Other Than Medina Spirit, Oaks, Derby Day Horses Clear

While the racing world awaits split sample testing and results for Medina Spirit , all of the other horses tested from this year's Kentucky Oaks and Derby day cards at Churchill Downs have passed preliminary testing.

According to experts, the fact that all other horses passed their post-race test reduces the likelihood that contamination factored in the post-race finding of would-be Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) winner Medina Spirit. That victory is in question, pending testing of the split sample, as trainer Bob Baffert revealed May 9 that Medina Spirit tested positive for the corticosteroid betamethasone in the initial post-race test.

Based on information acquired by BloodHorse from the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission through an open records request, only one horse from the Oaks and Derby day cards has "pending" results following post-race testing. While the information does not identify individual horses tested, the horse with "pending" results is presumed to be Medina Spirit, based on Baffert's comments and the post-race test status for all other horses listed as "passed."

Based on the seven-page report acquired by BloodHorse through the open records request, 49 horses were tested after they raced on the 14-race Derby Day card. According to Industrial Laboratories, which conducted those tests, 48 of those 49 horses passed that post-race testing. 

Industrial Laboratories also conducted pre-race testing on TCO2 levels of 77 horses expected to race on Derby day with all of those horses passing.

In its six-page report on the 13-race Oaks Day card, all 45 horses tested after their races passed those tests. All 56 potential Oaks day runners subjected to pre-race testing for TCO2 levels also passed.

Following KHRC guidelines, samples were collected from three or more horses for races on each day's card with samples collected from three horses in races with purses less than $200,000 and on four or more horses for races with purses at $200,000 or more.

In those more lucrative races, the horses finishing first, second, and third automatically are sampled. Along with those three horses, the chief state steward or a designee may select one other horse or more to be sampled as well. Those selections focus on factors like beaten favorites, longshots that fare well, betting patterns of the public, a trainer's recent statistical performance relative to his or her historical performance, and security intelligence.

Basing his information on KHRC findings that were presented to his barn, Baffert said May 9 that Medina Spirit tested positive for 21 picograms of betamethasone per milliliter of blood or plasma.

The finding that no other horses tested positive for betamethasone provides evidence against environmental contamination being a factor. In announcing the initial test finding May 9, Baffert initially was unsure of how the positive occurred. He speculated that the finding could have been a result of environmental contamination but two days later suggested betamethasone in an ointment used to treat Medina Spirit's dermatitis may have caused the finding.

In terms of considering contamination as a mitigating circumstance, experts note that one of the factors that can play in a trainer's favor is if other horses test positive for the same substance. Such a situation played out with two horses trained by Baffert who tested positive for lidocaine after racing May 2, 2020 at Oaklawn Park: Charlatan  in a division of the Arkansas Derby (G1) and eventual champion female sprinter Gamine  in an allowance-level race. The stewards initially had disqualified both horses from victory and suspended Baffert for 15 days. 

But in April the Arkansas Racing Commission reinstated the wins and changed Baffert's penalty to a fine of a total of $10,000 after arguments were made that the positives could have been caused by environmental contamination. In that appeal, documents were presented showing one other horse from Charlatan's race tested positive for lidocaine, although at a level below the threshold. 

On this year's Oaks day and Derby day cards, no other horses tested positive for any levels of betamethasone. In the case of betamethasone, any finding of the medication is a violation, meaning it would have shown up on the KHRC-Industrial Laboratories reports. 

In a statement after Baffert's May 9 press conference, Ed Martin, president of racing's umbrella regulatory group, the Association of Racing Commissioners International, said contamination usually isn't limited to one horse.

"I can say this as someone who had to investigate such matters, if there was contamination, other horses will also trip the wire," Martin said at the time. "The 'only my horse was contaminated' claim usually doesn't stand up."

As for the ointment treatments, in a statement Baffert said Medina Spirit developed dermatitis on his hind end after the Runhappy Santa Anita Derby (G1) April 3 at Santa Anita Park. He said Medina Spirit was treated with an anti-fungal ointment, Otomax, that contained betamethasone once a day until the day before the Derby.

The treatments were reported in California, according to Dr. Dionne Benson, chief veterinary officer for 1/ST Racing. As part of 1/ST Racing's Maryland Jockey Club's decision to allow Medina Spirit to run in the Preakness Stakes (G1), it looked into those records and reported that medical records covering the period of April 1-May 10 reflected the dispensing of Otomax.

1/ST Racing said Medina Spirit's medical records were compared to confidential veterinary records obtained from the California Horse Racing Board, which were submitted within 24 hours of those dates and have been verified.

Experts familiar with the Kentucky rule said such a treatment should have been included in the 14-day medical records required at time of entry for all horses. BloodHorse has not been able to acquire any Kentucky records indicating if those treatments were reported or not. In a follow-up response May 26 from the KHRC, a spokeswoman said that under state law such veterinary records cannot be disclosed.

While stewards could consider such information on those treatments as a mitigating circumstance, the trainer is responsible for the horse's condition on race day.