Reed Saldana | Horse Racing Free Tips

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA)-related rulings from around the country.

Among the key rulings from the last seven days, trainer Philip Aristone has been suspended for a combined 105 days and fined a total $7,500 after two of his horses tested positive post-race for Lamotrigine, a Class A controlled medication under HISA.

According to the National Institutes of Health, Lamotrigine is an anti-seizure, anti-epilepsy drug that is also used off-label to treat other human health issues like acute bipolar depression, fibromyalgia, schizophrenia, and unipolar depression.

Los Alamitos-based trainer Reed Saldana has also been banned for two years and fined $25,000 after one of his horses tested positive post-race for the banned substance, Diisopropylamine, a vasodilator, meaning it can cause blood vessels to open or dilate. Diisopropylamine is also found in commonly used human products like hand sanitizer.

A Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) arbitration body heard Saldana's case, for which he did not engage an attorney.

The next option for covered persons who wish to contest a HIWU arbitration decision is to appeal the result to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

NEW HISA/HIWU STEWARDS RULINGS

The following rulings were reported on HISA's “rulings” portal and through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) “pending” and “resolved” cases portals.

Resolved ADMC Violations

Date: 11/4/2023

Licensee: Jeff Hiles, trainer

Penalty: A fine of $3,000; imposition of 3 Penalty Points. Final decision by HIWU.

Explainer: A possible violation of Rule 3314—Use or Attempted Use of a Controlled Medication Substance or a Controlled Medication Method—on the horse, Blue Devil. This was also a possible violation of Rule 4222—Intra-Articular Injections Within Seven (7) Days of Timed and Reported Workout.

Date: 11/01/2023

Licensee: Steve Krebs, trainer

Penalty: Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of $500; imposition of 1.5 Penalty Points. Admission.

Explainer: For the presence of Guaifenesin—Controlled Medication (Class C)—in a sample taken from Burn The Evidence, who won at Parx Racing on 11/1/23. This was a possible violation of Rule 3312—Presence of Controlled Medication Substance and/or its Metabolites or Markers (Post-Race/Vets' List).

Date: 10/31/2023

Licensee: Ortis Henry, trainer

Explainer: For the presence of Glycopyrrolate—Controlled Medication (Class C)—in a sample taken from Empress Palpatine, who finished second at Finger Lakes on 10/31/23. This was a possible violation of Rule 3312—Presence of Controlled Medication Substance and/or its Metabolites or Markers (Post-Race/Vets' List).

Date: 10/29/2023

Licensee: Michael Ferraro, trainer

Penalty: A fine of $3,000; imposition of 3 Penalty Points. Admission.

Explainer: A possible violation of Rule 3314—Use or Attempted Use of a Controlled Medication Substance or a Controlled Medication Method—on the horse, Princess Sonya. This was also a possible violation of Rule 4222—Intra-Articular Injections Within Seven (7) Days of Timed and Reported Workout.

Date: 09/06/2023

Licensee: Carl James Deville, trainer

Penalty: No penalties. HIWU withdrew its Equine Anti-Doping (EAD) charges.

Explainer: For the presence of Tapentadol and Butalbital—banned substances—in a sample taken from Eurobeliever, who was pulled up and vanned off at Presque Isle Downs on 9/6/23. This was a possible violation of Rule 3212—Presence of a Banned Substance and/or its Metabolites or Markers (Post-Race/Vets' List).

Date: 09/06/2023

Licensee: Philip Aristone, trainer

Penalty: 45-day period of Ineligibility for Covered Person, beginning on January 5, 2024; Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of $5,000; imposition of 3 Penalty Points; Additional 30-day period of Ineligibility for Covered Person, beginning on February 19, 2024, as a result of the accumulation of 6 penalty points.Admission.

Explainer: For the presence of Lamotrigine—Controlled Medications (Class A)—in a sample taken from Jewels in the Bay, who won at Parx Racing on 9/06/23. This was a possible violation of Rule 3312—Presence of Controlled Medication Substance and/or its Metabolites or Markers (Post-Race/Vets' List).

Date: 9/03/2023

Licensee: Debbie Van Horne, trainer

Explainer: For the presence of Phenylbutazone—Controlled Medication (Class C)—in a sample taken from You're the Cause, who won at Emerald Downs on 9/3/23. This was a possible violation of Rule 3312—Presence of Controlled Medication Substance and/or its Metabolites or Markers (Post-Race/Vets' List).

