August, 2023 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Research Proposals on Lasix will be Accepted by HISA Sept. 1

The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority called for potential researchers to prepare research proposals on the administration of furosemide, still commonly called Lasix in racing, to Thoroughbred racehorses during the 48-hour period before the start of a race, the organization said in a release Thursday evening. The call for proposals is expected to be released Sept. 1.

As the Authority was created by the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) of 2020, it is mandated by Congress to include at least one study on the use of furosemide. Included in the study is the effect of Lasix on equine health and the integrity of competition while using the medication.

Study conclusions will be used to guide the Authority's Furosemide Advisory Committee (FAC) in its recommendations to the Authority's Board. In evaluating applications, the FAC will pay particular attention to the impact of the proposed work as it applies to racing in North America.

Any questions should be directed to feedback@hisaus.org and titled “HISA research.”

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Wong Provisionally Suspended After B Sample Confirmation

Trainer Jonathan Wong has been provisionally suspended after being alerted late Wednesday that the B Sample confirmed the presence of Metformin in a post-race test taken from his trainee, Heaven and Earth (Gormley).

Heaven and Earth broke her maiden at Indiana Grand June 1 but subsequently tested positive for the prescription drug Metformin, a type 2 diabetes treatment classified as a banned substance by the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA).

During a conference call Thursday morning before representatives from the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU) and a judge, a full hearing on the merits of the case was scheduled for Sept. 25, said Wong.

“There's zero sense of urgency,” said Wong. “I've been put out of work since July 2 because they hadn't adjusted the rules until 27 days later. But by then, I've lost my horses. I haven't made a paycheck for a month. And now it's going to be going on three months.”

Technically, this is the second time Wong has been provisionally suspended as the case has unfolded.

As a matter of protocol at that time, HIWU initially provisionally suspended Wong at the beginning of June when the A sample returned a positive finding for Metformin.

Late last month, the HISA Authority announced that it had modified the rules surrounding provisional suspensions. Under the new provisions, responsible parties who request B Sample confirmation following a positive test for a banned substance won't face any potential provisional suspension until the B sample findings are returned.

“If the B Sample confirms the A Sample, the Responsible Person shall be Provisionally Suspended upon Notification of the B Sample confirmation,” the new rules state.

Though that announcement technically permitted Wong to return to training while the B sample was being processed, he said that his owners did not wish to transfer the horses back with the B Sample results expected imminently.

“If I would have gotten notified on this positive today, I would still be allowed to train and go on as normal until my B Sample came back,” he said. “But I wasn't afforded that opportunity.”

Wong–who potentially faces up to a two-year suspension and a $25,000 fine–voiced frustration with other aspects of the way his case has been handled. This includes, he said, how the B samples of blood and urine were sent separately for testing.

“They were separated by eight days, which according to everybody I've spoken with is not how it's supposed to be done,” Wong said.

“If this would have happened a few weeks prior, this would have been a 15-day penalty,” said Wong, alluding to how trainer Wesley Ward served a 15-day suspension for a Metformin positive in a July 15, 2022 race at Monmouth. “Now they're threatening me with up to two years.”

As such, Wong said that he's considering his future in the sport, even if the full merits hearing skews in his favor. “I don't know, when all this is taken care of, if I want to go back to training,” Wong said.

“It brings a lot of stuff into perspective,” he said. “I've a wife, a 13-year-old, a 5-year-old, a 3-year-old and a 10-month-old. I miss so much of their life by putting work first and them second, for it all to be literally thrown away in a day over something I didn't even do.”

Despite these frustrations, Wong said that the concept of HISA is necessary for the sport.

“First and foremost, I'd like to give them credit for making the changes [to the provisional suspension provisions]. I applaud them for listening to people's complaints and suggestions, adapting and working to it,” Wong said.

“I totally have zero problems with HISA. I think it's something that's much needed. I just think it needs to be tweaked. It's a learning process. They're learning. Owners, trainers, jockeys, we're all learning as we go along with this,” said Wong.

“But when you're completely not awarded any opportunities from day one until your hearing, that's pretty much being charged as guilty until proven innocent,” Wong added. “I feel like I've been locked up and had the key thrown away.”

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With First Event Approaching, National Thoroughbred League Regroups

The National Thoroughbred League (NTL), a racing start-up meant to bring the league concept to Thoroughbred racing, will debut Sept. 3 at Kentucky Downs, but the first few events on the schedule will be run under a format different than what was envisioned when the formation of the league was announced.

Under the original concept, all horses performing in NTL races were to be owned by the League itself and would be portioned off to six teams representing different cities. Each team was to have six horses and the team that accrued the most points during the series was to earn a $1-million bonus.

But NTL President of Horse Operations Tom Ludt said that no horses have been bought and there are no immediate plans to do so. Instead, Kentucky Downs will run the $500,000 National Thoroughbred League H. on Sunday, Sept. 3. Though the race is meant to bring attention to the NTL, it will be open to all horses. Despite being owned by outside interests, the jockeys riding in the race will wear NTL silks.

“This is not going to fail,” Ludt said. “We have made some changes to make it better for the long term. It's all about building up the League. We have pivoted into a different scenario for 2023 so that we are bigger, stronger and better organized. We're going to learn a lot for 2024.”

The second event on the NTL schedule is set to take place at the Meadowlands on the weekend of Oct. 13 and 14. Ludt said the plan for the Meadowlands event is to also have a race recognizing the NTL but, again, one open to all horses. Under the original schedule, the NTL was to go from the Meadowlands to Los Alamitos to Tampa Bay Downs. Ludt said plans for the Los Alamitos and Tampa Bay Downs races are still in flux.

