Churchill Downs, Inc. extended Bob Baffert’s exclusion from horse racing at CDI-owned tracks in an announcement late in the afternoon of July 3.
A statement from Churchill Downs said the ban would last until the end of 2024 and that the decision was made “based on ongoing concerns about the threat to the safety and integrity of the race he is facing.” posed for CDI-owned tracks.”
“Mr. Baffert went on to tell a false story regarding the failed Medina Spirit drug test at the 147th Kentucky Derby (G1) from which his horse was taken by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission. Prior to that race, Mr. Baffert entered into an agreement with Churchill Downs which stated that he was responsible for understanding the racing rules in Kentucky and that he would abide by it. follow them,” the statement said in its preface.
Initially, Baffert was banned by CDI from competing at its tracks until the end of the spring 2023 meeting that had just ended on June 2, 2021, after confirmation in a disaggregated sample that Medina Spirit tested positive for betamethasone, a banned substance on race day in Kentucky, in time for the 2021 Kentucky Derby. Kentucky Horse Racing Commission managers subsequently disqualified Medina Spirit from his first place. and suspend Baffert for 90 days. A hearing officer recently approved the manager’s position in a recommendation to the KHRC.
Baffert has contested his failures with racing officials and Churchill Downs in court, and he has lost every step of his way. He has been denied a 90-day stay in multiple state courts, and a federal court judge on May 24 dismissed Baffert’s lawsuit against CDI over his initial dismissal from the company. , lasting more than two years. The judge’s decision is not subject to appeal according to PACER, the federal court’s website.
CDI cited as the basis for its decision what it described as Baffert’s persistent disregard for regulatory compliance.
“The results of the tests made it clear that he had failed to comply and his continued behavior indicates that he continued to disregard the rules and regulations intended to ensure the safety of horses and jockeys. horses, as well as the integrity and fairness of the races held at our facilities,” the release said. “A coach unwilling to accept responsibility for multiple drug test failures in our most famous races cannot be trusted to avoid future misconduct. Mr. Baffert will remain suspended from racing at all CDI-owned racetracks until 2024. After that time, we will reassess his condition.”
Due to CDI’s actions, Baffert, who won the Kentucky Derby six times before 2021, has been sidelined the Derby and Kentucky Oaks (G1) in 2022 and 2023. Assuming the coach ban is extended, he’s won’t be able to play in 2024 either.
A phone call from BloodHorse to attorney Baffert Clark Brewster went unanswered when this story was published.
Bob Baffert responded to CDI’s extended suspension via Twitter on Monday night.
“I don’t understand Churchill Downs’ latest action is to suspend me,” Baffert wrote. “From the moment I learned of Medina Spirit’s post-race positive – over 2 years now – I’ve been committed to finding out how that happens, as we’ve never injected betamethasone in Medina Spirit joints, which veterinary records can confirm.
I have been open, honest and forthcoming about these events. I have acknowledged that our treatment led to a positive outcome and I have informed the Kentucky Racing Commission that we have treated Medina Spirit in this way.
I have been advised by my attorneys that the use of Otomax is permitted under the rules and the matter is currently being adjudicated by the Racing Commission in a case currently underway before them. This has absolutely nothing to do with ‘disregarding the rules’.
For the sake of the sport we all love, I haven’t made any public comment on this unfortunate episode for a long time so the idea is that I ‘keep telling the story. untrue’ is clearly false.”
– Bob Baffert (@BobBaffert) July 3, 2023
Joe Perez also contributed to this story.
