Gaming Commission Takes No Action on Remsen Protest

There will be no change in the order of finish of the Remsen Stakes (G2) as the New York Gaming Commission is taking no action on a protest filed by the owner of Remsen runner-up Zandon .

According to NYGC communications director Brad Maione, there is no mechanism in this instance for the NYGC to overturn the stewards' decision to let Mo Donegal's victory stand in the Dec. 4 stakes at Aqueduct Racetrack.

"The Remsen was declared official by the stewards. There is no process for appeal once the race is declared final by the stewards," Maione said.

Donegal Racing's Mo Donegal , trained by Todd Pletcher, and Jeff Drown's Zandon, trained by Chad Brown, battled through the stretch of the $250,000 stakes for 2-year-olds with Zandon and jockey John Velazquez on the rail and Mo Donegal just outside of him. After a heated duel with some contact, Mo Donegal prevailed by a nose.

According to the Equibase chart, Mo Donegal and jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. "moved in closer to the runner-up under a right-handed crop at the sixteenth-pole, had the rider put the crop away and throw repeated exaggerated crosses with the left-rein near the face of the runner-up and narrowly prevailed while bumping with that foe near the wire."

After calling for an inquiry, the stewards did not reverse the order of finish, prompting Drown to file his protest.

Ortiz currently is serving a 30-day suspension for a disqualification in a Dec. 3 race at Aqueduct.