Tag: The Biz

Four stakes for 2-year-olds – including a pair of graded races – highlight the upcoming Winter Thoroughbred meet at Los Alamitos.

The six-day season is scheduled to begin Friday, Dec. 8 and continue through Sunday, Dec. 17. Racing will be conducted on a Friday-Sunday basis (Dec. 8-10 and 15-17) both weeks. Post time will be 12:30 p.m.

The $300,000-guaranteed Starlet, a Grade 2 for 2-year-old fillies, will be renewed for the 10th time at Los Alamitos Saturday, Dec. 9 one week before the Grade 2, $200,000-guaranteed Los Alamitos Futurity, which was captured by Practical Move in 2022.

Won a year ago by Faiza, the Starlet – like the Futurity – will be contested at 1 1/16 miles.

The other two stakes for juveniles will be run at one mile. The $100,000 Soviet Problem – for fillies – will be offered Sunday, Dec. 10 while the $100,000 King Glorious will be run Sunday, Dec. 17. Both are for 2-year-olds bred or sired in California.

Completing the stakes schedule is the Grade 3, $100,000 Bayakoa Stakes for fillies & mares (3-year-olds & up) at 1 1/16 miles. The Bayakoa will be contested Friday, Dec. 15.

The complete Winter Thoroughbred Stakes schedule:

Saturday, Dec. 9 The Starlet (Grade 2) 2-Year-Old Fillies One & One Sixteenth Miles $300,000-guaranteed

Sunday, Dec. 10 Soviet Problem Stakes One Mile $100,000-guaranteed 2-Year-Old Fillies, Bred or Sired in California

Friday, Dec. 15 Bayakoa Stakes (Grade 3) 3-Year-Olds & Up, Fillies & Mares One & One Sixteenth Miles $100,000-guaranteed

Saturday, Dec. 16 Los Alamitos Futurity (Grade 2 ) One & One Sixteenth Miles $200,000-guaranteed 2-Year-Olds

Sunday, Dec. 17 King Glorious Stakes One Mile $100,000-guaranteed 2-Year-Olds, Bred or Sired in California

The post Futurity, Starlet Top Los Alamitos Winter Stakes Schedule appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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The California Horse Racing Board conducted a meeting on Thursday, Sept. 21, at Cal Expo in Sacramento. Chairman Gregory Ferraro chaired the meeting, joined by Vice Chair Oscar Gonzales and Commissioners Dennis Alfieri, Damascus Castellanos, Brenda Washington Davis, Thomas Hudnut, and Wendy Mitchell.

The audio of this entire Board meeting is available on the CHRB Website (www.chrb.ca.gov) under the Webcast link, accessed through the Media Room tab. In brief:

The Board allocated race dates to Northern California thoroughbreds and fairs for the first nine months of 2024, including six months to Golden Gate Fields (GGF), after industry negotiations and pending legislation prompted The Stronach Group to delay shuttering GGF until late-June 2024.

Date allocations for the final quarter of 2024 will be determined at later meetings after racing fairs decide whether to request dates beyond the normal summer fair season to fill the gap created by the closure of GGF. During any weeks when there is no racing in the north, simulcast revenue will be directed to southern interests under AB 1074, if it is signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

The date allocations begin Dec. 20, 2023, at GGF, through June 11, 2024. Allocations include simulcast-only days. Actual race days will be determined when the Board considers license applications.

The allocations for fairs begin in Pleasanton with the Alameda County Fair (June 12-July 9), then the State Fair at Cal Expo (July 10-July 30), the Sonoma County Fair in Santa Rosa (July 31-Aug. 20), the Humboldt County Fair in Ferndale (Aug. 21-Sept. 10), followed by three weeks of non-allocated dates, then finally the Big Fresno Fair (Oct. 2-Oct. 15).

The Board also approved date allocations for harness racing at Cal Expo from Dec. 26, 2023, through May 7, 2024.

• The Board approved the license of the Pacific Racing Association for a meet at Golden Gate Fields that will operate from Oct. 21-Dec. 11. During this fall meet, GGF will race on Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays.
• The Board approved the license for the Big Fresno Fair for a fair meet in Fresno that will operate from Oct. 6-Oct. 15.
• The Board approved for public notice a proposed regulatory amendment to prohibit the administration of a corticosteroid injection into a high-motion joint of a horse unless diagnostic imaging is performed within seven days preceding the injection. High-motion joints are the metacarpophalangeal, metatarsophalangeal, and carpus joints. Chairman Ferraro said he hopes other racing jurisdictions will follow California's lead in discouraging steroid injections, which can be damaging to a horse's joint, in favor of other medications.
• The Board approved for public notice proposed regulatory amendments pertaining to CHRB occupational licenses and fees.
• The Board approved for public notice a proposed regulatory amendment prohibiting  manipulation of a horse's ear for purposes of controlling the horse when on the track before a race.
• The Board approved for public notice proposed regulatory amendments to prohibit endoscopies and medications administered via hypodermic needles or nasogastric tubes except by authorized individuals.
• The Board authorized Watchandwager.com to distribute $785 in race date charity proceeds, supplemented by $4,714 of Watchandwager.com money, to five beneficiaries.
• Dr. Jeff Blea, equine medical director, reported advancements in technology that eventually will lead to sensors on horses that will measure strides, vitals, and other health indicators.

