'We have absolutely no confidence in it' - riders concerned by swab reliability

The Professional Jockeys Association’s Flat president PJ McDonald has stressed there is a “very strong” concern in the weighing room around the reliability of saliva testing in light of the false positive recorded by Classic-winning rider Sean Levey last week.

McDonald, who took on the PJA role in 2018, is insistent riders would have no issue with taking a urine test at every meeting if required, but stated there is “absolutely no confidence” in the instant saliva testing – through a mouth swab – that was introduced in May last year.

The swab tests were hailed “an essential piece of the jigsaw” in stopping riders from using drugs by then PJA chief Paul Struthers, but McDonald feels Levey’s false positive undermines their reliability.