Baffert's horses have won a record six Kentucky Derbies, seven Preakness Stakes, three Belmont Stakes, and three Kentucky Oaks. He told reporters that he would fight the issue "tooth and nail. Mr. Baffert revisited the Derby the next year, sending two top colts, Real Quiet and Indian Charlie, to Louisville. "We live in a different world now. Arthur, the equine medical director, took issue with Petersens legal finding that the CHRBs handling of the case could be declared arbitrary or capricious. His reasoning was that Baffert also administered thyroxine to horses outside of Hollywood Park, where his horses did not suffer sudden deaths. Among them, according to interviews and records obtained by The Post: a push to have the veterinary official removed from office, supported by a trade group with Baffert among its directors. As The Post reported in April, the Jockey Club, an industry group of top thoroughbred owners, then hired the same private agency, 5 Stones Intelligence, to probe suspected dopers. In 1977, as a part-time trainer, he was suspended for a year when one of his horses tested positive for morphine. I felt that we wouldve been dumping this in their lap, that we wouldve been putting them in an unfair position, and that we needed to go ahead and do the difficult thing, quite frankly, which is take responsibility for the decision, Baedeker said. When asked about that plan, attorney Brewster said that in fact 5 Stones did investigate Baffert at the direction of the Jockey Club. I guess I'm more of an "old school" Republican. American Pharoah next won the 140th Preakness Stakes, making six victories in that race for Baffert, who also finished fourth with Dortmund. Baffert won the Derby a third time in 2002 with War Emblem. [14] It was Baffert's fifth violation in 13 months. He's a cheat and an asshole, and I hope Medina Spirit gets taken down and his connections are denied the $1.8 million first-place check. A three-member hearing panel has made the decision to suspend Hall of Fame horse trainer Bob Baffert for one year, effective immediately, the New York Racing Association announced Thursday. Were going to get through it.. [43] At the post-Belmont press conference, Baffert announced he and his wife would be making donations of $50,000 each to the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance, the California Retirement Management Account (CARMA), and Old Friends Equine, all programs for retired race horses; and to the Permanently Disabled Jockey's Fund in memory of a Quarter Horse Jockey named Robert Z. It was later discovered that horses from separate barns had also tested positive. Its so obvious. He appeared in an episode of the TV show Take Home Chef. The winner's share of the $600 purse was $330. On June 2, with the Belmont Stakes a week away, the owner of a feed operation showed up at the CHRB office carrying plant samples he said he found more than a month earlier, the records show. In a hearing in October, the state and attorneys for Baffert and the horses owners stipulated the scopolamine positive was the result of contamination and it would have no performance-enhancing effects. Brewster alleged, without providing evidence, that the Jockey Club directed 5 Stones to investigate anybody who doesnt train for them and wins a lot of races and might run in racetracks they dont run at., You know what the conclusion was? Brewster said of the alleged private investigation into Baffert. Horse trainer Bob Baffert, left, leaves federal court in Brooklyn on July 12. The 74 total deaths since 2000 put Baffert third among trainers. The Jockey Club has a database of thoroughbred breakdowns meaning deaths stemming from track injuries but said it is barred from sharing its data because of its contracts with racetracks. Baffert told investigators he used the drug for about five years to build up his horses, which Arthur noted was unusual because it was typically used to slim them down. The attorney generals office referred all questions to the CHRB. Pegram persuaded Baffert to try thoroughbreds. Baffert went to federal court and had the suspension overturned, but NYRA has called a scheduling conference on the trainer for Oct. 11. The ARCI rules are recommendations, the associations president, Ed Martin, said in an interview. Justify faced disqualification from his victory in the Santa Anita Derby that would cost his owners a partnership of wealthy interests their share of the $600,000 first-place purse. But in 2018, Arthur was still on the job when another Baffert-trained horse tested regulators willingness to challenge him. Grays office told the committee that removing Dr. Arthur from his position, while intentional, is not the sole purpose of the bill, records show. His most serious infraction was also his first. Baffert's history in the American classic races began in 1996 when he trained a three-year-old