Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit | Horse Racing Free Tips

PARX-Based Trainer Joe Taylor Latest to Be Provisionally Suspended by HIWU

According to a posting on the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU) website, Parx-based trainer Joe Taylor has been provisionally suspended after two horses he trained allegedly tested positive for banned substances.

On June 18, the Taylor-trained Cajun Cousin (Cajun Breeze) allegedly tested positive for Methylphenidate and Clenbuterol, both of which are banned substances. Two days later, Taylor sent out Classy American (Uncle Lino), who tested positive for the same two substances. Classy American finished second in a starter allowance while Cajun Cousin finished second in a $10,000 claimer.

Cajun Cousin would go on to win a $10,000 claiming race at Parx on July 12, before the results of the positive test had come back. She was claimed on July 12 by trainer Michael V. Pino for Smart Angle LLP. Under the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA)'s Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC) program, a claim shall be voided if “the horse has a positive test for a prohibited substance.”

Methylphenidate is sold under the name of Ritalin, a common drug given to people battling attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. It has not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in horses. Clenbuterol is used for respiratory ailments but is also known for having steroid-like properties that can build muscle mass.

Taylor faces a suspension of up to two years.

Taylor led all trainers at Parx in 2019 when he had 103 winners. Training since 2010, he has 328 career wins from 2,011 starters.

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HIWU Releases Names of Horses Ineligible to Race Because of Intra-Articular Injections

by Bill Finley and Dan Ross

A day after telling the TDN that it was not obligated to make public the names of horses who were ineligible to race or work because they were found to have had an intra-articular injection within seven days of a timed workout, the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU) reversed course Friday and published a list on its website of the 19 horses that were provisionally suspended.

Horses that violated Horseracing Safety and Integrity Authority (HISA) Rules 3313 and 4222, which cover intra-articular injection and the timeframe in which horses can race or work after having the injections, mandates that any horses that violate the rules are ineligible race or breeze for 30 days from the date of the injection. Trainers in violation of the rules were subject to 60-day suspensions. However, HISA announced late last month that the trainers would not be penalized and that the rules would not be enforced prior to July 15. HISA Chief Executive Lisa Lazarus said at the time that the delay in implementing the rule was needed because there was confusion among trainers regarding the specifics of the rule. She added that the temporary modification of enforcement of the rules was deemed the most “fair and equitable” way to proceed “given the number of violations.”

But HISA/HIWU still put the horses involved on a “provisionally suspended list.” According to a HISA statement released Friday, that was done so to “protect the horse's health.”

The list includes 17 trainers. Two horses had not started, therefore their trainers were not listed on Equibase. Among trainers, the most prominent names on the list are Norm Casse, Michael Stidham, Todd Pletcher, Linda Rice, and Jack Sisterson. The others are Carlos Munoz, Adriel Gonzalez, Betty Ott, Pedro Nazario, Brian Cook, Adrian Farias, David Fawkes, Victor Carrasco, Jr., John Ennis, Joseph Davis and Monica McGoey.

The release of the names of the horses left some important questions unanswered, namely why were some of the horses permitted to race while on the suspended list? The list of horses that raced while they were supposedly suspended numbers nine and does not include horses that may have worked out while they should have been ineligible to do so. Three of the horses on the list won while “suspended.” They are Trust Me (The Big Beast), Borgobythsea (English Channel) and Let's Go Mark (American Freedom).

At deadline for this story, a HIWU spokesperson had just responded to an email from TDN asking why the horses were allowed to race while suspended and who at HISA/HIWU was responsible for this apparent lapse? In an earlier email to HIWU, TDN had also asked if the horses who won while on the provisionally suspended list would be disqualified.

Here is the reply:

“HIWU had not anticipated the large volume of violations related to this rule and given the newness of the ADMC program, HIWU processed and notified the cases as quickly as they could. The horsemen continued to train and race their horses prior to receiving any notification, therefore they will not receive any penalties. HISA is reviewing the rule and procedures and will make an announcement prior to July 15 on the status of the rule and related procedures subsequent to July 15. Additionally, there were numerous other potential ADMC violations that needed to be investigated and/or processed, creating a much larger than expected workload. HISA and HIWU's top priority is the safety and welfare of each horse and measures have been taken to address these operational concerns.”

The list published Friday was through July 3. According to HISA, it will be updated.