The post CHRB Awards Golden Gate Fields, County Fairs 2024 Dates appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Stakes-winning trainer Milton Pineda has been issued a suspension totaling 12 years and fines totaling $100,000 by the Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit (HIWU), the enforcement arm of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA).

The trainer had eight runners test positive for the banned substance diisopropylamine, a vasodilator, between June 2 and July 4 of this year. The rulings indicate that Pineda admitted to his rule violations and accepted the consequences; each positive test resulted in a fine of $12,500, and an 18-month period of ineligibility.

Pineda will be eligible to resume training on July 7, 2035.

The affected horses and races are as follows:

• Bella Renella, a 6-year-old mare, tested positive after winning a $20,000 claiming race at Santa Anita on June 2, as well as after winning a $12,500 claiming race at Santa Anita on June 18. Bella Renella has been disqualified from both wins, with purse money ordered returned.
• Flatterwithjewels tested positive after finishing second in a $12,500 claiming race at Santa Anita on June 9; the 6-year-old mare has been disqualified with purse money ordered returned. Flatterwithjewels was claimed by Flurry Racing Stables and trainer Phil D'Amato, but that claim was voided under HISA rules.
• Big Splash won a $16,000 waiver claiming event at Santa Anita on June 10, after which he tested positive. The 4-year-old gelding has since finished third in an allowance optional claiming race at Los Alamitos on June 24; the HIWU ruling disqualifies Big Splash from both the June 10 and June 24 finishes, with purse money ordered returned.
• Chollima won an $8,000 claiming race at Los Alamitos on June 23, after which she tested positive. The 6-year-old mare has since finished second in a $12,500 claiming race at Los Alamitos on July 4; the HIWU ruling disqualifies Chollima from both the June 23 and July 4 finishes, with purse money ordered returned.
• Catbernay tested positive after winning a $10,000 claiming race at Los Alamitos on July 1. The 5-year-old gelding was disqualified with purse money ordered returned, and the ruling also lists Catbernay as provisionally suspended.
• Keep Your Coil tested positive after winning a $25,000 claiming race at Los Alamitos on July 2. The 5-year-old mare has been disqualified with purse money ordered returned, and the ruling lists Keep Your Coil as provisionally suspended.
• Wegonahavagoodtime won a $12,500 claiming race at Los Alamitos on July 4, after which he tested positive. The 4-year-old gelding has been disqualified with purse money ordered returned; the ruling also lists Wegonahavagoodtime as provisionally suspended.

According to Equibase, Pineda has been training since 2019 and has saddled a total of 49 winners, not including those listed above. He also saddled the winners of 55 races at mixed (Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse meets), and one Quarter Horse winner.

Since HISA/HIWU have no jurisdiction over Quarter Horse racing, whether or not Pineda will still be able to train and race Quarter Horses will be up to the individual racing jurisdictions. The trainer has not started a horse since July 4, 2023.

The post HIWU: Milton Pineda Suspended 12 Years, Fined $100,000 For Eight Banned Substance Positives appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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The Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit has suspended trainer Nevada Litfin for a total of five months and issued him a $3,500 fine, according to a ruling posted to the public disclosures section of the HIWU website.

The ruling cites the following violations on the date of Aug. 16, in regards to the horse Dominus Tecum:

• Rule 3313–Use or Attempted Use of a Controlled Medication Method and/or Controlled Medication Substance during the Race Period;
• Rule 3315(a)–Administration or Attempted Administration of a Controlled Medication Method and/or Controlled Medication Substance during the Race Period;
• Rule 3327(b)–Aggravating Circumstances;
• Rule 4220–Controlled Medication Method;
• Rule 4212–Controlled Medication Substances Prohibited During the Race Period – Acetylcysteine (Class C) and Furosemide (Class C); and
• Rule 2230–Possession of a Hypodermic Needle/Syringe.

The violations resulted in a three-month period of ineligibility, a $3,500 fine, and the assessment of 9 Penalty Points. The penalty points resulted in a further 60-day suspension.

On Aug. 16, 2023, Litfin was observed by Minnesota Racing Commission security officers engaging in “actions detrimental to the integrity of racing,” a ruling on the MRC website alleges. That ruling included a summary suspension and cited the following MRC rules:

• 7897.0100 (Prohibited Acts) Subp. 7. Cooperation with Security Officers.
• 7897.0100 (Prohibited Acts) Subp. 17 A. Hypodermic equipment and injectable substances prohibited.
• 7897.0100 (Prohibited Acts) Subp. 20. Possession, administration to, or presence in a horse of a prohibited drug, substance, medication or metabolites, biological product, growth hormone, hormone releasing, venom, or synthetic analog of venom.

No updated ruling has been issued by the Minnesota commission.

Litfin had already surpassed his best year by earnings and his 21 victories from 139 starts  in 2023 equaled his highest number of wins. At the time of the ruling, he was tied for sixth by wins in the Canterbury Park trainer standings.

Horses Litfin had entered prior to the summary suspension were listed as stewards scratches.

The post ‘Actions Detrimental’: Nevada Litfin Suspended Five Months By HIWU appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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