colt named Cavonnier, who ran second in the Kentucky Derby. They had a son in 2004 whom they named "Bode" (/bodi/ BOH-dee), after skier Bode Miller. Baffert failed in multiple attempts in Kentucky to overturn the track's ban or the start of his suspension, which began April 4. Currently, his major coverage area is horse racing, where he can be found at big races at Santa Anita, the Triple Crown series and Breeders Cup. In a recent interview, Arthur described his findings as damning for Baffert, in particular analysis in his report showing that, over a six-year period, Bafferts horses were nine times more likely to die of sudden death than the average trainers. Another person who came to Bafferts defense was his former assistant Tim Yakteen, who now runs his own stable. On June 9, Justify won the Belmont and the Triple Crown. In the next six months, three of his horses tested positive for banned or excessive substances four times in California, Arkansas and Kentucky. In his claustrophobic and cluttered office at Santa Anita Barn 5, Bob Baffert, the hall of fame trainer, was pushing papers and moving stacks, hunting for a faded photo of his 17-year-old self aboard a long-forgotten quarter horse from a small racing circuit in Arizona. Baffert's attorney argued in court that the trainer's May suspension by the New York Racing Assn. He has often blamed drug positives on trace contamination from substances in a horses barn and has criticized tightening restrictions on the race-day use of bute and other drugs. In 2015, he trained American Pharoah, the first horse to win the Triple Crown since Affirmed in 1978.. Horse trainer Bob Baffert on Monday argued that Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit had been a victim of "cancel culture" after the horse failed a postrace drug test . Hes good.. Another day passed before it was discovered the colt was administered a topical ointment for a rash that contained betamethasone. California keeps track of horse deaths by trainer, but there are errors and limits to the data. Two months later, the PAC contributed $2,000 to Grays successful election committee. Between November 2011 and March 2013, however, Baffert had seven of his horses die of sudden death, not on the race track. He married his second wife, Jill, a former television reporter based in Louisville, in 2002. In an op-ed for The Washington Post, Baffert wrote that reforming racing was not just necessary to the sports survival but the only moral path forward. Gray declined to be interviewed for this story, instead issuing a statement declaring that the personal vendettas of others, perceived or otherwise, play no roll [sic] in the legislation I carry. His spokesman added that campaign contributions do not affect Grays policy proposals. The way this case was handled was out of respect for Justify., On the afternoon of April 18, 2018, Arthur learned that Justify and another Baffert horse, Hoppertunity, had tested positive for scopolamine. [25][26] On June 14, 2021, Baffert sued the NYRA alleging the association had no authority to suspend his license and that suspension "without prior notice" was a violation of the law. Baffert said the horse was off the drug for 18 days before the race. Horse trainer Bob Baffert, left, leaves federal court in Brooklyn on July 12. There are no secrets on the backside.. Only once has a Kentucky Derby winner been disqualified for a medication violation. But in 2019, he was banned from Santa Anita Park and affiliated tracks after four of his horses died there in six months. Has his success made people hate him more? LOS ALAMITOS, Calif. High Connection won the $125,000 Los Alamitos Derby by 1 3/4 lengths Saturday, giving trainer Bob Baffert his second victory on the card in his return to competition after serving a 90-day suspension. This pattern has bred frustration among some horsemen. It elicited little notice; racehorses die by the hundreds per year in California alone. The Baffert who snubbed me on April 29, 2010, that is the real Bob Baffert, not the glib, seemingly affable chap heretofore seen in TV interviews. Once again, the Hall of Fame. Does the drug that could strip Medina Spirit of a Kentucky Derby win enhance performance? When the CHRB also decided to run DNA tests on the horses blood samples, the records show Arthur said the request would be a big deal and asked if they could wait until after the Preakness, which was 10 days away. The drug was again betamethasone, and Baffert again expressed shock and vowed to clear his name. Baffert is a three-time winner of the Kentucky Derby, and has several top prospects for the May 5 race. The public backlash, including a letter written by a gay. [8] As of 1January2022[update] the question of whether the horse would join Dancer's Image by being disqualified for a drug violation in the Derby remains pending. To the newspaper, she. Baffert