Owner-trainer Carl Moore's Jes An Angel, who recorded the fastest time trial and was the morning line favorite for the $3 million All American Futurity at Ruidoso Downs in New Mexico on Sept. 5, was scratched from Quarter Horse racing's marquee event by order of the stewards on the morning of the race after she was observed allegedly being treated with a nebulizer.
Izzy Trejo, executive director of the New Mexico Racing Commission, said the state's administrative code prohibits race day use of a “nebulizer or similar device used to administer a drug or other substance.”
Read more about nebulizers here
Trejo said the treatment was observed by an enforcement team from the American Quarter Horse Association on hand for the All American. “We had the luxury of having boots on the ground, which is necessary for this kind of thing to be found,” Trejo said. “They were making their rounds around seven in the morning when they came upon the horse.”
Moore purchased Jes An Angel for $10,000 at the 2021 Heritage Place September Yearling Sale in Oklahoma and paid $50,000 to supplement the daughter of Jess Zoomin to the All American Futurity. Jes An Angel had won five of seven starts, including her Aug. 19 All American trial in which she ran the 440 yards on a sloppy track in 21.257 seconds. Scheduled to break from the number eight post position, Jes An Angel had been installed the 5-2 morning line favorite in the finals.
A Facebook post purported to be from Moore said “politics kept us from running.” Moore said he had purchased a nebulizer and saline solution from a veterinarian at the track and “we had been administering it for over a month every day. We administered it the morning of the race which they say is not allowed the morning of the race however when you read the rule this is not clear. We take full responsibility in using the saline solution on race day but they pounced on it giving them the opportunity they had been waiting on to keep her from running the race.”
Trejo said the rule is clear.
“We expect people to understand what the rules are,” Trejo said, “especially when you are running for $3 million.”
Trejo said a hearing would be scheduled on the matter.
Moore said he will point Jes An Angel to the Dash for Cash Futurity Trials on Sept. 16 at Lone Star Park.
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