Tag: The Biz

A document filed late Dec. 2 indicates former trainer Jason Servis may be preparing to enter a guilty plea in the federal drug adulteration and misbranding case against him.

On Dec. 1, co-defendant Dr. Alexander Chan entered a request for a change of plea hearing, which is set to take place on Dec. 5. Chan had been set to go to trial alongside Servis. His likely change to a guilty plea would have meant that Servis would have faced a jury alone.

“The Government and counsel for defendant Jason Servis are currently in discussions regarding a potential pre-trial disposition, which may obviate the need for trial,” read the document in part. 

The document was a request from Servis' attorney for U.S. District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil to grant a one-week adjournment for an upcoming motions deadline. That request for the deadline adjournment has been granted. The trial is currently scheduled to start on Jan. 9.

Servis is facing charges of conspiracy to commit drug adulteration and misbranding, conspiracy to defraud the United States, and and attempt and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

He is accused of having racehorses in his care, including multiple Grade 1 winner Maximum Security, injected with SGF-1000 and clenbuterol for the purpose of performance enhancement, and to direct that veterinary records be edited to conceal those administrations.

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Veterinarian Dr. Alexander Chan, who was set to go to trial next month alongside former trainer Jason Servis, will likely enter a guilty plea next week to federal charges related to racehorse doping.

A scheduling order was entered in Chan's file on Dec. 1 indicating that he will change his not guilty plea before U.S. District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil on Dec. 5 at 2:30 p.m.

Chan had been facing three federal counts relating to the adulteration and misbranding of drugs in connection with his alleged involvement in doping racehorses trained by Servis.

The trial for the pair is slated to begin Jan. 9 in New York.

There were no updates in the public version of Servis' case file suggesting that a change of plea hearing was forthcoming for him as of this writing. Servis will be the last of the co-defendants on his indictment from March 2020 who has not entered a guilty plea, taken deferred prosecution, or been found guilty at trial.

Chan spent time as a regulatory veterinarian for NYRA before going into private practice on the backstretch. He worked for Servis, as did veterinarian Dr. Kristian Rhein, who entered a guilty plea to one felony count and received three years in prison. Rhein implicated Chan at his own plea hearing.

Chan allegedly injected horses with adulterated and misbranded drugs for Servis and altered veterinary records to hide those injections. In wire taps connected to the case, Servis indicated he was using SGF-1000 an almost all of his horses, including Grade 1 winner Maximum Security.

Read our prior reporting about SGF-1000 here and here.

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Santa Anita Park's Classic Race Meeting, which opens on Monday, Dec. 26, will offer horsemen the largest purse structure in Santa Anita's storied 88-year history with significant increases in both allowance and stakes race monies.

Additionally, Santa Anita will again offer fans and horsemen the best winter turf racing in America, as its downhill Camino Real, turf chute and turf oval will provide a wide variety of options for horses sprinting and going a route of ground.

“Our turf is in tremendous condition,” said Chris Merz, Santa Anita Director of Racing and Racing Secretary. “With our downhill and turf chute components, we are pleased to offer the betting public and fans alike a cornucopia of turf racing options. With so much emphasis now on recruiting turf prospects from all over the world, turf racing is more popular than ever before.

“As the meet progresses, we are also going to initiate a $25,000 starter series in March for boys and girls on turf, both long and short. We are of course dependent upon good weather, but we're confident we're going to be able to provide the best turf racing in the country and we're excited to open on Dec. 26.”

Merz also said that significant purse increases will be offered in allowance and stakes races and that for the first time ever, all Santa Anita stakes, on turf or dirt, will carry a minimum purse of $100,000.

“There's no denying that expenses are up, across the board, in all facets of our economy,” said Merz. “Along with the TOC, without whose assistance these changes wouldn't be possible, we're hopeful these purse increases will assist owners and trainers who are paying the bills on the athletes that put on the show. Additionally, we want horsemen to know that all allowance races will now include a “state-bred” provision which means any horse that has won a state-bred race anywhere in the country, is still eligible for a $72,000 first condition allowance here at Santa Anita.”

SANTA ANITA 2022-23 PURSE INCREASES

–All Stakes will have a minimum purse of $100,000

–First Condition Allowance increased from $69,000 to $72,000

–Second Condition Allowance increased from $72,000 to $75,000

–Third Condition Allowance increased from $73,000 to $76,000

–All Open Allowance Races will have a purse of $85,000

With first post time on opening day, Dec. 26, at 11 a.m., Santa Anita will present a total of six graded stakes. Three of them are Grade 1's with a purse of $300,000, the Runhappy Malibu at seven furlongs, the La Brea at seven furlongs and the American Oaks, which will be run at a mile and one quarter on turf.

The remaining three stakes are Grade 2's with a purse of $200,000. The Mathis Mile (turf), the San Gabriel, at a mile and one eighth on turf and the San Antonio, at a mile and one sixteenth.

Entries for opening day will be taken on Dec. 21. For additional information, please visit santaanita.com or call (626) 574-RACE.

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As 2022 enters its final stretch, Wyoming Horse Racing LLC (WHR) is celebrating a record-setting year for Sweetwater Downs in Rock Springs– and for the horse racing industry in the state.

In 2022, the horsemen participating in horse races throughout Wyoming will receive over $8.5 million dollars, shattering records in the state with historic levels of prize winnings, made up from purse money and breeder award monies for horsemen. Those monies are distributed directly to the owners and breeders.

“These new revenues for purses and breeding programs are a great boost to the equine sector and rural economic development in the state,” said Live Racing General Manager and Partner Eugene Joyce of Wyoming Horse Racing. “From the beginning, this effort has been about the horses.”

Horse racing's growth has more than doubled in each of those industry segments since 2018, creating a downstream economic effect for veterinarians, feed suppliers, restaurants, hotels and many others in the communities where horse racing and breeding take place.

“It was my family's honor to reintroduce live horse racing back to Wyoming in 2011,” Joyce said. “Wyoming Horse Racing is thrilled to be a part of something that has completely revived a faltering industry in Wyoming. The sector's recovery is further strengthening our state's agriculture and tourism industries.”

The highlight of the racing season at Sweetwater Downs was Saturday, Oct. 1, 2022, which became the richest day in the history of horse racing in the state, with WHR giving away $297,370 in purses to the horsemen running that day. The Wyoming All Breeds Futurity, a race competition featuring all breeds of horses, offered a purse of $127,820 that day, which was the highest purse for any race in the past 22 years in Wyoming.

“The numbers are telling us that significant growth is taking place in the state's horse industry,” said Nick Hughes, President of Wyoming Horse Racing. “We are meeting that growth with more than $1,000,000 in investments into the infrastructure at Sweetwater Downs for the benefit of the horses and horsemen.” Wyoming Horse Racing committed the funding to the Sweetwater Events Complex Foundation which will go toward capital construction improvements to the facility. “We are proud of the success the industry is seeing and the legacy Wyoming Horse Racing continues to build in the state with horse racing's bright future at the center of our efforts,” Hughes added.

In 2016, Sweetwater Downs ran its first $100,000 race since the inception of historic horse racing. For the ninth year in a row, in 2022, WHR offered the highest purses per race for horsemen.

Wyoming Horse Racing is the proud sponsor of Sweetwater Downs races, and is committed to a responsible approach, fresh focus, a dedication to horse racing and continued stewardship and investment in the hospitality and agri-business sectors in Wyoming.

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