is America's pre-eminent active trainer. In correspondence with the agencys lawyer, Baedeker wrote that because our staff failed to act in a timely manner, the horses, trainer, owner and others could be harmed unjustly if they didnt use the more lenient classification. Great Read: Bob Baffert has come a long way in horse racing, Santa Anita opens Friday as prelude to Breeders Cup at Del Mar, Surging Crespi receives another strong performance from sophomore Diego Velazquez, High school baseball and softball: Fridays scores, With Marcus Morris sidelined, Clippers look to stabilize lineup and rotations, With their playoff lives at stake, Darvin Ham challenges Lakers effort and urgency. The deadliest period came between 2000 and 2005, when 34 of Bafferts horses in California died. The testing levels have become ridiculous, Baffert told a conference of racehorse veterinarians during his keynote speech in 2000, according to a trade publication. Baffert, however, wouldnt change the outcome. For every Baffert defender, you can find someone on the other side. He declined to answer further questions. Garcia left California horse racing the next year, according to CHRB records; he could not be reached for comment by The Post. He started at The Times in 1980 and left in 1995 to be sports editor of the Chicago Tribune and Tribune Co. sports coordinator in 2002. The majority of the deaths in Bafferts care are attributed to breakdowns, though others have died suddenly without explanation and some of the horses suffered illness including his most recent death, Noodles, in May where pneumonia was the suspected cause. In winning the 141st Kentucky Derby, bringing his total number of victories in the race to four; Baffert also ran the third-place finisher, the previously undefeated colt Dortmund. [24], On May 17, 2021, the New York Racing Association (NYRA) banned Baffert from entering Medina Spirit or any of his other horses in the 2021 Belmont Stakes or any other race at Belmont Park. Please answer some questions in this short survey about professional soccer and the 2022 Men's FIFA World Cup. Clark Brewster, a nationally known trial attorney who represented adult film actress Stormy Daniels in her defamation suit against President Trump, will be Bafferts attorney in any litigation against Churchill Downs. While he allowed that the case was handled differently because of the Triple Crown ramifications, the special treatment had nothing to do with the horses trainer. See, I bet you didnt know I was a jockey? Baffert said. The Eclipse Award winner for Outstanding Trainer in 1997, 1998, 1999, and 2015, Baffert has won 18 Breeders' Cup races, including four editions of the Classic with . And Madeline Auerbach, who later became a CHRB commissioner, had partnered with Baffert in thoroughbred breeding. He claimed the boards cover up cost him damages including the $400,000 difference between the first-place and second-place purses in the Santa Anita Derby. And Bafferts veterinarians were prescribing it at his request without conducting laboratory tests to see whether the horses needed the drug, according to Arthurs later report. In raw numbers, most of Baffert's medication violations were for exceeding allowed amounts of authorized medications such as phenylbutazone, a pain medication commonly administered to horses. Kentucky regulators taped calls without consent with Baffert after Medina Spirit test. And because of that, he has become arrogant as hell. Fellow trainer D. Wayne Lukas attributed Baffert's success to his "extraordinary eye for a good horse" and his management ability in finding the right opportunities for his charges.[5]. Its truly painful when you know what the truth is, Baffert told The Times earlier this week in his first interview on the subject since May. Medina Spirit died after a training session on 6 December 2021 and an ensuing necropsy on 11 February 2022 was inconclusive. In an email Monday, Bafferts attorney, W. Craig Robertson III, referred to the CHRBs initial decision to dismiss the test and a hearing last year in which officials ruled they had no authority to overturn that decision. When Arthur delivered his report in November 2013, the bill to remove him from office was still pending. Baffert trained Lookin At Lucky, co-owned by Mike Pegram, to win the Preakness Stakes in 2010. This America's different." pic . The Post reported this month that Arthur had previously studied a spate of sudden horse deaths in Bafferts barn. Trainer Bob Baffert's ban from racing in New York is over - Associated Press Baffert barred from participating in Preakness Stakes by Maryland commission By Jacob Calvin Meyer - The. Baffert did not have another medication violation for eight years. [19][20] On May 11, Baffert stated Medina Spirit had dermatitis, for which an ointment containing betamethasone was used. But its a lot more