Bob Baffert - Wikipedia Nine died in 2000, all but one from breakdowns. If they didnt adopt those rules, the rules that prevail are the ones they adopted.. [18] Baffert responded by saying the situation "was like a cancel culture kind of a thing," a remark which earned him noticeable criticism from the press. The owner was Kaleem Shah. On July 15, 2020, Deputy Attorney General Robert Petersen sent his initial case assessment to Brodnik. Horse-racing deaths, like much of the sport, are shrouded by a disjointed bureaucracy. Both trainers were fined $500. The horse is scheduled to run Saturday in the Awesome Again Stakes at Santa Anita. As the trainer battles to protect his legacy, the records offer a new window into how those charged with running horse racings disjointed regulatory system have appeared to treat the powerful trainer with deference. . 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. 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. Arthur called Bafferts blanket use of thyroxine troublesome and said at the meeting, I havent found an example of a barn that uses it in all their horses like Baffert does. Yet he determined that the drug wasnt to blame for the deaths. Arthur is the CHRBs primary advisor on drug testing, according to state code; the role of determining penalties in individual cases falls to its stewards and commissioners. Bob Baffert blamed "cancel culture" after his horse, Medina Spirit, who won the Kentucky Derby, failed its post-race drug test. Thats the only time I ever had to deal with somebody who tried to go to federal court to stop a state administrative action., Finally, in 2005, after the matter had returned to state court, the CHRB dismissed the suspension after an administrative law judge concluded Baffert had nothing to gain and a great deal to lose by the use of a banned substance on this horse., Baffert further solidified his influence in the ensuing years. In the case of Bafferts recent horse deaths, the records list a typical blend of drugs that have been allowed under certain thresholds, most frequently the anti-inflammatory phenylbutazone (or bute to horsemen) and furosemide (also known as Lasix), which is said to decrease bleeding from a horses lungs. The 77-year-old billionaire made headlines last year when he made a $10,000 contribution to opponents of Houston's Equal Rights Ordinance. A 23-page analysis of that case, sent to the CHRB by a California deputy attorney general in July and obtained by The Post, suggests the states lawyers were concerned about the way the agency responded to the failed drug test. In July 2020, Merneith tested positive for dextromethorphan, a drug commonly used in cough medicine. The groom denied it. But Californias adoption of ARCI guidelines is not a given. Settlement reached over unauthorized Bob Baffert bourbon - The Does the drug that could strip Medina Spirit of a Kentucky Derby win enhance performance? Robert A. Baffert (born January 13, 1953) is an American racehorse trainer who trained the 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah and 2018 Triple Crown winner Justify. . His graded stakes wins include nine wins in the Santa Anita Derby, nine in the Haskell Invitational Handicap, and fourteen in the Del Mar Futurity, a race he won seven straight times from 1996 to 2002, when it was a Grade II event. The quest to find Jimson weed continued. By age 20, he had developed a reputation as a trainer and was hired by other trainers to run their stables. It was an easy suspension to serve as Baffert was in school and not doing much training. According to data provided by the California Horse Racing Board and supplemented by The Times research, the trainer has had 75 horses die since 2000 either racing, training, or by illness or non-exercise accidents. However, Medina Spirit tested positive for the steroid betamethasone. Baffert says he plans to seek legal recourse wherever necessary. California keeps track of horse deaths by trainer, but there are errors and limits to the data. California counts all fatalities of horses in a trainers care, including breakdowns during training, not just racing deaths. I dont see somebody who is doping horses, Martin said after reviewing Bafferts drug-related history. Baffert faces unprecedented scrutiny after a positive drug test marred a win by his horse Medina Spirit at this years Kentucky Derby. Sports team owners make huge political donations. Where does their But after learning that Justify and another Baffert horse had tested positive for the same drug, Arthur announced in an e-mail to CHRB officials: The scopolamine cases will be handled differently than usual. Arthur said in a recent interview that he was referring to the logistics of what was clearly going to be a high-profile case that needed to be handled carefully.. I thought wed get fourth. A A Former President Donald Trump released a statement Sunday about the disputed winner of the Kentucky Derby, saying the controversy reflects the current state of the country. Bell told an investigator he then checked other bales and found a branch and pods he thought were Jimson weed in the parking lot. That was one of the most exciting and enjoyable Derbies, Baffert said. The CHRB provided The Post with death data dating back to late 1990 showing that at least 87 of Bafferts horses have died in California since then. Then, when American Pharoah won the 2015 Belmont Stakes, the win was the fourth attempt at a Triple Crown for Baffert, who at age 62 became the second-oldest trainer to win a Triple Crown.