The CHRB officially opened an investigation. On June 1, Baedeker had asked the agencys top lawyer and investigator how close they were to filing the Scopolamine complaints., On July 9, a month after Justifys Belmont triumph, the agencys chief counsel, Robert Brodnik, wrote to the CHRB investigator that they would like to officially file by Monday.. Another day passed before it was discovered the colt was administered a topical ointment for a rash that contained betamethasone. This America's different." pic . He finished third in the Derby that year with Congaree. It was then that Baffert, one of the most accessible trainers in horse racing, stopped talking until this week. Some of my friends swear that I'm actually a conservative Democrat. But when factoring in the number of races run, Bafferts horses have died at the highest rate of the 10 trainers who have had the most horse deaths. Bafferts attorney argued in court that the trainers May suspension by the New York Racing Assn. Bob Baffert blamed "cancel culture" after his horse, Medina Spirit, who won the Kentucky Derby, failed its post-race drug test. It basically said something under his control is associated with these fatalities, Arthur said, but regulators couldnt act without evidence of a rules violation. Rick Baedeker, who was executive director of the CHRB before retiring last year, said the boards decisions were carefully considered to avoid treating Baffert differently than any other trainer. Baffert, however, became the first trainer in history to win the Derby and Preakness in back-to-back years. Baffert revisited the Derby the next year, sending two top colts, Real Quiet and Indian Charlie, to Louisville. He claimed that the horse death data provided by the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) was not possible.. Bob Baffert wakes up most every day with one thing in mind, winning another Kentucky Derby. His white hair, tinted glasses and accessibility make him a natural to promote the sport. Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert has been suspended from the home of the Kentucky Derby for two years after Medina Spirit's positive post-race drug was confirmed, the company that runs the. Between 1997 and 1999, he won the Eclipse Award as outstanding trainer three years running and was voted the 1997 Big Sport of Turfdom Award. A recent conversation about the tragedy of horse deaths wended its way back to the defense of his reputation. Former client Kaleem Shah said, "He will rub people the wrong way by speaking his mind, sometimes he needs to hit the mute button. In fact, Bafferts horses, at 8.3 deaths per 1,000 starts, have died at a significantly higher rate than Hollendorfers, at 6.25. He was 10 when his father, Bill, bought a couple of quarter horses, plowed some land for a track and Bob started riding them before school each morning. In his analysis, Petersen estimated the states chances of winning at trial to be 50 percent. For every Baffert defender, you can find someone on the other side. Hes won seven, more than anyone else in the 147-year history of the race. Baffert said the horse was off the drug for 18 days before the race. The legal records, which draw from dozens of emails, memorandums and other materials that have not previously been made public, show how officials delayed action, contradicted their own plans and rewrote existing rules to Bafferts advantage. Its all right there in black and white; thats all I can say., ARCI President Ed Martin said the rules limiting race-day medications have been tightened not out of concern for performance enhancement but to prevent breakdowns. The Jockey Club has a database of thoroughbred breakdowns meaning deaths stemming from track injuries but said it is barred from sharing its data because of its contracts with racetracks. Horse trainer Bob Baffert, left, leaves federal court in Brooklyn on July 12. CHRB brass agreed to follow Arthurs suggestion. According to Arthurs report, he found that Baffert was dispensing Thyro-L, or thyroxine, a prescription thyroid hormone, to all horses in his care. May 10, 2021. Baffert is a three-time winner of the Kentucky Derby, and has several top prospects for the May 5 race. The public backlash, including a letter written by a gay. It was later discovered that horses from separate barns had also tested positive. In 2015, a loose group of prominent thoroughbred owners hatched a plan according to people with direct knowledge of it to sic private eyes, from a firm called 5 Stones that helped bring down Russian dopers, on their sports most famous trainer. This in turn led to a ban from all California Horse Racing Board facilities beginning April 4 due to a rule removing any trainer under a 60 day or higher ban from all CHRB facilities. [31][32] Additional charges were added on January 3, 2022. On the morning of this years Kentucky Derby, he was going through his list of past Kentucky Derby winners and should-have-been winners, and dismissed Medina Spirit as not the best horse in the race. Things would have been so much simpler if the horse had not won the race. Once the golden boy of horse racing, Bob Baffert now the face of its disgrace. In February, Kentucky racing officials decided against suspending Baffert, with Borden telling the Louisville Courier-Journal a lesser punishment was all in the course of being fair. And in April, Arkansas officials reversed the 15-day suspension for lidocaine positives that the trainer blamed on an assistants pain patch. In correspondence with the agencys lawyer, Baedeker wrote that because our staff failed to act in a timely manner, the horses, trainer, owner and others could be harmed unjustly if they didnt use the more lenient classification. His