difficult when going against a private company, such as Churchill Downs, which can invoke its own penalties. There were at least 39 trainers with more fatalities to their name than Baffert during that period. FILE - In this Monday July 12, 2021 file photo, horse trainer Bob Baffert leaves federal court in the Brooklyn borough of New York. Medina Spirit departed Churchill Downs in a van before dawn on Monday, bound for Baltimore (a horse van, not Jeff Spicoli's VW bus ). But a top veterinary official cleared Baffert, finding that the spate of deaths remains unexplained following a probe that demonstrated the hazards of going after Baffert. Rick Arthur, Californias medical equine director, who the documents show played a central role in the scuttling of the Justify matter, said the only part of the CHRBs handling of the case that disappointed him was the secrecy. Baffert said the horse ingested hay after a groom, who was taking cough medicine, had urinated in the horses stall. In the court of public opinion, hes a big loser, said Barry Irwin, owner of racing group Team Valor and an outspoken critic of race-day medication and Baffert. Between 1997 and 1999, he won the Eclipse Award as outstanding trainer three years running and was voted the 1997 Big Sport of Turfdom Award. The substance was indeed Jimson weed. Every investigation over the past 20 years has reached the same conclusion: no rules or regulations have been violated nor has there been any improper activity on Bobs part., Brewster also said that the vast majority of Bafferts drug-related violations, as tracked by ARCI, shouldnt be counted because they were too old or related to overages of otherwise-allowed drugs in a horse, which he dismissed as like coming to work with too much Advil in your system., Robertson said in an e-mail that [n]o one has done more for horse racing and is better for the sport than Bob Baffert, and he listed various awards the trainer has received, including being inducted into four separate Hall of Fames. Even then, he would not talk about the specifics of the cases against him. Baedeker said this week he changed his mind on not filing a complaint, which would have put the matter before CHRBs Board of Stewards, because he didnt want to pass the buck. And the Breeders Cup, which will be held Nov. 5-6 at Del Mar, has indicated it will soon make a decision on Bafferts eligibility to run in those championship races. Its not often that a sport turns against its biggest star, but Churchill Downs has taken that stand. It sounds like hes deflecting, Gagliano said of Baffert. If you lose 75% of the time, youre considered really, really good. Gray said at the time that the bill also would increase the institutional knowledge of Californias central horse drug-testing lab. This America's different." pic . Gagliano, the Jockey Club president, denied that the group had any knowledge of whom 5 Stones investigated, outside of the eventual indictments. His last day as medical equine director is Wednesday. Rick Baedeker, who was executive director of the CHRB before retiring last year, said the boards decisions were carefully considered to avoid treating Baffert differently than any other trainer. Baffert wants a preliminary injunction that would keep Churchill Downs from denying his horses entry into races there and at Turfway Park, in Florence, Ky., and from "prohibiting him from earning. Robert A. Baffert is an American Racehorse Trainer who trained the 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah and 2018 Triple Crown winner Justify. He also can be found at the Olympics, having just finished the Tokyo and Beijing double, marking his 11th Olympics. Arthur is retiring at the end of June from a job often consumed by the scandals of a single trainer. The owners ultimately abandoned the plan after Bafferts horse, American Pharoah, won the Triple Crown that year, fearing their effort could damage the sport, one of those people said. He claimed that the horse death data provided by the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) was not possible.. [45], Last edited on 11 February 2023, at 14:09, American Pharoah Stakes / FrontRunner Stakes / Norfolk Stakes, Gold Cup at Santa Anita Stakes / Hollywood Gold Cup Handicap, Los Alamitos Futurity / Hollywood Futurity, Starlet Stakes / Hollywood Starlet Stakes, United States Champion Trainer by earnings, American Champion Three-Year-Old Male Horse, American Champion Two-Year-Old Male Horse, "Bob Baffert Has Come a Long Way in Horse Racing", "Baffert nears $300M mark with an all-star stable", "American Pharoah claims first Triple Crown since 1978", "Bob Baffert no stranger to failed drug tests by his horses", "Press Release Racing Museum April 20, 2009", "The last stand of Bob Baffert, horse racing's most successful and embattled trainer", "Medina Spirit's Kentucky Derby win in doubt after postrace