[6]. 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. On May 5, Justify won the Kentucky Derby, upping the stakes of the investigation. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Churchill Downs goes after suspended trainer Bob Baffert with new policy. Trainer Bob Baffert has heart attack in Dubai - CBS News A New York federal judge on Wednesday, July 14, 2021 nullified the suspension of horse trainer Bob Baffert, finding that the New York Racing Association acted unconstitutionally by failing to let him adequately respond to claims made against him after Kentucky . But he said it wasnt clear from the records why the CHRB reversed course on filing a complaint against Baffert. The dark side of Bob Baffert's reign - Washington Post It takes only a minute or so to walk from the racetrack at Santa Anita Park to the barns in back. Baffert said the horse ingested hay after a groom, who was taking cough medicine, had urinated in the horses stall. Hes won seven, more than anyone else in the 147-year history of the race. Unlike a normal day at the races, Bafferts fate will not be decided by a photo-finish camera or the actions of a jockey aboard a 1,000-pound animal. It wasnt long before Baffert was making pocket change riding the horses in match races. "This is emblematic of what is happening to our country. They had a son in 2004 whom they named "Bode" (/bodi/ BOH-dee), after skier Bode Miller. Hell do anything to win, and hes got all his bases covered politically, Barry Irwin, owner of 2011 Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom, said of Baffert. Usually, regulatory agencies do not have the guts to do whats fair and right, Arthur testified during a CHRB hearing in October, and this board made that decision appropriately., He conceded that the lack of transparency was unusual. In response to public records requests in Maryland, New Jersey and Kentucky, officials told The Post that they did not maintain digital records of horse deaths by trainer, instead keeping reams of copies of reports. Theres a recognition that certain substances are normal in equine care, Martin said, but if that horse still requires that, then maybe you shouldnt run the horse., Martin made a distinction between doping horses with banned substances and running them with too much medication. Hollendorfers lawyer, Drew Couto, has claimed his client is being unfairly blamed for a high-profile spike of deaths at the track. Federal prosecutors had just indicted more than two dozen trainers, veterinarians and others on charges related to doping horses, a seismic event in a sport already reeling from a well-publicized spate of horse deaths and perpetually dwindling revenue. View . Instead of promptly filing a public complaint against Baffert, the CHRB kept the positive result secret while Arthur conducted a lengthy investigation. In fact, at some point Id like to get back together with Bob, Shah said. By the April 1 ruling, Baffert had already transferred four 3-year-old colts to other trainers. And Ive warned them that this was not going to stay a secret at the time, he testified of the CHRB, but that was their decision, not mine. (Baedeker, who retired last year, told The Post they couldnt legally disclose the test results because CHRB did not file a complaint.). [42][44] A friend of Baffert's and an inductee into the American Quarter Horse Association Hall of Fame, Adair died on Preakness Day, May 16, 2015, at 71. He also dismissed complaints that doping was rampant in the sport. Baffert was suspended by the NYRA on May 17 -- a big deal as it barred the legendary horse trainer from entering into the prestigious June 5 Belmont Stakes race. Robert A. Baffert is an American Racehorse Trainer who trained the 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah and 2018 Triple Crown winner Justify. What I can tell you definitely is this case was handled differently, and it was handled differently because of Rick Arthur, said Ruiss attorney, Darrell Vienna. 