The Biz | Horse Racing Free Tips

Oklahoma And Texas Announce Hair Testing Partnership For Quarter Horses This Fall

The following press release was distributed by the Oklahoma Quarter Horse Racing Association–

The Oklahoma Quarter Horse Racing Association will partner with Will Rogers Downs and Lone Star Park to administer the collection of hair testing samples for the 2022 Fall Quarter Horse season at each track.

This will be the second year that Will Rogers Downs has required a negative hair test prior to entry. Lone Star Park made an announcement in the spring that they intended to implement the same procedure at Lone Star Park this fall. OQHRA has successfully implemented the program in Oklahoma and has agreed to assist Lone Star Park in building their program. With support from the TQHA and the Texas Horsemen's group, OQHRA will oversee the program at Lone Star in 2022, while also training their personnel, who will continue the program in future years. The OQHRA Board of Directors are very passionate about improving the integrity in the racing industry and feel fortunate to help other states as we all work towards what is best for the industry nationwide.

Along with the partnership between OQHRA and the racetracks, both Will Rogers Downs and Lone Star Park have agreed to use the same test results so horsemen will get a “two for one” special. For $240 (on-site fee) horsemen can have the hair tested and the results will be reciprocated by both tracks, making the horse eligible for entry at both places. With Lone Star Park running on Friday and Saturdays and Will Rogers Downs moving to a Sunday, Monday, Tuesday schedule, we hope this allows for more racing opportunities for the horsemen.

Also new for the fall, hair tests will now be good for 90 days. All horses would have to be re-tested before the 90 days have passed to remain eligible, regardless of whether they have started in a race or not. Horses that qualify for Futurities and Derbies at Will Rogers Downs will be required to have a negative hair test between the trials and finals. Test results can take up to 10 business days for a negative test (some instances it may take longer), with the extended good through time, horsemen are encouraged to test early. Results must be back before a horse is allowed to enter, no exceptions.

Because of the unique circumstances with the testing window for opening weekends, the OQHRA testing crew will be traveling to Ruidoso Downs and Retama Park. Anyone needing a horse tested at Ruidoso Downs for the Lone Star or Will Rogers meet will need to schedule for Aug. 3 & 4, these will be the only days testing is conducted at Ruidoso Downs. For horses at Retama Park you can schedule Sunday, Aug. 7, Monday, Aug. 8 and Tuesday, Aug. 9. Any horses stabled on track or that wish to haul in to Retama will be able to have their hair tested then. It is possible additional days will be added at Retama the following week if needed.

On Aug. 11 the team will set up the first of two offices as they begin testing for the Will Rogers meet. The first four days of testing at WRD will be Thursday, Aug. 11 and Friday, Aug. 12, followed by Aug. 18 and 19. The second office will be set up on Monday, Aug. 22 at LSP and testing will take place that Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning Aug. 23. At that point the normal testing schedule will be Mon/Tue at Lone Star Park and Thur/Fri at Will Rogers Downs.

For horses not at Lone Star Park, Will Rogers Downs, Ruidoso Downs or Retama Park, there is the option of testing off-site at another track. The collection must be done by a veterinarian working under the auspices of the State Racing Regulator. A complete schedule with times and location for August and September, hair testing information and off-site testing information will be available at oqhra.com soon. Schedules and information will also be available in the racing offices for both tracks.

The cost for an onsite test is $240. For offsite tests the cost is $275 plus vet fees and shipping. To schedule for either track or for more information text or call the OQHRA hair testing hotline at 405-881-5120. Scheduling will be open Monday through Friday 9:00-5:00 starting Monday, July 25th

The post Oklahoma And Texas Announce Hair Testing Partnership For Quarter Horses This Fall appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Record Wagering, Capacity Crowds Kick Off 2022 Season At Del Mar

The eagerly anticipated return of word-class Thoroughbred horse racing at Del Mar did not disappoint, as record wagering and capacity crowds highlighted opening week, which kicked off on Friday, July 22.

Racing fans from around the country and around the world celebrated that Del Mar was back Friday wagering $23.56 million, a record for an opener at the shore track. They didn't let up on Saturday and Sunday either and for the three-day weekend Del Mar finished up with a robust daily average handle of $22.35 million, another Del Mar record.

Opening Day on Friday brought in a sold-out house of 21,680 with the venue's capacity limited to provide a comfortable guest experience. The festive crowd on hand enjoyed room to roam, to cheer and to savor a special day at the races with gorgeous weather and sea breezes providing the perfect backdrop. Balnikhov, ridden by Umberto Rispoli and trained by Phil D'Amato, weaved through traffic and drew clear to win the Opening Day feature, the Oceanside Stakes, for owners Little Red Feather Racing, Madaket Stables and Old Bones Racing.

The track's Pick 4 and Pick 5 bets regularly surpassed the $1-million mark in their pools, making them prime targets for multi-bet players. Del Mar officials indicated that field size, 10.6 runners per race, was one of the leading drivers for the record handle.