drug test", "Kentucky Horse Racing Commission Withdrawal Guidelines Thoroughbred; Standardbred; Quarter Horse, Appaloosa, and Arabian", "Baffert: Meds applied to Derby winner had steroid", "Medina Spirit Tests Positive for Betamethasone", "Baffert says Derby winner Medina Spirit tested positive", "Churchill Downs' Statement in Response to Medina Spirit's Post-Race Test Result Allegations", "Trainer: Kentucky Derby winner faces disqualification due to 'cancel culture', "Bob Baffert asserts Medina Spirit's Kentucky Derby win was valid, invokes 'cancel culture', "Bob Baffert says Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit was treated with ointment that contained steroid", "Baffert Has Turned Medina Spirit Controversy Into a Circus", "Baffert's Leaking Credibility Reaches Saturation Point", "Churchill Downs Inc. suspends Baffert for 2 years", "Trainer Bob Baffert suspended from entering Medina Spirit, other horses at Belmont Park", "New York Racing Officials Suspend Baffert From Belmont Stakes", "Trainer Bob Baffert sues to get New York suspension lifted", "Horse trainer Bob Baffert sues New York racing officials over suspension", "Baffert sues to overturn New York racing ban", "Judge nullifies horse trainer Bob Baffert's NY suspension", "Baffert charged by New York Racing, scheduled for hearing", "Legendary horse trainer charged again following Kentucky Derby scandal", "NYRA Amends Charges Against Baffert to Include Bute Overages", "The Seattle Times | Local news, sports, business, politics, entertainment, travel, restaurants and opinion for Seattle and the Pacific Northwest", "Bob Baffert fined $1,500, Gamine disqualified from third-place finish in Kentucky Oaks", "Here's what we know following Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit's positive drug test", "Medina Spirit Dies of Apparent Heart Attack at Santa Anita", "Baffert Horses Big Part of Sudden Death Spike", "Report on the investigation and review of the seven sudden deaths on the Hollywood Park main track of horses trained by Bob Baffert and stabled in Barn 61", "Cardiac Failure Fatalities Spike in California, Baffert Barn", "Bafferts Make Whopper Of A Donation To Equine Charities", "Bafferts, Espinoza donate Belmont winnings", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bob_Baffert&oldid=1138770123, This page was last edited on 11 February 2023, at 14:09. But Clark Brewster, the attorney representing Medina Spirits owner, Amr Zedan, then contacted The Post and described Baffert as being unfairly maligned. Real Quiet won the Preakness as well, but, like Silver Charm, the horse was denied a Triple Crown win and finished second in the Belmont Stakes by a nose. The previous August, Bob Baffert Racing Stables had donated $1,000 to the TOCs political action committee, California records show. Bob had the personality and he was honest. Baffert did not win another classic race until 2001, when he won the Preakness and Belmont Stakes with eventual Hall of Fame member Point Given. Other trainers seem to navigate just fine.. He has never apologized to the public for trashing the game. Hes a very unique personality, a unique sense of humor. 10, 2022. On a recent afternoon, Baffert appeared largely unperturbed by the firestorm surrounding him when he answered his door in Arcadia, Calif. This is the first Ive learned of it, Baffert responded when told of The Posts finding that he had the highest rate of horse deaths among other top trainers in the state. Bob Baffert has supporters and detractors in how he deals with jockeys By John Cherwa Special Contributor Nov. 2, 2016 4:28 PM PT Bob Baffert, still fresh and snappy after hours of morning. His white hair, tinted glasses and accessibility make him a natural to promote the sport. A recent conversation about the tragedy of horse deaths wended its way back to the defense of his reputation. Many in the racing world wondered how many times can the dog eat your homework? Baedeker and Arthur said in interviews that no matter how it was handled it would have been impossible to resolve the case that quickly. "[10], However, over 30 horses Baffert trained have failed drug tests. The lawyers said that taking into account Bafferts estimate of how many horses he has in his care, a count that differs from the starts data, the number of deaths of horses in Bobs barn is consistent with what would normally be expected from the horse population in general. Starts are regularly used, including by the CHRB, to study the death rates of a trainer. Scopolamine, Baedeker wrote, can be injected but very often is the result of feed or straw that has been contaminated with Jimson weed., Arthur had previously suggested he didnt consider Jimson weed contamination to be a serious threat, writing in a 2016 memo that the likelihood under our current procedures of getting a positive from environmental contamination is rather