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. Baffert did not have a horse hit the board again in any of the Triple Crown races until 2009, when he trained Pioneerof The Nile to a second-place finish in the Derby. ), 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. Earlier data was unreliable, the racing publication said. LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) A federal judge denied Bob Baffert's request to lift his two-year suspension by Churchill Downs Inc., ruling Friday that the Hall of Fame trainer did not prove its. The month after Gray introduced his legislation, Bafferts seventh sudden death made the deaths at Hollywood Park a national news story. Nonetheless, in that case, Arkansas suspended Baffert for 15 days. Its so obvious. Bob Baffert says Medina Spirit a victim of cancel culture | Lexington Shortly after Petersen sent the analysis of the states chances, the CHRB agreed to settle Ruiss lawsuit. But in this case, Arthur urged a lighter penalty based on his suggestion the CHRB downgrade the drug. Trainer Bob Baffert stands outside his barn at Churchill Downs on May 2, 2016, in Louisville, Ky. Medina . [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. He paused, then added: Ive learned who my friends are.. Were going to get through it.. There are highs and lows and a lot of disappointment. But hes a good person, no, a great person. 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. It didnt take Baffert long to dominate Rillito Park and Prescott Downs in Arizona. This article was published more than1 year ago, LOS ANGELES In March 2020, horse racings most recognizable figure, Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, declared that his sport was in crisis.. When Did threshold change and what were they before?, No amount of betamethasone is permitted in Kentucky races now, Borden wrote. Yes, I'm a registered Republican, although I've voted for Republicans, Democrats, and Independents. Another day passed before it was discovered the colt was administered a topical ointment for a rash that contained betamethasone. Its all right there in black and white; thats all I can say., ARCI President Ed Martin said the rules limiting race-day medications have been tightened not out of concern for performance enhancement but to prevent breakdowns. 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. Gary Fenton, chairman of the TOC, declined to be interviewed. A week after that, Baffert learned of the positive test. [42] He had been paid $200,000 to allow the Burger King to stand behind him in the grandstand during the televised broadcast of the Belmont, after having turned down $150,000 to allow the mascot to appear with him at the Preakness. But in 2019, he was banned from Santa Anita Park and affiliated tracks after four of his horses died there in six months. Baffert has saddled 34 horses in the Derby third-most in history since his first appearance in 1996. (At least one death of a Baffert horse identified by The Post was not included in the agencys data.) Petersen opined it would have been unfair to punish Baffert for what he called an oversight by CHRB staff and said there is no evidence to suggest a nefarious motive by the board. Similarly, cases against two horses who tested positive in Arkansas in 2020 for lidocaine were dismissed as being the result of accidental transfer from an assistant trainer who was using the medication on himself. No horse loving person like Bob or his entire team accepts the reality of a horse death with anything other than sadness and despair, the lawyers said in their statement. But hes Bob, he has to speak his mind.. In 2007, he joined the 15-member board of the Thoroughbred Owners of California (TOC), a nonprofit that represents the roughly 9,000 CHRB-licensed owners in the state. There are no secrets on the backside.. Baffert is a three-time winner of the Kentucky Derby, and has several top prospects for the May 5 race. He finished third in the Derby that year with Congaree. Darrell Vienna, Ruiss attorney, said he would not have agreed to those stipulations but was not allowed to intervene. In each instance, the death is investigated. The legal records, which draw from dozens of emails, memorandums and other materials that have not previously been made public, show how officials delayed action, contradicted their own plans and rewrote existing rules to Bafferts advantage. He won the aforementioned first race at a sanctioned track in 1970, but his mother insisted he attend college and he enrolled in the University of Arizonas Race Track Industry Program. By then, Justify had won the Triple Crown, one of the rarest achievements in sports. Mr. 