craig robertson | Horse Racing Free Tips

Still No Hearing Date Set For Hall Of Famer Baffert Over Gamine’s Oaks Positive

The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission has yet to take action against Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert on the positive test of Eclipse finalist Gamine, reports the Courier-Journal, even though the positive was confirmed via split sample months ago.

In the Kentucky Oaks on Sept. 4 at Churchill Downs, the Into Mischief filly finished third but later tested positive for betamethasone.

No hearing date has been set for Baffert with the KHRC, the trainer's attorney Craig Robertson confirmed. A public records request by the Courier-Journal shows that the Oaks day split sample result was returned on Nov. 5, and Robertson was notified the same day.

Robertson said he has yet to schedule a hearing date with the KHRC.

In total, Baffert had four runners return positive tests in 2020. Gamine ran on Arkansas Derby day (May 2) at Oaklawn Park, winning an allowance race, but subsequently tested positive for lidocaine and has since been disqualified. Charlatan, the Baffert-trained winner of the Arkansas Derby, was also disqualified over a lidocaine positive, and Baffert's attorney released a statement blaming the positives on a back-pain patch worn by his assistant trainer. The fourth was a cough suppressant in a runner at Santa Anita, also said to be a case of environmental contamination.

Penalties from the KHRC over betamethasone could include Baffert facing a suspension of up to 60 days and a fine up to $5,000, depending on whether the stewards decide the Oaks day positive is the trainer's first, second, or third offense in 365 days.

Letter to the Editor: Darrell Vienna

I read with interest the article “Baffert’s Lawyer: Drape’s `False’ Story `Debunked‘” published today on your website. Although I represent Mick Ruis, the following comments set forth facts that cannot be disputed and address a number of the patently false or clearly misleading representations contained in that article.

JUSTIFY’S OFFICIAL SAMPLE AND SPLIT SAMPLE CONFIRMED THE PRESENCE OF SCOPOLAMINE. The prohibited substance, scopolamine, was detected in the official test sample collected from Justify following the running of the 2018 Santa Anita Derby. Split sample testing, requested by Justify’s trainer, Bob Baffert, confirmed the presence of scopolamine.

SCOPOLAMINE WAS A CLASS 3, PENALTY B SUBSTANCE IN 2018. At the time of the running of the 2018 Santa Anita Derby, California Horse Racing Board (“CHRB”) Classification of Foreign Substances categorized scopolamine as a Class 3, Penalty B substance. It has been argued that the CHRB Classification of Foreign Substances must follow the ARCI guidelines. That is patently false as the CHRB Classification is not subordinate to ARCI guidelines. While the CHRB Classification is generally based on ARCI guidelines, specific incorporation of ARCI Guidelines must be adopted in accordance with California law as set forth in California’s Administrative Procedures Act (“APA”). The APA is designed to provide the public with a meaningful opportunity to participate in the adoption of state regulations and to ensure that regulations are clear, necessary and legally valid. Consequently, ARCI guidelines are not incorporated in CHRB guidelines unless they are specifically adopted in conformance with the APA process. Hence, any claim that scopolamine was classified as a CHRB category 4, penalty class C substance at the time of Justify’s participation in the 2018 Santa Anita Derby is false.

A FINDING BY THE BOARD OF STEWARDS THAT JUSTIFY’S POST-RACE SAMPLES CONTAINED SCOPOLAMINE MUST RESULT IN DISQUALIFICATION.

CHRB Rule 1859.5 provides that a finding by the Board of Stewards that the official sample and the split sample contain as a category 1 through 3 substance as classified by CHRB Classification of Foreign Substances requires that the horse must be disqualified and the purse, award, prize, or record must be forfeited regardless of culpability for the condition of the horse.

THE CHRB’S ADOPTION OF THE ARCI GUIDELINE REGARDING SCOPOLAMINE WAS NOT PROPOSED BEFORE THE 2018 SANTA ANITA DERBY.

There is no record of any CHRB attempt to adopt a change in its classification of Scopolamine from Class 3 to Class 4 until after the August 2018 closed session when CHRB chose not to pursue an enforcement action against Bob Baffert related to the 2018 Santa Anita Derby. Any statement that the belated adoption of the change was due to clerical error, regulatory inefficiency, or administrative backlog is not true.

