Who Really Lost ?

by Ed Meyer

posted on May 9, 2021 in Blogroll, General Discussion, Horse Racing, Kentucky Derby, WinningPonies.com | Comments Off on Who Really Lost ?

Who is the big loser?- Is it the multi-billionaire backers of the game? Or, is it the trainer who just set the record for wins in the Kentucky Derby? Nope, it’s John Q bettor on the races. – This is a story about the real folks who got taken for a ride.

Bob Baffert has been an icon for as long as I can remember. – The energy and enthusiasm he brought to the game was infectious. Every time I would catch a Baffert runner at a track within driving distance I used to make the trek to watch him and his entourage.

Fast forward to here and now. – Drug infractions, court hearings fighting over purses. – Did anyone hear about the many bettors who lost on this day?- I’m not a veterinarian, but if you have something in your system you shouldn’t, it’s an infraction. – It is all over the board on Social Media. “Baffert said he was “shocked” after the horse tested above the limit for betamethasone and insisted he had never administered the substance. “I got the biggest gut punch in racing for something I didn’t do,” he said; according to BBC Sport.

But on Sunday, he told reporters that Medina Spirit had tested positive for 21 picograms of the anti-inflammatory drug betamethasone, above Kentucky racing’s threshold of ten picograms per milliliter. It’s such an injustice to the horse. I don’t feel embarrassed, I feel like I was robbed,” said the California-based trainer. But I’m going to fight it tooth and nail because I owe it to the horse; I owe it to the owner and I owe it to our industry. There are problems in racing, but it’s not Bob Baffert. I don’t believe in conspiracy theories, but why is it happening to me?”

Baffert said Medina Spirit has not yet been officially disqualified from the Kentucky Derby, although that still could happen after other tests and processes are completed. “This shouldn’t have happened,” Baffert said. “There’s a problem somewhere. It didn’t come from us.

Churchill Downs has suspended Baffert from having entries for races.

If the findings are upheld, Medina Spirit’s results in the Kentucky Derby will be invalidated and Mandaloun will be declared winner,” it said in a statement. “Failure to comply with the rules and medication protocols jeopardizes the safety of the horses and jockeys, the integrity of our sport, and the reputation of the Kentucky Derby and all who participate. Churchill Downs will not tolerate it.”

The trainer last year pledged “to do better” after a number of positive tests were produced from his horses.

Last month he was successful in overturning a 15-day ban and disqualification of two of his horses – Gamine and Charlatan – after they returned samples containing the illicit race day medication lidocaine, which was attributed to cross-contamination from a pain-relief patch worn by the trainer’s assistant. Baffert received a $10,000 fine instead.

Now, he may be taken down, purse monies turned over to the real winner, and I’m sure a hefty fine will be levied. – But, what about the piles of tickets on every race track floor from Maine to California? – You get hosed. Can’t mail them in, and you don’t get to lodge an inquiry against not being paid. – “The positive drug tests keep piling up for Bob Baffert’s top horses. So do the explanations for them. The dog keeps eating the homework—an entire semester’s worth by now, with permanent damage to the digestive tract, according to SI.com.

While we watch from the cheap seats; the black eyes to racing are on par with a Mike Tyson barrage for the sport of kings. – Racing needs to be transparent and open. The bettors get taken again. – Give him a long time on the shelf and send a message to the others who may try to cut corners. – If the findings come out negative, it’s just another bullet he dodged. But my tickets got swept up and long gone. – Ladies and gentleman it is high time we realize the bettors are the ones who fund the game. Monies bet have a takeout that is divided between horsemen in the form of purses and the track to keep the lights on. If you start losing the belief of the gamblers we’ll be running for blue ribbons at the county fair. On May 4, 1968 Dancer’s Image won the 94th running of the Derby. He was disqualified for having an anti-inflammatory drug in his system. He had sore ankles and the trainer thought the drug would clear his system in time for the race. It didn’t, and he was DQ’ed. – The bettors lost on that race as well.

I love racing more than most, but I’m getting sick of this crap. – We support the game and take the punches when something goes wrong. “A drug DQ in the Derby may now be the breaking point—for fans, media, and thoroughbred owners who send him expensive horses;” according to SI.com.