Date: 08/12/2023

Licensee: Faustino Patino Lopez, trainer

Explainer: For the presence of Dexamethasone—Controlled Medication (Class C)—in a sample taken from Night to Remember, who finished third at Emerald Downs on 8/12/23. This was a possible violation of Rule 3312—Presence of a Controlled Medication Substance and/or its Metabolites or Markers (Post-Race/Vets' List Workout).

Date: 08/08/2023

Licensee: Michael Pappada, trainer

Penalty: No penalties. HIWU withdrew its Equine Anti-Doping (EAD) charges.

Explainer: For the presence of Tapentadol—a banned substance—in a sample taken from Truckin Tommy, who finished third at Presque Isle Downs on 8/8/23. This was a possible violation of Rule 3212—Presence of a Banned Substance and/or its Metabolites or Markers.

Date: 08/04/2023

Licensee: Philip Aristone, trainer

Penalty: 30-day period of Ineligibility for Covered Person, beginning on December 6, 2023; Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of $2,500; imposition of 3 Penalty Points. Admission.

Explainer: For the presence of Lamotrigine—Controlled Medications (Class B)—in a sample taken from Field Letters, who won at Penn National on 8/4/23. This was a possible violation of Rule 3312—Presence of Controlled Medication Substance and/or its Metabolites or Markers (Post-Race/Vets' List).

Date: 06/16/2023

Licensee: Reed Saldana, trainer

Penalty: 24-month period of Ineligibility for Covered Person, beginning on July 6, 2023; Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of $25,000; payment of $12,000 of arbitration costs. Final decision of an arbitral body.

Explainer: For the presence of Diisopropylamine—a banned substance—in a sample taken from Ice Queen, who finished third at Santa Anita on 6/16/23. This was a possible violation of Rule 3212—Presence of a Banned Substance and/or its Metabolites or Markers.

Read more on the story here.

Date: 11/05/2023

Licensee: Jose Puentes, trainer

Penalty: Pending

Alleged violation: Medication violation

Explainer: For the presence of Acepromazine—Controlled Medication (Class B)—in a sample taken from J and K Express. This is a possible violation of Rule 3312—Presence of Controlled Medication Substance and/or its Metabolites or Markers (Post-Race/Vets' List).

Violations of Crop Rule

One important note: HISA's whip use limit is restricted to six strikes during a race.

Los Alamitos

Tyler Baze – violation date Dec 8; $250 fine, one-day suspension

J.G. Torrealba – violation date Dec 8; $250 fine, one-day suspension

The post Weekly Stewards and Commissions Rulings, Dec. 5-11 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Reed Saldana, a Los Alamitos Race Course-based trainer who has been licensed since 2017, has been penalized with a two-year suspension and a $25,000 fine after a Dec. 6 Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU) arbitration judgment found him to be in violation of a banned substance rule. This resulted from a positive test for diisopropylamine in one of his trainees, Ice Queen (Cairo Prince), who finished third in a Santa Anita Park starter-allowance on June 16.

Saldana is also on the hook for $12,000 toward HIWU's share of the arbitration costs that resulted from his request for a hearing.

Arbitrator Jeffrey Benz further wrote in his ruling that the connections of the mare (owner 5th Street Stables) must forfeit the disqualified $4,560 in purse winnings.

Saldana, 41, who rode as a Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse jockey between 2007 and 2011 prior to his licensure as a trainer, did not engage an attorney for his hearing and could not be reached for comment prior to deadline for this story. It is unclear if he intends to appeal the arbitration result to a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) administrative law judge, which is the next option for covered persons who wish to contest HIWU arbitration results.

Diisopropylamine is a vasodilator listed as a banned substance by HIWU, which means it can never be found in a covered racehorse. It lacks Food and Drug Administration approval.

Among Saldana's arguments presented at his Nov. 1 hearing were 1) That there was no proof he gave diisopropylamine to Ice Queen; 2) Hand sanitizer containing the prohibited substance was allegedly found and used in the test barn; 3) That there was allegedly accidental contamination by the test barn personnel; 4) That there were issues with the chain of custody during the testing process, and 5) That diisopropylamine is not a vasodilator but is a “secondary amine.”

According to the arbitrator's ruling, Saldana also submitted the following statement for consideration:

“The evidence HIWU has presented is very lacking. NO integrity, NO security, NO proof that the urine sample actually was collected properly, stored correctly or even transported securely. This urine sample MUST be INADMISSIBLE and case needs to be dismissed, to continue to proceed is just a travesty,” Saldana stated.