CHRB RULES ARE BASED UPON THE PRESENCE OF A DRUG, NOT THE EFFECT OF THE DRUG.

It has also been argued that scopolamine has no performance enhancing effect. CHRB regulation do not address, much less, require a finding of performance enhancement. Disqualification under CHRB rules is based upon the presence, not the potential effect, of a prohibited substance.

THE CHRB’S PRIOR ACTION REGARDING BOB BAFFERT DID NOT ADDRESS PURSE DISQUALIFICATION.

In August, 2018, the CHRB, in executive session, opted not to engage in an enforcement action against Bob Baffert. Neither at that time, nor at any time thereafter until the recent CHRB hearing, did the CHRB even consider the issue of Purse Disqualification. Then CHRB Chairman Chuck Winner has repeatedly stated in relation to that 2018 executive session that “. . . the issue of purse redistribution was not considered.” Any argument that the issue of purse disqualification was dismissed in that aforementioned executive session is unfounded.

ONLY TWO HORSES, JUSTIFY AND HOPPERTUNITY EXCEEDED THE LABORATORY THRESHOLD FOR SCOPOLAMINE.

Claims that 5 other horses tested positive for scopolamine around the time that Justify and Hoppertunity tested positive are false. The CHRB Official Laboratory is only alleged to have found traces of scopolamine and/or atropine in the five other horses. The levels found in these five horses was below the laboratory threshold required for a certificate of analysis to be issued; consequently, the samples from these five horses were never reported as positives and any suggestion otherwise is baseless.

In sum, the statements in the article attributed to Mr. Robertson fail to address the fact that scopolamine was Class 3, Penalty B substance at the time and that a Purse Disqualification hearing which had not been previously conducted is required.

Sincerely,

Darrell Vienna

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Oaklawn Drug Positives: Baffert Suspended 15 Days, Charlatan, Gamine Forfeit Wins

Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert has been handed a 15-day suspension by the Arkansas Racing Commission, reports the New York Times, for a pair of positive tests on Arkansas Derby day (May 2) at Oaklawn Park.

Both Charlatan, winner of the first division of the G1 Arkansas Derby, and Gamine, winner of an allowance race earlier on the card, will forfeit their victories and the purse monies earned, $300,000 and $36,600, respectively.

Gamine went on to win the G1 Acorn Stakes at Belmont Park on June 20 by almost 19 lengths, setting a stakes record for a mile on the main track in 1:32.55.

Baffert's 15-day suspension is scheduled to run from Aug. 1 through 15.

Information leaked from initial testing by the Arkansas Racing Commission's contracted laboratory in late May indicated that Gamine and Charlatan both tested positive for the Class 2 drug lidocaine, also according to the New York Times. Split samples, sent at Baffert's request to the Equine Analytical Testing Laboratory at the University of California-Davis, confirmed the findings, as first reported in the New York Times.

Lidocaine is used by veterinarians during lameness examinations to “block” or numb a horse's limbs. It is also commonly found in ointments and analgesic treatments and patches to alleviate pain in humans.

A statement from Baffert's attorney, Craig Robertson, released on July 6, said both Gamine and Charlatan were exposed to the lidocaine from a patch worn by a member of the trainer's staff suffering back pain while tending to the horses at Oaklawn.

“Even though lidocaine is a lawful, widely available therapeutic medication, it was never intentionally administered to either Gamine or Charlatan,” the statement reads. “When test results indicated that trace amounts of lidocaine were found in both horses after their respective races on May 2, Bob Baffert and his team were shocked. Leading up to May 2, both horses were healthy and worked hard to earn their victories that day.

“After investigation,” the statement continues, “it is our belief that both Gamine and Charlatanwere unknowingly and innocently exposed to lidocaine by one of Bob's employees. The employee previously broke his pelvis and had been suffering from back pain over the two days leading up to May 2. As a result, he wore a Salonpas patch on his back that he personally applied. That brand of patch contains small amounts of lidocaine. It is believed that lidocaine from that patch was innocently transferred from the employee's hands to the horses through the application of tongue ties by the employee that was handling both horses leading up to May 2.”

Jimmy Barnes, assistant trainer for Baffert, saddled the horses at Oaklawn in the trainer's absence. He suffered a fractured pelvis in September 2017.

