Final Testing of Medina Spirit's Urine Still on Hold

The wait continues for follow-up test results of Medina Spirit 's urine after his first-place finish in the May 1 Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) at Churchill Downs.

Dr. George Maylin, director of the New York Equine Drug Testing and Research Laboratory, which is completing the testing, wrote in an email Sept. 24 that he is waiting for necessary metabolite synthesis information. He forwarded correspondence with Rod Eisenberg, owner of Frontier BioPharm, a company specializing in producing drug metabolite reference standards used in the medical, research, and sports industries. In a Sept. 23 email exchanged between the two, Eisenberg wrote he thinks they are "in the purification stage of the final compound" and hopes "that next week we will have it pure enough to fully characterize it."

Zedan Racing Stables' Medina Spirit is at risk of disqualification after an initial and split test result indicated the prohibited race-day presence of betamethasone, a corticosteroid. In addition to potential disqualification, the colt's trainer, Bob Baffert, could be fined and/or suspended.

Attorneys for Medina Spirit argue that Medina Spirit's test results came from treatment with an ointment called Otomax, which contains betamethasone, and not via injection, the usual way horses receive the anti-inflammatory. 

A sample of the horse's urine was sent to the New York Equine Drug Testing and Research Laboratory July 14, with attorneys associated with Medina Spirit hopeful of confirming the presence of the ingredients in Otomax. Such findings could prove to be exculpatory or mitigating when Kentucky stewards ultimately conduct a hearing after testing is complete.

Should a disqualification occur, Juddmonte's Mandaloun , the Derby runner-up, would become the winner. First place in the Derby is worth $1.86 million, and victory is also valuable to a colt's eventual stud career.

Maylin said Aug. 9 in a telephone interview after a court hearing in Kentucky that test results were "at least several weeks" away due to the testing of the ingredients within Otomax. He also noted the need for analytical standards for such testing.

During a court hearing granting further testing of the sample, Franklin (Ky.) Circuit Court Judge Thomas Wingate urged the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission and counsel for Medina Spirit to get the results as soon as possible.

"So I can remand this to the (Kentucky) Horse Racing Commission, and y'all can fight like cats and dogs down there over who is the Derby (winner) and what needs to happen to Mr. Baffert. That's what needs to happen," Wingate said.

This spring, Churchill Downs Inc. suspended Baffert from competition for about two years—through the conclusion of the 2023 spring meet at Churchill Downs—though that ban is specific to CDI-owned tracks. That was a decision by the track owner, as opposed to the regulatory process awaiting the testing in New York.

The New York Racing Association also suspended him, though the trainer has contested NYRA's action in court. An injunction allowed Baffert to run horses this summer at Saratoga Race Course. A hearing in that matter could take place next month.

Suspensions issued via regulators, such as the KHRC, are honored in other jurisdictions due to reciprocity.