“We are in a country where we are innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt and the evidence shows no proof of guilt. HIWU has failed to demonstrate Burden of Proof in this matter. HIWU has claimed that Diisopropylamine is a vasodilator when in fact by scientific proof it is not, it is an amine. These false claims and misclassification by [the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act] of Diisopropylamine have cost me my livelihood, has caused stress, emotional, monetary and repetitional damage that I can't ever get back, to continue would just be [an] injustice,” Saldana stated.

After taking testimony from both parties, the arbitrator sided with HIWU's recommended penalties for a first-time anti-doping “presence” finding. Benz noted the key factors in his decision.

“Mr. Saldana argues that alleged errors made in collecting and analyzing Ice Queen's Sample should result in its disqualification,” Benz wrote. “His allegations are vague and unparticularized. The only specific alleged deficiency in the sample collection or custody for Ice Queen was that the Nominated Person was prevented from seeing the collection of Ice Queen's urine…

“HIWU could certainly do a better job of ensuring that the written chain of custody documentation is clearer and that the labs are required to uniformly handle chain of custody issues and documentation,” the arbitrator continued. “Having said that, Mr. Saldana's obligation was to show that the irregularities in the chain of custody that he claims were present had some effect on the outcome of the testing and he was unable to make that showing…

“With respect to his allegation that Mr. Saldana's Nominated Person was prevented from entering the testing barn to observe Ice Queen pass urine, there is no specific requirement in this regard,” Benz wrote.

“In addition, Mr. Saldana's argument that Diisopropylamine is not a vasodilator by virtue of being a secondary amine is false,” Benz wrote.

“As explained by [Dr. Lara Maxwell, a veterinarian and pharmacology professor who testified on behalf of HIWU], drugs such as Diisopropylamine can be classified both in terms of their chemical structure and their pharmacological or medicinal effects on the body.

Diisopropylamine is classified as a secondary amine due to its chemical structure. It is also considered a vasodilator due to its general pharmacological effect, i.e., causing blood vessels or open or dilate. There is nothing inconsistent about the simultaneous application of both categories, which address entirely different properties of Diisopropylamine,” Benz wrote.

“Lastly, and despite the irrelevance of a substance's effects on the Covered Horse to any argument on liability, as addressed by Dr. Maxwell, Diisopropylamine is known to have a performance-enhancing potential in horses due to its status as a vasodilator, which expands blood vessels and 'temporarily decreases the work of the heart.'

“Mr. Saldana also advanced a theory that hand sanitizer used by the [testing personnel] could have caused the positive result found in the Sample because hand sanitizers often contain the prohibited substance found here,” the arbitrator continued. “He adduced no evidence on this point, and HIWU's evidence to the contrary was compelling.”

“First, the evidence was unrefuted that the hand sanitizer used in the testing barn and all relevant areas for the Sample's journey to the refrigerator and the next day to the laboratory did not contain the Diisopropylamine,” Benz wrote.

“Second, the evidence was unrefuted that the [personnel] did not use hand sanitizer and instead used surgical gloves when collecting samples.”

“Third, HIWU's expert Dr. Maxwell testified, on an unrefuted basis, that the active ingredient in hand sanitizer is ethanol and had the horse been contaminated with hand sanitizer not only would it have required a large amount of hand sanitizer to yield the levels of Diisopropylamine found here but ethanol would also have been found in the sample and it was not found here.”

“Accordingly, the Arbitrator finds that hand sanitizer contamination was simply not possible here, and certainly not at all likely,” Benz wrote.

Saldana's career training record is 88 wins and $2.5 million in earnings from 656 starts. His last entrant was on July 1, and through the first half of 2023 Saldana posted a 7-10-9 record from 61 starters.

The Thoroughbred Regulatory Rulings database maintained by The Jockey Club shows two prior drug-related entries for Saldana: A Class 4 phenylbutazone violation in a third-place horse that resulted in a $500 fine at Santa Anita in 2022, and a Class 3 clenbuterol positive that resulted in the disqualification of a winner (but no fine) in 2020 at Los Alamitos.

Saldana's suspension, unless overruled at the FTC level, will run through Aug. 5, 2025.

The post Trainer Saldana Suspended Two Years, Fined $25k After Losing Banned Substance Arbitration Hearing appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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