gamine | Horse Racing Free Tips

Baffert Reveals Betamethasone Positive for Derby Winner Medina Spirit

Bob Baffert told the media Sunday morning at Churchill Downs that his stable was informed by the Kentucky Racing Commission that GI Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit (Protonico) has tested positive for the medication betamethasone. Betamethasone is a corticosteroid.

During a 10-minute news conference (click for video), Baffert repeatedly proclaimed his innocence.

“All I can tell you is that betamethasone is an allowed therapeutic medication, but we did not give it to this horse,” Baffert said. “In fact, Medina Spirit has never been treated with Betamethasone. I cannot believe that I am here before you guys. Yesterday, I got the biggest gut punch in racing for something I did not do.”

Baffert said Medina Spirit was found to have 21 picograms of the drug in his system.

Baffert said that Kentucky racing officials contacted his assistant, Jimmy Barnes, on Saturday to give him the news, which he then relayed to Baffert.

For the sport's most prominent trainer, Sunday's news was the latest in a series of drug positives related to the Baffert stable. In each case, the Hall of Fame trainer has denied any wrongdoing.

This story will be updated.

The post Baffert Reveals Betamethasone Positive for Derby Winner Medina Spirit appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Gamine Makes Easy Work Of Grade 1 Derby City Distaff

Gamine continued to add to her impressive record on the Kentucky Derby undercard with an easy win in the Grade 1 Derby City Distaff, holding off a late bid from Sconsin. John Velazquez took Gamine to the lead at the start of the seven furlong contest despite stumbling out of the gate. Hibiscus Punch settled to her outside for company and drew up to briefly challenge on the turn but was quickly outmatched. Sconsin had sat off the pace and made a closing bid in the stretch but was unable to catch the winner. The final time was 1:21.50 after early fractions of :23.15 and :46.08.

Sconsin was second, Estilo Talentoso third and Bell's The One was fourth after a slow start.

The win is the third Grade 1 victory for Gamine, who also has wins in the 2020 Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint, the G1 Test, and the G1 Acorn to her credit. In her last outing, she won the Grade 3 Las Flores by five lengths. In eight starts, her only non-win came from the Kentucky Oaks, where she crossed the wire third but was later disqualified to ninth due to an overage of betamethasone.

Bob Baffert trains Gamine for owner Michael Lund Petersen. Gamine was bred in Kentucky by Grace Thoroughbred Holdings and is the 4-year-old daughter of Into Mischief and Kafwain mare Peggy Jane. She was a $220,000 yearling at the Keenelad September sale, where she was consigned by Summerfield and purchased by Grand Oaks. Then, she sold at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic sale as a 2-year-old, where she was consigned by Bobby Dodd and bought by Petersen for $1.8 million.

Gamine was heavily favored at 1-5 and paid $2.40 to win.

The post Gamine Makes Easy Work Of Grade 1 Derby City Distaff appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Gamine All The Way in Derby City Distaff

Maybe it wasn't the electric performance that everyone was expecting, but nonetheless, 'TDN Rising Star' Gamine (Into Mischief) added her fourth career top-level win in game fashion in Saturday's GI Derby City Distaff S. at Churchill Downs.

Hammered into 1-5 favoritism, last year's champion female sprinter bobbled slightly beneath Johnny Velazquez at the start. Undeterred, she recovered quickly to show the way through surprisingly easy opening fractions of :23.15 and :46.08 while traveling several paths off the inside down the backstretch.

Last year's GII Eight Belles S. heroine Sconsin (Include) made a menacing four-wide move approaching the quarter pole and it briefly appeared that Gamine could be in deep water as she cornered wide. The $1.8-million EASMAY topper showed her class down the lane, however, racing down the center of the course, to repel that foe by 1 1/2 lengths and provide Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert with a record 220th Grade I victory.

“I didn't know I was that close to the record until a month ago,” Baffert said. “To do it here on this big day is very special. I'm just happy for Gamine. She got the job done. I told Johnny that this was the first time she's run before a crowd. She was looking around. So many things can go wrong, but once I saw her down the backside, I knew we were in the clear.”

Velazquez added, “She didn't get the break I hoped for but she bounced back really quickly and ran really easy in the early going. She showed what a champion she was and I was very proud of my filly.”

Gamine's championship season in 2020 included jaw-dropping wins in the GI Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint versus older fillies and mares at Keeneland, the GI Longines Acorn S. at Belmont and GI Longines Test S. at Saratoga. She kicked off her 4-year-old season with a facile win over three rivals in Santa Anita's GIII Las Flores S. Apr. 4.

Third across the wire as the favorite after setting the pace in last year's GI Kentucky Oaks–the lone blemish on her record (now that an Oaklawn DQ was overturned last month)–she was subsequently disqualified from the purse money for a medication positive.

Pedigree Notes:

Gamine is one of nine Grade I/94 black-type/40 graded winners for superstar sire Into Mischief.

