Grand National 2022: Race schedule, Aintree course & BBC coverage
Details of races for the three-day meeting, with BBC Radio 5 Live commentary on Saturday's big race.
Month: April 2022
Messier, Adare Manor Have ‘Perfectly Executed’ Breezes At Santa Anita
Messier and Adare Manor, winners of their previous races by a combined margin of 28 lengths, each worked Saturday for Runhappy Santa Anita Derby (G1) and Santa Anita Oaks (G1), respectively, next Saturday, and trainer Tim Yakteen was beyond delighted.
Messier and Adare manor both breezed five furlongs: the former in 1:00.60 and the latter in 1:00.20.
“Messier was spectacular, as was the filly,” Yakteen said. “We're right on point. Messier went at 6:30 (a.m.) with Drayden Van Dyke aboard and Adare Manor went at 7:45 with my exercise rider, Baltazar Contreras.
“The works were just what I was looking for and were perfectly executed.”
Messier, named for hockey great Mark Messier, winner of six Stanley Cups, won the Robert B. Lewis Stakes (G3) on Feb. 6 by 15 lengths. The son of Empire Maker has been favored in each of his five races, four times at odds-on, and will vie for favoritism with Forbidden Kingdom in the Santa Anita Derby.
Adare Manor, a daughter of Uncle Mo, won her last two races by a combined margin of 25 lengths, including a 13-length romp in the Las Virgenes Stakes (G3) Feb. 6.
John Velazquez will ride Adare Manor in the Oaks and Messier in the Santa Anita Derby.
The $750,000 Santa Anita Derby at 1 1/8 miles will be run for the 85th time. It offers the winner 100 qualifying points to the Kentucky Derby, 40 to the runner-up, 20 to the third-place finisher and 10 to the fourth.
There will be early first post time April 9 of 12 noon (PT).
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Potts Faces Lengthy Suspension After Drug Found in His Tackroom
Embattled trainer Wayne Potts was hit with a 45-day suspension Sunday by the New York Gaming Commission, which charged that a drug found in his tackroom was not approved by the FDA for use in Thoroughbred horses. The suspension is set to begin Apr. 10. Potts has waived his right to an appeal.
The drug was found Feb. 17.
The New York regulators decided to divide up Potts's 45 day-suspension so that it correlates with still another suspension he is facing, one from the New Jersey Racing Commission. In January, the New Jersey commission posted a ruling in which Potts and his assistant trainer Bonnie Lucas were hit with a 30-day suspension and a $1,000 fine for “conduct detrimental to racing.” On Aug. 6, 2021, Potts allegedly told Lucas to not permit one of his trainees to be vanned off the track after a race at Monmouth Park despite an order to do so from the New Jersey Racing Commission (NJRC) veterinarian. That suspension is set to begin on opening day at Monmouth, which is May 7.
Beforehand, Potts will serve the first part of his New York suspension. After the New Jersey suspension has run its course, Potts will serve the remainder of the New York suspension. All together, his suspension adds up to 75 days and runs from Apr. 10 through June 23. Potts was the leading trainer at Monmouth last year.
Potts declined to comment when reached via text by the TDN, but forwarded a letter from the company Recellerate to the New York Gaming Commission regarding a product called Equiflow, which is purported to be a treatment for exercise induced pulmonary hemorrhage (EIPH). It goes on to describe Equiflow as “an investigational stem-cell derived concentrated protein serum developed as a treatment to EIPH.” The letter, signed by Recellerate President Karl Norbert, maintains that the product is not a performance-enhancer. Norbert writes that the FDA has approved no stem cell products for horses to date, which means that if Equiflow is regarded as an illegal substance then any horse treated in New York with any stem cell therapies would be subject to being excluded from racing.
In what appears to be unrelated to the finding of the non-FDA approved drug, NYRA announced last week that Potts was among six trainers who, effective last Wednesday, had lost their stall privileges and would be required to remove all their horses from the Belmont Park backstretch. However, Potts and the rest were being permitted to run at the NYRA tracks, for now, a moot points since Potts will be sidelined until late June.
Potts also ran afoul of authorities during last year's Saratoga meet when it was alleged he violated rules regarding a claim, which resulted in a 30-day suspension. The New York Gaming Commission charged that the horse, Mach One (Air Force Blue), was claimed by Potts's owners Frank Catapano and Nicholas Primpas by trainer Amira Chichakly and then transferred to Potts. Potts claimed another horse from the same race and trainers are not allowed to claim more than one horse in any given race.
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Trainers McCarthy, Yakteen Take Over Baffert Horses
Trainer Sean McCarthy will take charge of embattled Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert's stable while trainer Tim Yakteen is to oversee a select group of his 3-year-old runners pointing to the Kentucky Derby (G1) and Kentucky Oaks (G1), Daily Racing Form reports.
Yakteen's group includes Robert B. Lewis Stakes (G3) winner Messier, who pointed to the Santa Anita Derby (G1) next Saturday.
Baffert begins a 90-day suspension Monday for a medication violation found in 2021 Kentucky Derby first-place finisher Medina Spirit.
Read more at Daily Racing Form.
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