The statement continued: “What I want to make clear are the following three points: 1) This is a case of innocent exposure and not intentional administration; 2) the levels of Lidocaine found in both Gamine and Charlatan that day were extremely small – 185 picograms for Gamine (in race 7), and 46 picograms for Charlatan (in race 11). A picogram is a trillionth of a gram. 3) It is our understanding that the trace amounts of Lidocaine found in both Gamine and Charlatan would not have had any effect on either horse – much less a performance enhancing one. The extreme sensitivity of modern-day testing can now pick up trace levels of innocent contaminants that have no effect on a horse. This is an issue that regulators of horse racing need to account for and address.

“Based on these facts, we intend on defending the cases involving Gamine and Charlatan before the Arkansas Racing Commission.”

Should Baffert and his attorney choose to contest the ruling, an appeal would go before the Arkansas Racing Commission. Any appeal of that decision would then be handled in civil court.

Recommended penalty for a Class 2/Category B penalty drug like lidocaine is a minimum 15-day suspension and $500 fine for a first offense under Association of Racing Commissioners International Model Rules. A second offense has a 30-day penalty and $1,000 fine. Some racing commissions consider simultaneous violations of the same drug as a mitigating factor and do not increase penalties for a second offense.

The Model Rule also calls for disqualification, meaning the owners would lose the purse money from the races (Gamine earned $36,600 and Charlatan $300,000). In the case of Charlatan, the 100 qualifying points earned for the Kentucky Derby would be transferred to Basin, the second-place finisher (if the case is resolved before Sept. 5). Currently sidelined Gouverneur Morris finished third, Winning Impression fourth and Anneau d'Or fifth. Points for the Arkansas Derby division are awarded on the basis of 100-40-20-10 to the top four finishers.

Gamine is owned by Michael Lund Petersen. Charlatan is owned by the partnership of SF Racing LLC, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables LLC, Stonestreet Stables LLC, Frederick Hertrich III, John D. Fielding and Golconda Stables.

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Attorney For Baffert Claims Human Back Pain Patch Caused Drug Positives For Gamine, Charlatan

Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert claims that two horses in his barn were “unknowingly and innocently exposed” to a banned substance that wound up in their post-race test samples from May 2 at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark.

Information leaked from initial testing by the Arkansas Racing Commission's contracted laboratory in late May indicated that Gamine and Charlatan both tested positive for the Class 2 drug lidocaine. Gamine won a May 2 allowance race by a neck. She subsequently won the Grade 1 Acorn Stakes at Belmont Park on June 20 by 18 ¾ lengths. Charlatan won a division of the Grade 1 Arkansas Derby and shortly thereafter suffered a minor ankle injury that will have him sidelined until after the Sept. 5 Kentucky Derby. Both horses are unbeaten in three starts.

Split samples, sent at Baffert's request to the Equine Analytical Testing Laboratory at the University of California-Davis, confirmed the findings, according to published reports.

A statement from Baffert's attorney, Craig Robertson, said both Gamine and Charlatan were exposed to the lidocaine from a patch worn by a member of the trainer's staff suffering back pain while tending to the horses at Oaklawn.

“What I want to make clear are the following three points: 1) This is a case of innocent exposure and not intentional administration; 2) the levels of Lidocaine found in both Gamine and Charlatan that day were extremely small – 185 picograms for Gamine (in race 7), and 46 picograms for Charlatan (in race 11). A picogram is a trillionth of a gram. 3) It is our understanding that the trace amounts of Lidocaine found in both Gamine and Charlatan would not have had any effect on either horse – much less a performance enhancing one. The extreme sensitivity of modern-day testing can now pick up trace levels of innocent contaminants that have no effect on a horse. This is an issue that regulators of horse racing need to account for and address.

“Based on these facts, we intend on defending the cases involving Gamine and Chalatan before the Arkansas Racing Commission.”

Jimmy Barnes, assistant trainer for Baffert, saddled the horses at Oaklawn in the trainer's absence. He suffered a fractured pelvis in September 2017.

An even bigger financial stake for the owners of Charlatan may be in the sale of breeding rights to Hill 'n' Dale Farm announced several days after the Arkansas Derby. Depending on the language and when the contract between the parties was signed, the sale price may have hinged on Charlatan being a Grade 1 winner. If the Speightstown colt is disqualified from the Arkansas Derby – his stakes debut – the sale price could be reduced by millions of dollars unless and until he officially becomes a Grade 1 winner in the future.

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