Cox Fined, Suspended for Bute Overage in Stephen Foster

Churchill Downs stewards issued a $500 fine and a 10-day suspension to dual Eclipse Award-winning trainer Brad Cox after his horse, Warrior's Charge , tested positive for an overage of bute when second in the 2021 Stephen Foster Stakes (G2).

Bute, or phenylbutazone, is a commonly used anti-inflammatory that is permitted therapeutically. State withdrawal guidelines call for it not to be used within 24 hours of a race. 

The stewards' ruling, issued May 15 and posted May 17 on the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission website, further disqualified Ten Strike Racing and Madaket Stables' Warrior's Charge from the 2021 Stephen Foster. His placement in last results in the forfeiture of $115,200 in earnings, and elevates Sprawl  to second and South Bend  to third.

Ten Strike Racing is a partnership headed by Marshall Gramm and Clay Sanders. Sol Kumin is the principal of Madaket Stables.

Maxfield   won the 2021 Stephen Foster by 3 1/4 lengths as the heavy favorite, defeating second wagering choice Warrior's Charge, a graded-stakes winning milllionaire.

According to the ruling, Cox is to serve his suspension May 23-June 1, which falls between Preakness Stakes weekend and Belmont Stakes weekend, typically active times for stakes runners from his high-powered stable.

The threshold for bute detection in Kentucky is 2 micrograms per milliliter in serum or plasma, according to KHRC online documents. The amount of bute in Warrior's Charge's blood was detected at 2.51. Bute is a Class C violation, trailing Class B and Class A in level of concern.

Cox issued a statement Tuesday afternoon, saying he was "completely shocked with these lab results due to the fact that this medication was administered within the strict guidelines that are set in place. Having said that, while we disagree with the results, I have to own it and accept responsibility. Moving forward, I am committed to industry-leading protocols which hopefully prevent this from happening again."

The medication violation was the first for Cox in Kentucky since 2020 when he received two fines that year for medication violations—one for naproxen (occurring in 2019 but issued in 2020) and another for bute. Cox runs multiple divisions across the country but his primary base for much of the year is in Kentucky.

The most recent KHRC-issued sanctions to Cox and disqualification of Warrior's Charge come nearly 11 months after last year's Stephen Foster. The time period exceeded the adjudication of a positive test of the Bob Baffert-trained Medina Spirit  and that colt's eventual disqualification from the 2021 Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1). 

The Cox-trained Mandaloun , owned by Juddmonte Farm, was elevated to first upon the Derby disqualification.

The May 15 ruling stated that "entry of all horses owned or trained by Cox is denied pending transfer to persons acceptable to the stewards."

Cox did not immediately respond to an inquiry regarding who would act as trainer if entries from his existing stable are made during the dates of his suspension.