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One Month In, HIWU Issues an Update

From the desk of Ben Mosier, Executive Director, Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit (HIWU):

The last four weeks have represented the culmination of more than a year of planning and countless hours of preparation by the HIWU team to put forth the best national Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC) Program possible for Thoroughbred racing. It has been incredibly rewarding to see HISA's ADMC Program get off the ground successfully. Through Sunday, June 18, HIWU-trained and certified sample collection personnel have collected samples from over 6,500 horses from more than 20 tracks nationwide. The samples are being analyzed by one of six approved laboratories, which are all testing for the same substances at the same levels. Furthermore, our anonymous whistleblower platforms are active, and our investigative staff have been reviewing the tips submitted to determine further action, when appropriate.

The Belmont Stakes was the first Triple Crown race to be conducted under HISA's ADMC Program. More than a dozen members of the HIWU team were on site at Belmont Park to assist operations, which included supporting the local sample collection personnel and investigators. The New York Racing Association (NYRA) has been a great partner with us, and we appreciate their collaboration to help make this historic race a success.

With our first month of enforcement now complete, I would like to remind industry participants that HIWU must follow specific public disclosure requirements when there are violations of the ADMC Program. In the case of a positive test for a Banned Substance, HIWU must publish the violation on our website upon the imposition of Provisional Suspensions to the Covered Person and Covered Horse. This will occur after HIWU receives the positive test result for the A Sample. For a positive test associated with a Controlled Medication, the violation will be published once the B Sample confirms the positive test or the Covered Person waives the right to test the B Sample. Non-presence cases (i.e., cases not involving a positive test) will be published after a Provisional Suspension is imposed on the Covered Person or a Charge Letter is served, whichever is earlier.

We expect that most cases will be public within weeks and resolved within a few months, which will be a welcome change from previous protocols.

HIWU recognizes the importance of continually offering education opportunities to help facilitate compliance among those impacted by the ADMC Program. In addition to HIWU's Education & Resources page, our team is available to meet with stakeholders and/or industry groups in person or virtually. Groups who would like to request a meeting should contact Stephanie Jenson at sjenson@hiwu.org.

With our busiest months still to come, my team and I are excited to continue enforcement across the country and to maintain our relationships with the stakeholders who have made our efforts possible, from state racing commissions, racetracks, and laboratories to horsemen, veterinarians, and stewards. I am confident that this Program will ultimately enhance the health and safety of our equine and human athletes while promoting a level playing field that benefits the sport's honest participants.

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The Week in Review: A Belmont Stakes at Saratoga and How to Make it Work

Just a few days after the running of this year's GI Belmont S., the final leg of the Triple Crown was back in the news. With the Belmont grandstand set to be torn down after the 2024 spring meet and with the new stands not expected to be ready until 2026, the 2025 Belmont S. will likely need a home. And after hinting that the race could be run in Saratoga, the New York Racing Association was more specific when the topic was addressed early last week. When asked by the TDN about plans for the race in 2025, NYRA's Vice President of Communications Pat McKenna had this to say: “Should the construction of a new Belmont Park require the Belmont S. to be run at a different venue, then NYRA's preference would absolutely be to hold the event at Saratoga Race Course.”

Why wouldn't it be? Running the race at Belmont amid a massive construction project won't work and neither will running it at Aqueduct. The Big A lost thousands of seats when the casino replaced a large portion of the grandstand and the place isn't, well, very nice.

So, get ready for a Belmont at Saratoga. But there is one major issue that needs to be addressed and that's the distance of the race. Traditionalists will want it to be contested at 1 1/2 miles, but that won't work. Equibase's list of Saratoga track records does not include one for a 1 1/2-mile race, which probably means there has never been a 12-furlong dirt race run there. It's easy to see why. The race would have to start at the three-eighths pole, which is at the entrance to the far turn. Especially if there is a large field, anyone drawing to the outside would be at a disadvantage, something you don't want in any race, let alone a Triple Crown race.

The only answer is to run it at a 1 1/4 miles. Think of it as a necessary adjustment, just like what happened in 2020 when the pandemic played havoc with the Triple Crown schedule and led NYRA to card the Belmont at a one-turn 1 1/8 miles.