Ludt said he advised the League's founders that buying horses at this time was not economically feasible.

“I talked them out of buying horses right now,” Ludt said. “I told them that when you look at what we're trying to accomplish this is a major task and when you look at the amount of money that needed to be spent on these horses it was tough. It's a start-up and we've run into some issues.”

Ludt said that one of the problems was that the races held at Kentucky Downs and the Meadowlands were scheduled for the grass, while the Los Alamitos and Tampa Bay Downs races were to be run on the dirt. That meant that any League horse who was a grass specialist would have nowhere to run for several months. Horses in the League are not permitted to run in outside races.

“We were going to run three or four events and then these horses were going to sit and the expense to keep them in training was going to be huge,” Ludt said. “So why buy them now? I talked them into not buying the horses. Some people are going to jump on that and say we failed. No, we have a plan.”

Ludt said he approached NTL organizers and suggested there are other ways to fill the teams' rosters other than buying dozens of horses. He also said he suggested that horses in the League be allowed to run in non-League races, but was told that is not in the League's plans.

“I told them, don't own the horses,” he said. “Instead, get creative. Look into partnerships. But they believe the League needs to own horses long term. That's fine, but you have to look at the numbers. Just the day rate alone for all these horses is going to be huge.”

Ludt said that even though the Kentucky Downs race will look different from what was originally planned, it will benefit the League. The NTL envisioned all of its races turning into events and is linking each one to such things as wine and food festivals and entertainment. On the night before the Kentucky Downs race, there will be a live performance by DJ Pee .Wee (aka Anderson .Paak) at Nashville's Wildhorse Saloon.

“The way this thing set up, it is an event business with horse racing,” he said. “The truth of the matter is it needs to start off with more events and less horse racing. The goal is to grow the game. We don't need the Tom Ludts of the world to become a fan of the League. They already are racing fans. We need to get people like our neighbors and turn them into racing fans by exposing them to the League.

“At Kentucky Downs, let's have a an opening blowout event, a launch party. The people at Kentucky Downs are super behind this. Kentucky Downs is maybe the only track in America that has more money than they know what to do with and they were willing to put up a big race. Horses will run in our silks, but it's just that we won't own the horses. It's going to be great. It's just not the way we wanted to do it a year ago.”

So far as 2024 goes, Ludt said the plan is for the NTL to operate under the original plan and that he will begin the process of buying horses sometime early next year. He said there may be as many as eight teams in the League in 2024 and that the racing schedule will expand beyond the four racing dates scheduled for this year.

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Frank L. Jones, Jr. Succumbs to Long Illness

Frank L. Jones, Jr., a prominent owner, breeder, and servant to the horse industry through decades of work on the boards of several Thoroughbred organizations, passed away Thursday, Aug. 10 after a long illness. The Louisville businessman was 87.

In addition to other roles, Jones spent more than 30 years as the owners' vice president of the Kentucky Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (HBPA), where he was instrumental in negotiating contracts for owners and trainers with racetracks. He was also chair of the Kentucky HBPA's finance committee and a legislative liaison. He was vice chair of the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC), first appointed in 1997 by Gov. Paul Patton, reappointed in 2008 by Gov. Steve Beshear, and appointed again in 2020 by Gov. Andy Beshear. Jones was also a long-time board member and secretary of the Kentucky Racing Health & Welfare Fund, which provides health resources and financial assistance to the Commonwealth's backstretch workers.

Jones was also president of the Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners in 1998-1999 and was a member of the American Horse Council, Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association, and the Kentucky Thoroughbred Association. Last October he was selected as a member of the Horseracing Integrity & Safety Authority (HISA)'s Horsemen's Advisory Group. He was honored with the Warner Jones Award, which recognizes individuals for outstanding contributions to Kentucky racing, in 2019.

“The Kentucky horse racing and breeding industry wouldn't be in the strong position it is in today without the passion, commitment, and leadership of Frank Jones, Jr.,” said Churchill Downs CEO Bill Carstanjen. “From his meaningful contribution to the Kentucky HBPA to his impact on the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission and as past president of the Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners, our sport and community lost a dear friend and tremendous advocate, and we at Churchill Downs lost a valued partner. He will be greatly missed, and our thoughts are with his family and countless number of friends and colleagues during this difficult time.”

Born in Louisville in 1937, Jones attended Western Kentucky University and spent time in the U.S. Air Force. A variety of savvy business dealings, including in swimming pool equipment and supplies, led to him being nominated as an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in 1989 and 1990. However, it was a chance encounter with trainer Jerry Romans, Sr. that led to his decades in the horse industry. He bought his first horse in 1968 for $1,500 and exclusively used Romans and his son, Dale, as trainers. He was leading owner at the spring meets at Churchill Downs in 1989, 1990, 1992, and 1995. The star of his stable was Tapitsfly (Tapit), who won the inaugural Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf, as well as the GI Just a Game S. and GI First Lady S. Jones sold the filly in 2012 at the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky November sale for $1.85 million to Katsumi Yoshida.

A number of industry leaders released statements as news spread of Jones's passing Thursday. Among them were KHRC Chairman Jonathan Rabinowitz, who said, “The passing of Frank Jones is a huge loss for not only his family and friends, but the entire horse racing industry. As a valuable member and vice-chairman of the KHRC Commission and secretary of the Kentucky Racing Health and Welfare Fund, he used his voice to elevate other horsemen, serving and providing guidance to backstretch workers who cannot afford medical assistance on their own. We have all lost a great friend who will be dearly missed.”

Jones is survived by his wife, Nancy Delony Jones, to whom he has been married four years. His first wife, Gloria Jones, passed away after 58 years of marriage. Arrangements are pending.

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