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Mychel Sanchez, Suspended for Betting Against His Mounts, Returns at Delaware Park

Nearly five months after beginning a suspension for betting against his own mounts, jockey Mychel Sanchez returned to action Wednesday, riding in the second race at Delaware Park. Sanchez finished eighth aboard XY Lady (Sharp Azteca) in the race for 2-year-old maiden fillies. He is also listed on mounts on the Thursday, Friday and Saturday cards at Delaware.

Sanchez last rode Jan. 19 at Parx. Shortly after that, the Pennsylvania Racing Commission handed him a 60-day suspension after it was discovered that during a betting spree he made wagers on horses other than his own mounts on races at Parx and at Laurel. The Maryland Racing Commission also suspended Sanchez for 60 days, with the days running concurrently with the Pennsylvania suspension.

When the suspensions ended in March, Sanchez apparently had a difficult time finding a track that would allow him to ride. At the time, attorney Alan Pincus confirmed to the TDN that Parx officials would not accept entries where Sanchez was listed to ride. 1/ST Racing, which operates Laurel and Pimlico, announced that Sanchez had been banned indefinitely.

Sanchez's name first reappeared in the entries when he was listed on horses for the June 10 card at Delaware, but he was replaced on each of those mounts.

Calls and emails made Wednesday to Delaware Racing Commission Executive Director Sarah Crane went unanswered. Pincus did not return a phone call seeking to clarify Sanchez's status.

While admitting that his client had bet against himself, Pincus said that Sanchez had done so as an outlet to battle depression. He said that Sanchez, in all cases, tried to win, even when he had bet on another horse.

“It was clear he was giving his best effort,” Pincus said. “He was not fixing races. He won several of the races in which he bet against his horses. The horse paid $37 in one race, $27 in another. He was just doing something crazy that only a psychiatrist can explain.”

The TDN, through a Freedom of Information Law request, acquired the records of Sanchez's betting activity that were reviewed by the Pennsylvania Racing Commission. The betting log covers the period of Dec. 23 of last year through Jan. 3, during which time Sanchez placed 104 bets on his TVG account. From those 104, there were only six races in which he made significant bets against himself. Whether he was involved in a race or not, he was betting heavily. In one instance, he made a $2,000 win, place and show bet on a race at Laurel, betting on his mount, Johnny Sack (Mosler). He lost all $6,000 as Johnny Sack finished sixth.

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Sanchez Bet Heavily, And Sometimes Against Himself

When it was revealed that jockey Mychel Sanchez had gone on a betting spree that included wagers where he bet against the horses he was riding, his attorney Alan Pincus argued that this was not a matter of race fixing. Rather, Pincus said, Sanchez had turned to gambling as an outlet to combat his depression, let things spin out of control and in all cases did his best to win, even when it meant he might beat a horse he had bet on.

“He was just doing something crazy that only a psychiatrist can explain,” Pincus said in January.

The TDN, through a Freedom of Information Law request, has acquired the records of Sanchez's betting activity that were reviewed by the Pennsylvania Racing Commission. In some respects, they lend credence to the lawyer's argument. The betting log covers the period of Dec. 23 of last year through Jan. 3, during which time Sanchez placed 104 bets on his TVG account. From those 104, there were only six races in which he made significant bets against himself. He bet on his own mount seven times. All other wagers were made on races in which he did not have a mount.

In most states, jockeys are not prohibited from betting on races in which they don't ride or on betting on their own mounts.

Nonetheless, a jockey betting against himself, no matter how few times it happened, is a serious offense that brings the integrity of those races into question. Did Sanchez, in fact, do his very best to win or was he more interested in cashing his bets, one of which was for $4,380? Only he knows for sure.

These are the six races in which Sanchez made significant bets on a horse other than the one he rode. They are:

(*) Dec. 26th, 8th at Laurel: Sanchez bet $2,190 to win and place on 6-5 favorite Cordmaker (Curlin) in the Robert Manfuso S. Cordmaker won, giving Sanchez a profit of $3,066. His mount, Alwaysmining, (Stay Thirsty) finished last at 13-1.