primary attorney is Craig Robertson, who represents him in all regulatory matters, but he has recused himself from any action against Churchill Downs because his law firm does business with the company, creating a conflict of interest. On Monday, Bell confirmed he helped with the search, adding Jimson weed has plagued California for years.. Great Read: Bob Baffert has come a long way in horse racing, Santa Anita opens Friday as prelude to Breeders Cup at Del Mar, Surging Crespi receives another strong performance from sophomore Diego Velazquez, High school baseball and softball: Fridays scores, With Marcus Morris sidelined, Clippers look to stabilize lineup and rotations, With their playoff lives at stake, Darvin Ham challenges Lakers effort and urgency. Horse trainer Bob Baffert on Monday argued that Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit had been a victim of "cancel culture" after the horse failed a postrace drug test . A week after that, Baffert learned of the positive test. Carson Valley was killed in a freak accident in 2019 at Del Mar when a loose horse crashed into the Baffert trainee. The veterinarian chalked up Bafferts response to ignorance. Baffert faces unprecedented scrutiny after a positive drug test marred a win by his horse Medina Spirit at this years Kentucky Derby. Please answer some questions in this short survey about professional soccer and the 2022 Men's FIFA World Cup. [42][44] A friend of Baffert's and an inductee into the American Quarter Horse Association Hall of Fame, Adair died on Preakness Day, May 16, 2015, at 71. The previous August, Bob Baffert Racing Stables had donated $1,000 to the TOCs political action committee, California records show. Betamethasone is mostly injected into the joints of horses to ease inflammation and, if the inflammation is reduced, any associated pain subsides. Baffert has been married twice and has five children: four with his first wife, Sherry: Taylor, Canyon, Forest, and Savannah. Instead of promptly filing a public complaint against Baffert, the CHRB kept the positive result secret while Arthur conducted a lengthy investigation. It will all be settled by lawyers and judges and that takes time. After the Times broke the news of the positive drug test, Ruis sued the CHRB in January 2020. He has won the Kentucky Oaks three times: first in 1999 with Silverbulletday, who was later selected for the Hall of Fame, then with Plum Pretty in 2011 and with Abel Tasman in 2017. Baffert won the Derby a third time in 2002 with War Emblem. He also can be found at the Olympics, having just finished the Tokyo and Beijing double, marking his 11th Olympics. Currently, his major coverage area is horse racing, where he can be found at big races at Santa Anita, the Triple Crown series and Breeders Cup. California keeps track of horse deaths by trainer, but there are errors and limits to the data. According to data provided by the California Horse Racing Board and supplemented by The Times research, the trainer has had 75 horses die since 2000 either racing, training, or by illness or non-exercise accidents. [38] This reminded the public that since 2000, at least 74 other horses had died while in Baffert's stables. The way this case was handled was out of respect for Justify., On the afternoon of April 18, 2018, Arthur learned that Justify and another Baffert horse, Hoppertunity, had tested positive for scopolamine. He tried his hand at substitute teaching before he started training horses full time. Baffert trained Lookin At Lucky, co-owned by Mike Pegram, to win the Preakness Stakes in 2010. In a scheme typical of the high-stakes warring behind the scenes in racing, four thoroughbred owners entered talks in 2015 with a private intelligence agency to dig up drug-related dirt on Baffert, according to multiple people with direct knowledge. Petersen noted that in a previous case the board had exonerated the trainers of three horses who had tested positive for scopolamine, finding the flunked tests were a result of Jimson weed. Officials worked secretly to clear Bob Bafferts Justify amid 2018 Triple Crown run, records show. [10][12] However, his violations for use of prohibited medications has sparked controversy. The lawyer wrote there is evidence suggesting that this matter was handled differently.. FILE - In this Monday July 12, 2021 file photo, horse trainer Bob Baffert leaves federal court in the Brooklyn borough of New York. Earlier data was unreliable, the racing publication said. Petersen opined it would have been unfair to punish Baffert for what he called an oversight by CHRB staff and said there is no evidence to suggest a nefarious motive by the board. A CHRB investigator, searching for Jimson weed, had found a leafy substance at Santa Anita Park, the records show, and following the Derby, Arthur and the CHRBs lawyer agreed to have it tested. The deadliest period came between 2000 and 2005, when 34 of Bafferts horses in California died. Arthur suggested the board retroactively apply it to the Justify case. This whole thing is ridiculous, Baffert texted back, according to messages obtained by The Post via public records request. Less than two weeks later, Medina Spirit won the Kentucky Derby. Does his love of the camera sometimes bite him? asked longtime owner and friend Mike Pegram. In 2012, Baffert saddled Bodemeister, named for the trainer's youngest son, Bode, to second-place finishes in the Derby and Preakness. Brewster alleged, without providing evidence, that the Jockey Club directed 5 Stones to investigate anybody who doesnt train for them and wins a lot of races and might run in racetracks they dont run at., You know what the conclusion was? Brewster said of the alleged private investigation