“We hoped for this kind of beginning, but it turned out even better than we thought,” said Del Mar Thoroughbred Club president Josh Rubinstein. “We've gotten terrific support from our horsemen and horsewomen, from racing fans across the country and, of course, from the horses themselves, the amazing athletes who run here. Our team feels really good about our racing surfaces and our racing office put together three spectacular programs on consecutive days to get us off to a great start.”

“Del Mar continues to showcase the very best of California racing,” said Gary Fenton, Chairman of the Thoroughbred Owners of California. “We look forward to continuing to work with the Del Mar team to highlight all the work, effort and investment that goes into putting on world-class racing in the state.”

After its three-day opening week, Del Mar will return for a seven-week run of Thursday-thru- Sunday racing that will take it up to and including Labor Day weekend. It then will finish out with a three-day final week of Friday-thru-Sunday, September 9, 10 and 11.

The post Record Wagering, Capacity Crowds Kick Off 2022 Season At Del Mar appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Fishman Files Appeal Of Conviction, 11-Year Sentence

Former veterinarian Seth Fishman, who on July 11 in federal district court in New York City was slapped with an 11-year prison sentence after his conviction on two felony counts of drug adulteration and misbranding, filed a notice of appeal July 22, according to published reports.

Fishman appealed his case, both his conviction and sentencing, to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

Fishman and his former assistant Lisa Giannelli are the only ones to go to trial from 31 people indicted on doping charges in 2020. Giannelli was found guilty May 6 of one conspiracy count and scheduled for sentencing in September.

While nearly all the others have pled guilty, three of them, including former trainer Jason Servis and New York veterinarian Alexander Chan, will have a jury trial January 9, 2023.

Former trainer and co-defendant Jorge Navarro, who entered a plea agreement last year, is serving five years.

Thus far, Fishman's sentence is the longest imposed among the doping defendants.

The post Fishman Files Appeal Of Conviction, 11-Year Sentence appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Hearing Officer Upholds Stewards’ Disqualification of R Adios Jersey From Charles Town Oaks

A hearing officer has upheld a stewards' ruling in West Virginia disqualifying R Adios Jersey from her win in the Grade 3 Charles Town Oaks last Aug. 27 at Charles Town. The filly, trained by Georgina Baxter for owners Averill Racing LLC and ATM Racing, was placed last and stripped of her portion of the purse, while Baxter was fined $1,000 after the horse tested over the limit for the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory flunixin meglumine (known commercially as Banamine).

A report from hearing examiner Jeffrey Blaydes summarizes the testimony presented in Baxter's appeal case. The report indicated that the initial test from the horse revealed a Banamine level of 1,121 nanograms/ml of blood. A split sample test, performed by the New York Drug Testing and Research Laboratory, came back with a level of 985 ng/ml. The permitted level in West Virginia is 20 ng/ml. A DNA test on the blood sample later confirmed that it came from R Adios Jersey.

The hearing officer's report indicates that Baxter tried to argue there are mitigating circumstances in the case because she was not given a stall in the receiving barn at Charles Town. Baxter shipped the filly in from her base in Florida, and said she was told by assistant racing secretary Anna Hibbard that the receiving barn was closed and she would have to find her own stall somewhere else. When testifying before the hearing officer, Hibbard said she did not recall discussing the status of the receiving barn with Baxter and denies that she would have told Baxter to find her own stall.

Baxter ended up stabling R Adios Jersey with John Carlisle. The report indicated the track did install cameras in Carlisle's barn but “they produced no relevant views or information concerning the multi-day stabling of R Adios Jersey.”

The filly ran in the Oaks after spending five days in Carlisle's barn. Baxter and Bernie Hettel, who testified for her at the stewards' hearing and appeal hearing, asserted that it was possible Carlisle's barn was not subject to the same security measures as the receiving barn, and it was possible the horse was more likely to encounter Banamine there.

Blaydes wrote that “at no time during the multi-day stabling of R Adios Jersey in Barn 18 did Baxter question the track's security measures; question the condition or ongoing treatment of neighboring horses with Flunixin; or request for the horse to be moved to another stall.”

Further, the report indicated, while Baxter denied that she or her representatives treated R Adios Jersey with Banamine, they did not dispute that the horse had tested some 50 times above the threshold or that the sample came from the identified horse. In such cases where the drug positive itself is not disputed, Blaydes wrote that any mitigating circumstances are not applied to a horse's disqualification.

“If the commission were to allow Baxter to keep the winner's share of the purse despite the undisputed drug violation it would be the first and only time such an action would be taken by the commission,” the report read.

“The amount of Flunixin in R Adios Jersey was approximately fifty times the permitted amount. And, although neither the stewards nor the commission alleges that Baxter intentionally administered the drug to the horse to gain an advantage in the race, the fact remains that Flunixin can have such a result because it masks pain. Also aggravating is the fact that, since 2018, Baxter has accumulated six drug violations in the state of Florida, five of which involved Flunixin.”

The post Hearing Officer Upholds Stewards’ Disqualification of R Adios Jersey From Charles Town Oaks appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post