(*) Dec. 28, 7th at Parx: Sanchez bet $100 to win, place and show on 4-1 shot Miss Mosaic (Verrazano) in the Mrs. Claus S. Sanchez won the race aboard 18-1 Jakarta (Bustin Stones), beating Miss Mosaic, who finished second. Sanchez's share of the purse was $5,520. Had Miss Mosaic won he would have won about $800 on his bets.

(*) Dec. 29, 6th at Parx: Sanchez bet $200 to win, place and show on Six Cider (Medaglia d'Oro) and $25 to win, place and show on Double the Heart (Alternation). Both horses finished out of the money. He rode 52-1 shot Dangerfield (Into Mischief), who finished last.

(*) Dec. 31, 6th at Laurel: Sanchez bet $100 to win, place and show on I Can Run (Tourist), who finished fourth. His mount, Ocean Tide (More Than Ready), was last.

(*) Jan. 2, 5th at Laurel: Sanchez bet $1,000 win and place on 7-2 shot Bear Force Won (Bandbox), who won the race. Sanchez's profit on the bet was $4,900. His mount, the 2-1 shot Satchel de Ritches (Country Day), finished fourth.

(*) Jan. 3, 3rd at Parx: Sanchez bet $500 to win, place and show on Iova (lea), who finished second. He made a profit of $1,000 on the race. His mount, The Biggest One (Gone Astray), finished third at 9-2.

From those six races, Sanchez made a profit of $8,171.

In addition, Sanchez bet $864 on the Pick Five Dec. 29 at Parx and hit the bet, which paid $7,875. He did not include his mount in the first leg, the 52-1 shot Dangerfield, on his ticket. Sanchez rode the winner of the final leg, 12-1 shot No Fooling Dude (Orientate).

Pincus said that Sanchez was not gambling regularly until opening up a TVG account late last year. He did so under his own name and a TVG employee alerted the Pennsylvania Racing Commission after noticing that Sanchez was betting against himself. His betting was more or less in control at the start. On Dec. 23, a day in which he did not ride, he started off with a $100 win and place bet at Gulfstream and followed that with a $50 win bet and a $15 win and place bet, also on races at Gulfstream. But as the day wore on he began to bet larger amounts. He switched his betting to Turfway Park and in two races bet $1,000 to win, place and show on a horse. Both horses finished out of the money.

Racing took a break for the Christmas holiday and Sanchez did not wager again until Dec. 26, betting on Laurel, where he rode. He made his first bet in the second race, in which he did not have a mount. He bet $1000 win, place and show on 3-1 shot Beneath the Stars (Connect), who finished second. In the third race, he bet on himself, wagering $1,000 to win, place and show on 7-2 shot Last Romance (Tapiture), who finished second.

After betting on two more races in which he didn't have a mount, he crossed the line for the first time, making the $2,190 win and place bet on Cordmaker. His mount, Alwaysmining, went to the front and led for the first half-mile before tiring. The footnote for the race reads: “Alwaysmining rushed up between foes and then dropped in to take the early lead, was pressured from his outside, ceded command around the far turn and faltered.”

A clear betting pattern was emerging. While Sanchez made an occasional multi-race wager, the majority of his bets were either to win and place or to win, place and show. And he was betting heavily. Sanchez would routinely bet $1,000 or more to win, place and show on a horse. On the Dec. 27th, he made a $2,000 win, place and show bet on a race at Laurel, betting on his mount, Johnny Sack (Mosler). On the largest bet he made during the period in question, he lost all $6,000 as Johnny Sack finished sixth.

On Dec. 30, while he was riding at Laurel, he bet $5,000 to win on 11-10 favorite Palace Magic (Palace Malice) in the ninth race at the Fair Grounds. Palace Magic finished second.