into Baffert. On June 2, with the Belmont Stakes a week away, the owner of a feed operation showed up at the CHRB office carrying plant samples he said he found more than a month earlier, the records show. But in the most recent election in June, he finished seventh of eight, the only incumbent beaten. Two months after Arthur cleared Baffert, the legislation to limit his term died. Without that win, Justify would not have qualified to run in the Kentucky Derby, the first leg of the Triple Crown, a month later. was unconstitutional after Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit failed a postrace drug test. Yakteen rose to Bafferts defense and it ended with a scuffle that slightly injured a security guard. It went exactly according to the lawyers plan. He acknowledged there was no way to determine if that bale was part of the delivery to Baffert, according to the records, but the CHRB investigator nonetheless submitted the sample for testing. Following the publication of the report, Baffert tweeted: Im gratified that CHRB completed its investigation & found there was no wrongdoing. If you lose 75% of the time, youre considered really, really good. He's a cheat and an asshole, and I hope Medina Spirit gets taken down and his connections are denied the $1.8 million first-place check. [27][28] On July 14 the suspension was reversed by U. S. Federal District Court Judge Carol Bagley Amon sitting in the Eastern District of New York in Brooklyn. "What a way to come back," said Baffert, whose punishment by the Kentucky Horse . Many in the racing world wondered how many times can the dog eat your homework? After finishing last season strong, CJ Abrams is ready for more. He was born on January 13, 1953, in Nogales, AZ. When The Post shared the data on 72 of the horse deaths with Brewster, he and Bafferts lawyer, W. Craig Robertson III, said that one of the horses listed was never in Bafferts care, though it is marked as his horse in CHRB records, and that another was a stable pony not being raced. Hal Earnhardt, an Arizona car dealer and Bafferts oldest client, introduced him to Pegram, who made his money in fast-food franchising. That investigation led to the indictments that Baffert said spurred him to embrace more oversight, so the cheaters would be quickly caught and punished.. He views himself as an ambassador for the sport. Monty Roberts, a trainer who has agitated for more humane treatment of racehorses throughout his six-decade career, said that Baffert has long been one of the most important voices holding the sport back from reform. Citrus Feed Companys Larry Bell has long supplied Baffert with feed and has previously testified in Bafferts defense, according to CHRB records. Ruis horse, Bolt dOro, finished second. The New York Racing Assn. 10, 2022. In New York, chefs are redefining it. And he pushes the envelope to the extent that they give their lives for his bank account.. Baffert has also had his share of horse fatalities, the other metric to which his critics point. [8][37] That case was eventually dismissed as the regulators concluded the facts supported an instance of feed contamination. Early life and career [ edit] It was an easy suspension to serve as Baffert was in school and not doing much training. All they show is contamination, and they have really put the trainers heads on the chopping blocks. . Its bizarre, Baedeker said, because you have a deputy attorney general criticizing the board for following the law to the letter.. At the time, she was 42-years-old. He claimed the boards cover up cost him damages including the $400,000 difference between the first-place and second-place purses in the Santa Anita Derby. Baffert's horses have won a record six Kentucky Derbies, seven Preakness Stakes, three Belmont Stakes, and three Kentucky Oaks. At least 74 horses have died in Bafferts care in his home state of California since 2000, more than all but two of hundreds of trainers in the state, according to a Post analysis of data and public records. Baffert has had two fatalities in the last three years, a low number for a barn of his size. Gagliano, the Jockey Club president, denied that the group had any knowledge of whom 5 Stones investigated, outside of the eventual indictments. I thought wed get fourth. LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - Testimonies have begun in the case of horse trainer Bob Baffert against Churchill Downs. He's saddled. I guess I'm more of an "old school" Republican. No horse loving person like Bob or his entire team accepts the reality of a horse death with anything other than sadness and despair, the lawyers said in their statement. CNN Hall of Fame horse trainer Bob Baffert will miss the Kentucky Derby for a second straight year after a federal judge denied his request to have a two-year ban by Churchill Downs Inc.. The 5-year-old mare was the seventh seemingly healthy horse from that barn to drop dead in 16 months. Baedeker and Arthur said in interviews that no matter how it was handled it would have been impossible to resolve the case that quickly. His American Pharaoh horse won the Triple Crown in 2015. Baffert, one of the most legendary trainers in American horse racing, has faced criticism and suspensions after his 2021 Kentucky Derby champion, Medina . The CHRB provided The Post with death data dating back to late 1990 showing that at least 87 of Bafferts horses have died in California since then. The bold statement appeared to put Baffert on the right side of history: By the end of the year, President Donald Trump had signed into law the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act, which promised to reform the sport.
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