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Parx-Based Trainer Pearce Hit With 1,950-Day Suspension

Trainer Penny Pearce has been issued a suspension of 1,950 days and fined $23,500 by the Pennsylvania Racing Commission after six horses under her care tested positive for clenbuterol during out-of-competition tests.

The penalties were announced after her barn at Parx was inspected June 22. During the inspection, investigators also found hypodermic needles, syringes and injectable substances. The suspension is scheduled to run from Sept. 11, 2022 through Jan. 12, 2028.

The Paulick Report was first with the story and has also reported that Pearce has filed an appeal.

Pearce began training in 2012 and, prior to 2021, never won more than 16 races in a year. During the 2012-to-2020 period, her winning rate was 11%. That changed in 2021 when she went 32-for-137 (23%). Her success has continued this year as she has posted a record of 23-for-84 (27%).

In June of 2021, Pearce reportedly hired former trainer Ramon Preciado as a groom. In 2016, Preciado's owner and trainer licenses were revoked after a horse he trained named Purcell (Jump Start) tested positive for clenbuterol in a post-race test. In the ruling covering Purcell, the racing commission noted that Preciado had a record of “multiple medication violations.” Despite Preciado's record of violations, the racing commission decided to grant him a groom's license and he went to work for Pearce.

The Pearce-trained horses that tested positive for clenbuterol were Mischievous Jones (Smarty Jones), Musamaha (Jack Milton), Relativlea (Lea), Call Me GQ (Weigelia), Market Maven (Super Ninety Nine) and an unnamed horse. Had there been just one clenbuterol positive, Pearce would have received a suspension of just 30 days. Instead, the commission used an escalating scale, with the number of days she was suspended increasing with each subsequent positive. For the sixth positive, she was suspended for 960 days.

“In accordance with ARCI medication and penalty guidelines, based upon the number of medication positives, the board of stewards finds aggravating circumstances in these matters,” the ruling reads.

In June, Monmouth Park stewards suspended Pearce for 15 days and fined her $500 after a horse she trained tested positive for clenbuterol following a May 29 race at the Jersey Shore track.

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Chub Wagon Named 2021 PA-Bred Horse of the Year

After a season of near perfection that included six stakes wins, Daniel Lopez and George Chestnut's homebred Chub Wagon was named 2021 Pennsylvania-bred Horse of the Year at the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association's 43rd annual Iroquois Awards, held May 13 at The Inn at Mendenhall in Chadds Ford, Pa.

The richest state-bred of 2021 when banking $487,400, Chub Wagon scored in eight of her nine starts at age four, and was second in her only loss. After getting her first stakes win in the Unique Bella at Parx in April by 7 1/2 lengths, she followed with wins in the Skipat S. and Shine Again S. at Pimlico, and Dashing Beauty S. at Delaware Park. She rebounded off a second-place finish in the Dr. Teresa Garofalo Memorial S. at Parx on Pennsylvania Day At the Races in August to take the Roamin Rachel S. against open company by four lengths two weeks later. She concluded her season in late September by winning the Plum Pretty S. in her first start beyond a mile.

A daughter of Lopez's homebred stallion Hey Chub out of the Lion Heart mare Takin The Plunge, Chub Wagon also took home awards for champion older female and champion female sprinter.

The evening's keynote speaker was Triple Crown-winning jockey Steve Cauthen, now a breeder/owner in Kentucky. The PHBA's Lifetime Achievement Award for excellence in breeding in the state was presented to George Strawbridge, Jr., who over the course of the past five decades bred such Pennsylvania-bred standouts at GI Breeders' Cup Turf winner Tikkanen and five-time Grade I winner With Anticipation.

Other divisional champions were:
• Two-year-old female–Morning Matcha (Central Banker)
• Two-year-old male–Dance Code (Honor Code)
• Three-year-old female–Leader of the Band (Bandbox)
• Three-year-old male and male sprinter–Beren (Weigelia)
• Older male and turf male–The Critical Way (Tizway)
• Turf female–Caravel (Mizzen Mast)

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PHBA Donates $150K to New Bolton

The Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association donated $150,000 to the Equine Pharmacology Laboratory at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine's (Penn Vet) New Bolton Center that will support continued research in equine biomarkers.