low. In an interview this week, Arthur said he meant that such incidences were infrequent but said that in California, if you have a scopolamine positive, its going to be associated with Jimson weed thats just the reality of it., On April 26, records show, Arthur emailed CHRB officials that he had talked to Bob and informed him the proceedings would not immediately interfere with Justifys Triple Crown schedule. None of them are considered performance-enhancing in the traditional sense, such as amphetamines or speedballs. When Did threshold change and what were they before?, No amount of betamethasone is permitted in Kentucky races now, Borden wrote. The average death rate for racehorses in California, according to an analysis of more than 5,000 deaths since 2000, is 7.2 per 1,000 starts. [2] His first winner was Flipper Star at Rillito Park on January 28, 1979. Wizards show plenty of heart early but cant find an edge late in Chicago. He has not been in alliance with us, said Hancock, mentioning Bafferts many positive tests and then listing top trainers who have had one or zero positives in their career. A 4/C violation meant minor punishment that wouldnt typically involve disqualifying the horse or redistributing winnings. At the time, she was 42-years-old. By Marty Irby. Baffert's horses have won a record six Kentucky Derbies, seven Preakness Stakes, three Belmont Stakes, and three Kentucky Oaks . Longtime client Mike Pegram explained, "Anybody who walks with that swagger, people are going to love him or hate himhe's a wiseass and irreverent." He got his first big break in 1992 when he won his first Breeder's Cup race with Thirty Slews. My focus will always be on the best care for my horses. Shah, the owner of at least three of the horses, told The Post he had fully trusted Baffert as a trainer and had no reason to suspect that he would harm the horses he loves the horses. Brewster, the attorney, said that Baffert believed the horses had ingested rat poison, traces of which were found in one of them. "[16][17] Nonetheless, Churchill Downs suspended Baffert from entering any horses at their racetrack pending the outcome of an investigation. And he pushes the envelope to the extent that they give their lives for his bank account.. The horse is scheduled to run Saturday in the Awesome Again Stakes at Santa Anita. In each instance, the death is investigated. It didnt take Baffert long to dominate Rillito Park and Prescott Downs in Arizona. No sanctions were issued against Baffert.[40][41]. He has also won the Preakness Stakes five times and the Belmont Stakes once. But until now, those violations, some of which Baffert has succeeded in getting overturned or reduced, have resulted in roughly $20,000 in fines against $321 million in career earnings. It will all be settled by lawyers and judges and that takes time. Bob survived a heart attack in late March 2012 while in Dubai for a world-class race at Meydan. LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - Testimonies have begun in the case of horse trainer Bob Baffert against Churchill Downs. The CHRB ruled it was caused by feed contamination, citing six other horses across four barns who also tested positive. Bafferts record of testing failures threatens public confidence in thoroughbred racing and the reputation of the Kentucky Derby, said Bill Carstanjen, chief executive of Churchill Downs Inc. Given these repeated failures over the last year, including the increasingly extraordinary explanations, we firmly believe that asserting our rights to impose these measures is our duty and responsibility.. Hal Earnhardt, an Arizona car dealer and Bafferts oldest client, introduced him to Pegram, who made his money in fast-food franchising. The new classification simply makes more sense pharmacologically, Arthur wrote. Baffert said in his autobiography it was a combination of ignorance and desperation. ), The records show Arthurs early decisions led to the CHRB veering off its usual course in its handling of the Justify case, beginning with his email to a testing coordinator that read, The scopolamine cases will be handled differently than usual., By the CHRBs own guidelines, the way forward was clear: If a second sample came back positive, the CHRB would file a complaint. (Arthur and those involved with the bill said the actions were unrelated. You could trust him and that never changed.. [34] However, the Kentucky Court of Appeals rejected Baffert's appeal on April 1. Trainer Bob Baffert celebrates after his horse, Authentic, won the Kentucky Derby in September 2020. With private eyes and political muscle, horse racings elite pushed to punish dopers, Bob Baffert, long horse racings irreverent king, sits on a precarious throne, Bob Baffert, banned from racing horses in New York, sues states racing association. Cherwa also contributes general interest stories from Florida.