The flashy bay topped the 2019 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-year-old sale, bringing $1.8 million. Purchased by Brad Grady's Grand Oaks for $220,000 at Keeneland September as a yearling, she blossomed into a seven-figure juvenile after breezing in :10 flat for Bobby Dodd in Timonium.

Gamine is out of the stakes-placed mare Peggy Jane (Kafwain) and hails from the family of Canadian champion Dynamic Sky (Sky Mesa). Peggy Jane is also responsible for the unraced 3-year-old colt Splashtown (Speightstown) ($300,000 FTKOCT yearling purchase by Frankie Brothers), a 2-year-old filly by Ghostzapper; a yearling colt by Kantharos; and an Into Mischief colt of this year.

Peggy Jane, a two-time winner, was a $200,000 OBS April 2-year-old purchase by Barbara Banke's Grace Stables in 2011.

Broodmare sire Kafwain is responsible for nine stakes/four graded winners, including Grade I winner Paola Queen (Flatter).

Saturday, Churchill Downs
DERBY CITY DISTAFF S. PRESENTED BY KENDALL-JACKSON WINERY-GI, $500,000, Churchill Downs, 5-1, 4yo/up, f/m, 7f, 1:21.50, ft.
1–GAMINE, 123, f, 4, by Into Mischief
               1st Dam: Peggy Jane (SP, $102,050), by Kafwain
                2nd Dam: Seattle Splash, by Chief Seattle
                3rd Dam: Grand Splash, by Bucksplasher
($220,000 Ylg '18 KEESEP; $1,800,000 2yo '19 EASMAY).
O-Michael Lund Petersen; B-Grace Thoroughbred Holdings LLC
(KY); T-Bob Baffert; J-John R. Velazquez. $306,900. Lifetime
Record: Ch. Female Sprinter, 8-7-0-0, $1,286,500.
Werk Nick Rating: A++.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Sconsin, 118, f, 4, by Include
                1st Dam: Sconnie, by Tiznow
                2nd Dam: In the Wild, by Forest Wildcat
                3rd Dam: Askrania, by Afleet
O/B-Lloyd Madison Farms LLC (KY); T-Gregory D. Foley.
$99,000.
3–Estilo Talentoso, 118, f, 4, by Maclean's Music
                1st Dam: Bazinga Baby, by Afleet Alex
                2nd Dam: Elizaveta, by Quiet American
                3rd Dam: Carezza, by Caro (Ire)
($77,000 Ylg '18 FTKOCT; $95,000 RNA 2yo '19 OBSAPR;
$15,000 2yo '19 OBSOPN). O/T-Juan Arriagada; B-Mile High
Bloodstock LLC (KY).$49,500.
Margins: 1HF, 1, 2 3/4. Odds: 0.20, 11.00, 15.40.
Also Ran: Bell's the One, Hibiscus Punch, Unique Factor.
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

The post Gamine All The Way in Derby City Distaff appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Gamine Looks Long Gone in Derby City Distaff

'TDN Rising Star' Gamine (Into Mischief) is the 1-5 morning-line favorite for Saturday's GI Derby City (ex Humana) Distaff, and, facing just five other rivals that lack anything near her front-running prowess, she could go off an even shorter proposition than that.

Now six-for-seven lifetime as her once-disputed Oaklawn allowance victory has now been reinstated, Gamine was other-worldly at trips around one turn during her championship season in 2020, winning the one-mile GI Longines Acorn S. by 18 3/4 lengths last June and the seven-furlong GI Longines Test S. by seven lengths in August. The $220,000 KEESEP yearling, who topped the 2019 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-year-olds in training sale at $1.8 million, simply did not stay the nine furlongs of the GI Kentucky Oaks, finishing third (subsequently disqualified) to Shedaresthedevil (Daredevil) and Swiss Skydiver (Daredevil), but she righted the ship in no uncertain terms, besting the fleet Serengeti Empress (Alternation) by 6 1/4 lengths in the GI Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint Nov. 7. The champion female sprinter galloped around on a loose lead when supplemented to the GIII Las Flores S. at Santa Anita Apr. 4, and Saturday's race could play out identically.

Bell's the One (Majesticperfection) is the defending champ of the Derby City Distaff, a race that marked her first career top-level success. The seven-furlong specialist, also winner of the GII Lexus Raven Run S. at three, outbobbed Serengeti Empress to win this last year, then ran with credit to be third, beaten a nose for second, in the Filly and Mare Sprint. At her best when there is a good pace ahead of her, the bay dead-heated for second with Estilo Talentoso (Maclean's Music) in the GI Madison S. at Keeneland Apr. 3, as the victorious Kimari (Munnings) raced closer to a moderate pace and held sway late.

Sconsin (Include) earned her way into the F/M Sprint courtesy of an off-the-pace success in the GII Eight Belles S. on Oaks day last year. Fourth at Keeneland in November, she exits a seventh in the Madison.

The post Gamine Looks Long Gone in Derby City Distaff appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post