$re = '/.*?\|\s*(.*?)\s*\|.*/m';
$str = '20198818-119903 | firmware-check | passed : host test-1000 is connected to a test with Version: 333 | |
20198818-119903 | other-test-123 | passed : host test-1000 is connected to a test with 333:
20198818-119903 | test4| passed :| host | is connected to a test with 333
20198818-119903 | something | passed : host test-1000 is connected to a test with Version:';
$subst = "$1";
$result = preg_replace($re, $subst, $str);
echo "The result of the substitution is ".$result;
Please keep in mind that these code samples are automatically generated and are not guaranteed to work. If you find any syntax errors, feel free to submit a bug report. For a full regex reference for PHP, please visit: http://php.net/manual/en/ref.pcre.php