As for the schedule, the smartest thing to do would be to start what would normally be the spring Belmont meet at Aqueduct. Belmont week at Saratoga would start on Thursday, June 5, the race would be held on Saturday, June 7 and the four-day mini-meet would end with a card on the following day. The meet could then return to Aqueduct before the regular Saratoga meet got underway.

Combining Saratoga's popularity, the importance of the Belmont S. and the uniqueness of holding the race at the mecca of Thoroughbred racing can only mean that a 2025 Belmont at Saratoga would be a smashing success and one of the most memorable Belmonts of all time.

“A Belmont S. at Saratoga is an event that would capture the attention of the entire sports world while driving tourism and economic impact for upstate New York,” McKenna said.

Doing so would mark for the second time in the modern era that the race was not run at Belmont Park. While the current Belmont grandstand was being constructed, the race was run at Aqueduct from 1963 through 1967. Here's a look at the 1963 Belmont, won by Chateaugay. In 1964, the race was won by Quadrangle.

Aqueduct and Belmont have not been the only homes to the race. While the GI Kentucky Derby has only been run at Churchill Downs and the GI Preakness S. has only been run at Pimlico, the Belmont has had four homes. It was first run in 1867 at Jerome Park, where it remained until moving to Morris Park in 1890. The race was first run at Belmont Park in 1905. Fifty-eight years later, it was moved to Aqueduct.

Thank You, Jena

This industry could not have asked for a better ambassador than Jena Antonucci, a role the trainer was thrust into after winning the Belmont with Arcangelo (Arrogate). Her story was just what a beleaguered sport needed after deaths and breakdowns dominated the news cycles through the first two rounds of the Triple Crown. Even on a day when there was another fatality, in the race run after the Belmont, the mainstream media couldn't get enough of the articulate plucky female trainer with the indefatigable spirit. She was the story Belmont day, and not all the bad news that had been hovering over the game.

Not everyone would have been comfortable with being turned into being a media darling the way she was, but Antonucci embraced it. She could have just gone about her business after the race, but, instead, honored every request from the media, knowing it was an opportunity for someone to convey a positive message about the sport to a large audience. The demands were so intense that she had to call in the NTRA to help her coordinate her schedule. Over a three-day period last week, Antonucci did 12 interviews, including one for Fox News. She was also the Green Group Guest of the Week on last week's TDN Writers' Room podcast.

Now, will the sport pay her back? It's great to have an Arcangelo in the barn, but the fact remains that Antonucci has a relatively small stable that has but one star. Aside from Arcangelo, she's had just one other graded stakes winner during her career. She won the 2016 GIII Turf Monster S. at Parx with Doctor J Dub (Sharp Humor).

How about some of the sport's major owners, ones who have dozens of horses and flock to the super trainers, give her a chance. There are so many trainers out there just like her, ones that are perfectly capable but have problems getting ahead because no one is willing to give them an opportunity. You don't have to have all 100 of your horses with Todd Pletcher, Chad Brown, Bob Baffert, et. al. Isn't there room to give five to Antonucci? She certainly deserves it.

HIWU Versus the Old Way of Doing Things

On June 11, the New York Gaming Commission posted a ruling on its website regarding a positive test for phenylbutazone in a horse trained by Todd Pletcher. Better late than never, I suppose, the alleged offense took place on July 30, 2022 at Saratoga. It was posted 316 days after the race occurred. It was pretty much the same story in the matter of Forte (Violence) testing positive for a banned substance following his win the 2022 GI Hopeful S., run on Sept. 5. That offense was made public on May 11.

How can it possibly take that long for a violation to be reported? Whatever the answer is, and there hasn't been a good one out of the Gaming Commission, it speaks to how dysfunctional the game has been when it comes to violations. It also tells you that there is a glaring lack of transparency.

Thankfully, that has changed. The Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit (HIWU), an arm of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority, took over, in most states, the process of drug testing and handing out penalties on May 22. Already, we are seeing that things are different under this body.

HIWU has posted three rulings on its website under the category of “pending violations.” Two involve the use of Levothyroxine. The third, a ruling against trainer Mario Dominguez, involves the use of cobalt. All of the rulings were posted within three weeks of the alleged offenses. In the case of Dominguez, his horse, Petulant Delight (First Dude), tested positive for cobalt after winning a May 24 race at Parx. Just 15 days later, the violation was made public on the HIWU website.

These people mean business. Good for them.

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