On Jan. 3, Sanchez rode at Parx, where he made just three wagers, two $500 win and place bets and a $400 Pick 5 ticket. From a gambling perspective, he was having a good day, winning $3,200 on his two straight bets. But Sanchez stopped abruptly and did not bet any other races on the card. It is not clear what motivated him to stop.

Throughout the betting binge, Sanchez bet a total of $129,212 and lost more than $18,000.

Based on the time stamp on his bets, Sanchez was placing them, on the days when he rode, from the track between races when he would have been in the jockey's room. In many countries, jockeys are not allowed to take communication devices into the jockey's room.

On Jan. 10, Sanchez appeared at a hearing before the Pennsylvania Racing Commission Board of Stewards and was suspended for 60 days and ordered to complete an accredited program for gambling addiction. Pincus said at the time that Sanchez had also sought treatment to deal with his depression.

The Maryland Racing Commission took no action against Sanchez at the time he was suspended in Pennsylvania. Michael Hopkins, the executive director of the Maryland Racing Commission, told Pat Cummings of the Thoroughbred Idea Foundation that the matter is closed and the commission has no plans to take action against Sanchez. On Jan. 21, after learning of the allegations against Sanchez, 1/ST Racing, the owners of Laurel, took the jockey off all his mounts that day and banned him for an indefinite period. At time of deadline for this story, the TDN was unable to confirm whether or not Sanchez will be cleared to ride by 1/ST officials after his Pennsylvania suspension has been served.

Sanchez rode at Aqueduct on Jan. 1, but did not bet against any of his own mounts that day.

Though there are no established guidelines for the length of a suspension when a jockey is caught betting against himself, that Sanchez only got 60 days suggests that the Pennsylvania Racing Commission believed that he was not fixing races and that it was sympathetic to his assertion that depression played a role in his betting frenzy.

“He just did something because of a mental problem,” Pincus said in January. “People are responsible for their own actions, but he has to be viewed with sympathy.”

Sanchez's suspension ends March 21.

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Vitali Hit With One-Year Suspension for Meth Positive in Pennsylvania

Trainer Marcus Vitali, whose career has been plagued by numerous suspensions and controversies, has been suspended for one year and fined $10,000 by the Pennsylvania Racing Commission after a horse he trained named Single Lady (Shanghai Bobby) tested positive for d-methamphetamine. He was also hit with six multiple medication violation points.

The infraction occurred on Aug. 21, 2021 at Presque Isle Downs in a maiden special weight race won by the Vitali-trained filly. The horse is owned by Crossed Sabres Farm.

The story was first reported by the Paulick Report.

According to the website pubmed.ncbi, methamphetamine is banned in athletic competition because it may improve athletic performance, but there are no studies assessing its effects on performance.

Vitali requested a split sample, which was conducted by the UIC Analytical Forensic Testing Laboratory in Chicago, Illinois, which confirmed the d-methamphetamine positive. The suspension began Feb. 15 and is set to expire on Feb. 14, 2023.

According to the Paulick Report, Vitali has appealed the Pennsylvania suspension. He is currently racing at Turf Paradise and is scheduled to have his next starter there in Tuesday's fourth race.

Vitali is also awaiting word from the New York Racing Association, which has scheduled a hearing that will determine if it can suspend him from racing at the New York tracks.

In a separate ruling, Vitali was fined $500 after being found on Oct. 6 to be in possession of medications without a prescription. According to the racing commission ruling, Vitali was in possession of medications known as Dr. Burch's 40 Equi-Dyne and Dr. Burch's 6 Windy. Both had labels stating that they were “for veterinarian use only.”

This is far from the first time Vitali has found himself in trouble with regulators or track officials.

There are 84 docket entries under his name in The Jockey Club's online rulings database, many of them for medication violations. Between 2011 and the start of 2016, Vitali was hit with 23 medication violations in Florida alone. He was also investigated over a complaint of animal cruelty.

In 2016, he relinquished his license in Florida after being hit with seven drug violations over a four-month period only to resurface at Mid-Atlantic tracks. In 2019, he was suspended for one-year in Delaware after it was alleged that he interfered with a search of an employee's dorm room and ran off with a vial containing an unknown substance. In 2020 he was banned at the Maryland tracks after it was charged that he was the actual trainer of horses running under the name of Wayne Potts.

