Posts

Horse

Kentucky Derby Winner Medina Spirit Fails Drug Test, Trainer Suspended 

/in , /by

Bob Baffert is the trainer currently suspended from entering any horses at the Churchill Downs racetrack, additionally, the track is debating invalidating his horse, Medina Spirit’s, win at this year’s Kentucky Derby if the horse’s failed post race drug test is upheld. 

Baffert announced that his horse failed the drug test in a statement where he claimed he would be fighting the results “tooth and nail” to disprove their accuracy. 

The track said in a statement released this week that “failure to comply with the rules and medication protocols jeopardizes the safety of horses and jockeys, the sport’s integrity and the Derby’s reputation.”

Embed from Getty Images

“Churchill Downs will not tolerate this. Given the seriousness of the alleged offense, Churchill Downs will immediately suspend Bob Baffert, the trainer of Medina Spirit, from entering any horses at Churchill Downs Racetrack.”

The statement continued to read: “To be clear, if the findings are upheld, Medina Spirit’s results in the Kentucky Derby will be invalidated and Mandaloun will be declared the winner.” 

The only horse to ever be disqualified for medication use after winning the Derby is 1968’s Dancer’s Image. According to Baffert’s lawyer Craig Robertson, Baffert was told by his barn that Medina Spirit was found with 21 picograms of the steroid betamethasone; which is double the legal threshold for racing horses in the Kentucky Derby. 

This marks one of the most recent and largest horse steroid-use scandals for one of the sports biggest trainers. Baffert claimed that this whole experience feels like the “biggest gut-punch in racing.” 

Embed from Getty Images

Medina Spirit, however, is not the first horse to fail a drug test under Bafferts eye. In fact, this marks the fifth incident this year in which one of Baffert’s horses failed a drug test. He claims no wrongdoing and is adamant that he has no idea how the horse could have tested positive when Medina Spirit has never been treated with betamethasone.

“I don’t feel embarrassed, I feel like I was wronged. We’re going to show them everything. One thing about it in California, everything is documented every day what the horse gets. This horse was never treated with that. He’s a great horse, he doesn’t deserve this. He ran a gallant race,” said Baffert, adding that he was going to be “transparent” with the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission.

Baffert also continued on to discuss how horse racing in general should be doing a better job at preventing doping scandals in the first place.

“I’m not a conspiracy theorist, I know everybody is not out to get me, but there’s definitely something wrong. Why is it happening? You know, there’s problems in racing, but it’s not Bob Baffert. I’m worried about our sport. Our sport, we’ve taken a lot of hits as a sport. These are pretty serious accusations here, but we’re going to get to the bottom of it and find out. We know we didn’t do it.”

The New York Times published in November 2020 that during Bafferts 40 year career as a trainer his horses have failed a total of 29 drug tests.

Kendrick Carmouche Is The First Black Jockey In The Kentucky Derby Since 2013 

/in , /by

Kendrick Carmouche is set to become the first Black jockey to participate in the Kentucky Derby in eight years, however, that’s only part of his story, and he’s ready to tell the rest of it. 

Carmouche grew up the son of a jockey in Louisiana, so he was exposed early on in his life to the culture and lifestyle. He would wake up at 4:30 in the morning and follow his father into the area bush tracks where he would watch and help him practice. 

When he was 16-years-old, back in 2000, he began riding professionally himself. Ever since he’s enjoyed a long 21-year-long career that moved him from Louisiana to Texas to Philadelphia, and now he’s positioned as one of the best jockeys in New York. Back in September 2018, Carmouche suffered a painful leg injury that forced him to endure a lengthy six-month recovery. However, his return to the tracks has given him some of the greatest achievements in his career. 

Embed from Getty Images

In the fall of 2020 he earned the riding title at Aqueduct and his first Grade 1 victory back in December 2020. Now, on May 1st of this year, he will be riding in the Kentucky Derby for the first time. 

“If you don’t dream it, it’s never going to happen. I dreamed it. To be here at this point and how long it took and the hard work that I put in to get to this point, going to the Kentucky Derby, this is icing and everything on the cake.”

When asked about advice that he would give to young jockeys who will be watching him compete in May, Carmouche claimed that “You have to polish yourself. You have to ride smart. You have to do all the correct things and grind it out until that happens. This is where I want to be.”

Embed from Getty Images

Carmouche is the first Black jockey to compete in the Kentucky Derby since Kevin Krigger, who finished in 17th back in 2013. Originally, Black jockeys were the majority of competitors in the derby, winning 15 out of the first 28 races in the beginning of the Derby’s history. Now, Carmouche marks one of the very few Black jockeys in the United States, and he says he hopes to inspire many others to follow in his footsteps. 

“I think people just need to open their eyes and realize it doesn’t matter what color you are. You work hard. You’re an honest person. You want the best for you and your family and the team you’re putting together at the track so you can win races. It’s no black or white. It’s just purple or green, whatever you want to call it. We all bleed the same.”

Carmouche said his confident attitude comes from his father, who pushed him to leave home and pursue this career when he was younger. “My parents told me to get the hell out of Louisiana. They told me, ‘Go make yourself your own home.’ People get it twisted. They try to make their home where they’ve been at all their life. You can’t do that. You’ve got to go make your own home with your own family, your own kids.”

Sylvester Carmouche, his father, and several other family members are planning to make it to Louisville on Derby Day to watch Kendrick ride.