The new round of PHBA funding will bolster three key research initiatives focused on improving the health and safety of equine athletes and enhancing integrity in racing. One area of research seeks to identify novel mRNA biomarkers that can help proactively predict if a horse is at risk for injury, even for injuries that are difficult or impossible to detect using conventional methods. Ultimately, researchers hope to develop a rapid stall-side blood test that could be administered prior to a race, helping racing officials accurately detect horses that may be at an elevated risk.

The funding will also support Penn Vet's sample collection for continued development of an Equine Biological Passport through the expansion of the Equine Pharmacology Laboratory's BioBank. Samples from the BioBank are analyzed to determine baseline levels of blood-based biomarkers found in racehorses. Once established, these baseline levels can be used to determine if blood samples taken from a horse pre- or post-race show any variations from baseline indicative of illness, injury or prohibited substances.

“The PHBA is very proud to continue its partnership with Penn Vet by providing an additional grant of $150,000 to fund this incredibly important and timely research program,” said Deanna Manfredi, PhD, a member of the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association's Board of Directors. “This research program has the potential to have a very positive impact on the sport we all love and ensure its continued success through advances in preventing breakdowns, promoting equine health, and enhancing racing integrity.”

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PA Horse Breeders Announce 2YO Stallion Series

Edited press release

Taking the next step in utilizing the state's lucrative Breeding Fund to enhance the breeding industry, the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association has established its first-ever 2-year-old PA-sired PA-bred stallion series, with $600,000 in stakes purses to be offered in 2022.

The series will consist of two stakes races on each of two race days at Parx Racing. One race each day will be open to all 2-year-olds and the other for 2-year-old fillies.

In January, the PHBA Board asked the stallion principals for suggestions on how to enhance the program and build it. The board immediately and overwhelmingly acted on the PA-Sired PA-bred stallion series idea presented by the racing committee.

“This is a collaborative effort between the PHBA and reaching out to people who know best what's the best way to attract new stallions and breed more mares in the state,” said PHBA President Greg Newell. “Part [of this new series] is to have an immediate impact, and part is to encourage people over the next three or four years to breed in the state.”

All registered PA-sired, PA-bred 2-year-olds are automatically eligible. The horse must be registered with the PHBA, and must have been conceived by a registered Pennsylvania stallion. In 2022, there are no nomination, entrance or starter fees.

The first races in the series will be run on Pennsylvania Day at the Races, August 22. The two $100,000 stakes will be contested at 5 1/2 furlongs.

One month later, PA-sired PA-bred juveniles will be running for $200,000 purses on the Pennsylvania Derby Day card, September 24, at a distance of 6 1/2 furlongs.

“I think this is the most exciting thing to happen in the state of Pennsylvania in breeding and horse racing in 20 years,” said Bob Hutt, president of Uptowncharlybrown Stud LLC, which owns and manages Uptowncharlybrown, one of the state's most successful sires. “We will have broodmares staying in Pennsylvania and being bred to Pennsylvania sires, which will only improve the stallion colony as more and more people see what we're doing with the series.

“Other states have done this, particularly Florida, which has done it successfully for 40 years,” said Hutt. “Breeders with eligible Pennsylvania-sired 2-year-olds will get offers, at the 2-year-old sales or after breaking their maidens early. Buyers and trainers are going to be aware that the series races will be coming in years to follow. Now we have a series where we can showcase them.”

The series will expand in 2023 with three days of PA-Sired PA-Bred Stallion Series stakes.

“We're getting [our 2-year-old stakes schedule] moving along faster,” said Newell. “And these races will blend in nicely with the existing PA-Bred stakes schedule.

“This isn't a one-year one-hit wonder,” Newell continued. “Our message is anything with breeding needs to have long-term commitment in order to take the risk. We're really committed to helping our stallion owners and our farms succeed. This is a start. Next year we'll refine it more and we'll keep doing that to improve it.”

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