Still, Vitali has found places to run. He made the bulk of his starts in 2021 at Turf Paradise and Presque Isle and also had starters at Finger Lakes, Saratoga and Lone Star Park. He made 126 starts in 2021 and won 17 races.

It was also reported by Daily Racing Form Friday that trainer Juan Vazquez was given 30 days worth of suspensions by the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission for two levamisole positives from 2021.

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Sanchez Suspended, Gambling an Outlet for Depression

Jockey Mychel Sanchez, who has been suspended 60 days by the Pennsylvania Racing Commission for betting on horses other than the ones he rode, is not a cheat or a race-fixer, his attorney told the TDN Friday. Rather, said lawyer Alan Pincus, Sanchez was dealing with a serious case of depression and took to gambling as an outlet. Pincus said that in all instances Sanchez tried his best to win the races in question, whether he had bet against his own horse or not.

With Sanchez's main track, Parx, dark Friday, the jockey was listed on two mounts at Laurel. After the Maryland Racing Commission learned of the Pennsylvania suspension, Sanchez was taken of his mounts. The Maryland Jockey Club and 1/ST RACING issued a statement later in the day in which it said Sanchez has been banned indefinitely.

“After learning of the serious allegations of illegal wagering on the part of jockey Mychel Sanchez, effective immediately 1/ST RACING will institute an indefinite ban against him from training or racing at any 1/ST RACING venue,” read a statement issued by 1/ST RACING. “Any decision regarding Sanchez's reinstatement will be made at a later time. 1/ST RACING stands on the principles of integrity and accountability, and we believe there is no place in our sport for this kind of unethical and illegal activity.”

Tom Chuckas, the director of the Thoroughbred division of the Pennsylvania Racing Commission, was not available to the media. A call to his office went to voice mail and no one returned the call from the TDN seeking comment. There was nothing related to Sanchez's suspension on the page on the Pennsylvania Racing Commission's website listing rulings. An official ruling will likely be issued following a regularly scheduled commission meeting next week.

Should Chuckas ever make himself available, he will likely be asked to explain what appears to be a serious offense resulted in a suspension of just 60 days.

“Mychal is a straight shooter and he has worked hard and with skill and talent has risen to a very strong position,” Pincus said. “He is the sole support for his family both here and in Venezuela and life, on the surface, was great for him. But, he was feeling depressed. And he was not doing anything to deal with it. He was just turning inward. He turned to gambling on the races for a very short period of time. I'm not a psychiatrist, but he was doing this to numb the pain.”

Pincus said that Sanchez opened a TVG account in his own name and began betting Dec. 23 and made his last bets Jan. 3. He went six for 28 during that period. During that time, he also rode at Aqueduct and at Laurel. Pincus said he was not sure whether or not Sanchez also bet against his mounts in New York and Maryland or just at Parx. If he bet against himself in New York or in Maryland, he could face additional penalties from those states.

“We will look into this,” said J. Michael Hopkins, the executive director of the Maryland Racing Commission. “But right now he's suspended in Pennsylvania, so there's no need to be in a rush because he doesn't ride here regularly. But we will definitely take a look at it.”

TVG employees noticed that the jockey had been betting against his own horses and notified the appropriate racing commissions.

Having, through his lawyer, admitted that he bet against his own horses, Sanchez will not fight the suspension.

“He was suspended 60 days starting [Friday] to the 21st of March,” Pincus said. “Obviously, it was warranted. We are not going to appeal this.”

Pincus said that Sanchez has already enrolled in a problem gambling program and has also sought out psychiatric help.

“He just did something because of a mental problem,” Pincus said. “People are responsible for their own actions, but he has to be viewed with sympathy.”

Sanchez began riding in the U.S. in 2013 and was the leading rider at Parx in 2020. According to Equibase, he's won 940 races from 6,097 mounts.

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