Suspension

Citing Section 910 of the New York Racing, Pari-Mutuel Wagering and Breeding Law, the New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) has announced that it will honor the 90-day suspension handed down to trainer Bob Baffert and that the conditioner is "prohibited from participating in any New York State horse racing activity through at least July 2, 2022." Section 910 reads: "§ 910. Reciprocity of licenses. All license denials, suspensions and revocations imposed by the pertinent racing and gambling authorities of other jurisdictions, including states, United States territories, and Canadian provinces...

Officials at 1/ST, the consumer-facing brand of The Stronach Group--parent company of a portfolio of several California racetracks and/or training facilities--have issued a statement in the aftermath of the 90-day suspension handed down to trainer Bob Baffert. The statement, in its entirety, reads: "The California Horse Racing Board announced on Saturday, Apr. 2 that "[trainer Bob Baffert is now suspended pursuant to CHRB Rule 1484]."  California has thus reciprocated the suspension against Bob Baffert imposed by the Kentucky Racing Commission, which will begin on Apr. 4, 2022. Because of the...

Following an incident in which a 1-20 shot he trained and owned was pulled up and eased shortly after the start of a March 10 maiden claimer at Turf Paradise, stewards at that track have hit trainer Juan Silva with a 180-day suspension and a $2,625 fine. The stewards have forwarded the ruling to the Director of the Arizona Department of Racing with a recommendation that further action be taken "up to and including revocation of Silva's license." Silva was charged with "conducting business in a manner detrimental to the...

With the clock ticking toward the Apr. 4 deadline for trainer Bob Baffert's looming 90-day suspension, a Kentucky Court of Appeals judge now wants to figure out whether the original venue chosen for legal action last month by the owner and trainer of disqualified 2021 GI Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit constitutes the correct county-level court. Dick Downey of the Blood-Horse first reported on the judge's order requesting briefs from the movants (Baffert and Zedan) and the respondent (the KHRC) covering just that single issue to be filed with the...

Mychel Sanchez's 60-day suspension for betting against himself is about to end, but that doesn't mean the jockey will be back in action any time soon. After being suspended for 60 days by the Pennsylvania Racing Commission, Sanchez is eligible to ride Tuesday, but Parx management did not allow trainers to name him on horses on Wednesday when entries were taken for next Tuesday's card. "We tried to name him on horses for Tuesday after his suspension ends and they would not accept anyone naming him on a horse," said...

The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) voted 10-0 Friday to deny stays of penalties while trainer Bob Baffert and owner Amr Zedan appeal their equine drug positive rulings related to Medina Spirit's disqualification from the 2021 GI Kentucky Derby. One of Baffert's attorneys, W. Craig Robertson III, told TDN after the vote that the decision was "very disappointing." He added that "I have never seen the KHRC not grant a stay in the past. We will take the matter back up with the Franklin Circuit Court on Mar. 17." Robertson...

When it was revealed that jockey Mychel Sanchez had gone on a betting spree that included wagers where he bet against the horses he was riding, his attorney Alan Pincus argued that this was not a matter of race fixing. Rather, Pincus said, Sanchez had turned to gambling as an outlet to combat his depression, let things spin out of control and in all cases did his best to win, even when it meant he might beat a horse he had bet on. "He was just doing something crazy that...

The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) has denied trainer Bob Baffert's request for a stay of a 90-day suspension handed down to him earlier in the week for Medina Spirit (Protonico)'s betamethasone positive in the 2021 GI Kentucky Derby. The KHRC also denied a stay of its decision to disqualify Medina Spirit from first place in last year's GI Kentucky Derby. The Louisville Courier Journal and the Daily Racing Form were among the first to report the story. In most circumstances, once a trainer or owner has appealed a racing...

Trainer Marcus Vitali, whose career has been plagued by numerous suspensions and controversies, has been suspended for one year and fined $10,000 by the Pennsylvania Racing Commission after a horse he trained named Single Lady (Shanghai Bobby) tested positive for d-methamphetamine. He was also hit with six multiple medication violation points. The infraction occurred on Aug. 21, 2021 at Presque Isle Downs in a maiden special weight race won by the Vitali-trained filly. The horse is owned by Crossed Sabres Farm. The story was first reported by the Paulick Report....

The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has placed an interim suspension on the licence of trainer Sir Mark Todd following the publication over the weekend of a video showing him striking a horse with a branch for refusing at a water obstacle. Investigations are ongoing into the circumstances surrounding the events depicted in the video made two years ago during a cross-country clinic at which Todd was teaching. Until that process is complete Todd will be unable to enter horses to race in Britain.  A statement released by the BHA on...

Bob Baffert testified for about 3 1/2 hours in Thursday's hearing to determine whether the New York Racing Association (NYRA) can exclude the trainer over alleged "detrimental conduct." Much of the testimony consisted of exchanges between the Hall of Fame trainer and NYRA attorney Hank Greenberg, whose attempts to rattle Baffert were largely unsuccessful. The Hall of Famer stuck to what has been the narrative from his team since the issues of his repeated medication violations first arose--that each offense involved mitigating circumstances that explain why he wasn't deserving of...

Jockey Mychel Sanchez, who has been suspended 60 days by the Pennsylvania Racing Commission for betting on horses other than the ones he rode, is not a cheat or a race-fixer, his attorney told the TDN Friday. Rather, said lawyer Alan Pincus, Sanchez was dealing with a serious case of depression and took to gambling as an outlet. Pincus said that in all instances Sanchez tried his best to win the races in question, whether he had bet against his own horse or not. "It was clear he was giving...