweeted an advert for alcohol-free Guinness earlier this week and will ride Andrew Balding’s filly Alcohol Free in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Ascot on Saturday afternoon. However, having admitted his involvement in a pub fight last week, he also told the Mail that he needs to learn not to turn to drinking when he feels under pressure on the track.

“The bottom line is I’ve been honest with everyone,” Murphy said. “I allow the jockeys’ championship and riding poorly to affect my personality. I need to deal with the bad days better and not turn to alcohol to delete those days. As a professional jockey, better is expected.”

Murphy was 11 winners in front of William Buick in the title race before racing on October 8, but Buick cut the gap to just one winner at Haydock on Friday before a double for the reigning champion took him into what will almost certainly be a decisive three-win lead, 153 to 150.

Murphy will be acutely aware of the possible embarrassment to Sheikh Fahad al-Thani, who retains him as No 1 rider, as a result of the timing and nature of his latest lapse of judgement. The Sheikh is chief executive of Qipco, a Qatari sovereign wealth fund which is the main sponsor of Saturday’s Champions Day card at Ascot.

While he remains fiercely loyal to his jockey, Murphy will also be well aware that another positive breath test before June 2022, which would be his third in three years, would trigger an automatic ban of at least 40 days.