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 . There is nothing new here, he wrote. And Noodles died May 22 of a non-exercise induced respiratory issue. On at least 14 occasions, Baffert has been caught racing a horse with more than the allowable amount of bute in its system, according to a review of ARCI data, making it his most common offense. Bob Baffert Family, Net Worth, Parents, Wife, Sons, Education And (A CHRB spokesman declined to comment, citing pending litigation. He has won the Kentucky Oaks three times: first in 1999 with Silverbulletday, who was later selected for the Hall of Fame, then with Plum Pretty in 2011 and with Abel Tasman in 2017. Political Cartoons. Baffert also has wielded unmatched clout when regulators have discovered banned or excessive substances in his horses. The winner's share of the $600 purse was $330. Churchill Downs Draws a Hard Line With Bob Baffert "So now even our Kentucky Derby winner, Medina Spirit, is a junky," Trump's statement read. Four months after that, in May 2014, Arthur issued an advisory that the CHRB was concerned by the apparently indiscriminate use of thyroxine and that the drug must be prescribed for a specific horse for a specific condition. Arthur told The Post that the advisory was a result of the Baffert investigation. In the past three years, there were 188 deaths involving either racing or training in California. In a scheme typical of the high-stakes warring behind the scenes in racing, four thoroughbred owners entered talks in 2015 with a private intelligence agency to dig up drug-related dirt on Baffert, according to multiple people with direct knowledge. Grays office told the committee that removing Dr. Arthur from his position, while intentional, is not the sole purpose of the bill, records show. Most were for excessive use of phenylbutazone, a commonly used anti-inflammatory known as bute. Baffert has had two fatalities in the last three years, a low number for a barn of his size. CHRB regulations state that its foreign substances guidelines are based on ARCI recommendations as modified by the state board. Again, we can most likely agree to most anything in Kentucky except a suspension.. He built up his training business a step at a time and acquired some prominent owners. Another person who came to Bafferts defense was his former assistant Tim Yakteen, who now runs his own stable. Bob Baffert: Judge denies his request to lift two-year Churchill Downs It will all be settled by lawyers and judges and that takes time. This included Baffert's home track at Santa Anita, although Baffert horse Shaaz won the sixth race on April 2. [2] His first winner was Flipper Star at Rillito Park on January 28, 1979. LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - Testimonies have begun in the case of horse trainer Bob Baffert against Churchill Downs. Baffert parlayed a hobby as a 5-foot-9 jockey into a job as a quarter-horse conditioner into a career as a thoroughbred trainer before jumping onto the highest pedestal of horse racing and becoming the most recognizable name in the sport. In the settlement, which records show did not include monetary damages, CHRB agreed to file a complaint against Justify. His white hair, tinted glasses and accessibility make him a natural to promote the sport. Now 68, Baffert is seeing his livelihood and reputation under attack after a series of medication infractions have made him an outcast to some in the industry and a pariah to many more outside of it. Monty Roberts, a trainer who has agitated for more humane treatment of racehorses throughout his six-decade career, said that Baffert has long been one of the most important voices holding the sport back from reform. Tinsley declined to comment. Baffert, one of the most legendary trainers in American horse racing, has faced criticism and suspensions after his 2021 Kentucky Derby champion, Medina . Medina Spirit: Bob Baffert again playing victim in drug controversy Thats much higher than the Jockey Clubs widely cited national rates, which never exceed two deaths per 1,000 starts. The public backlash, including a letter written by a gay. After Arthur cleared Baffert of wrongdoing, the legislation was abandoned. [19][20] On May 11, Baffert stated Medina Spirit had dermatitis, for which an ointment containing betamethasone was used. Horse owner and racing reform advocate Barry Irwin has stated, "He's Mr. 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. In 2021, the post-race test of Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit showed 21pg/mL of betamethasone. He has also won the Preakness Stakes five times and the Belmont Stakes once. Baffert won his first race as a thoroughbred trainer Jan. 28, 1979, saddling Flipper Star to a victory at Rillito in Arizona. At least 74 horses have died in Bafferts care in his home state of California since 2000, more than all but two of hundreds of trainers in the state, according to a Post analysis of data and public records. Justify tested positive for scopolamine, an anti-nausea medication said to have potential performance-enhancing effects in horses, after winning the Santa Anita Derby in April 2018. In September, Baffert learned via a text message from Barbara Borden, chief steward for the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, that his horse Gamine had tested positive for the anti-inflammatory betamethasone at the Kentucky Oaks. Early life and career [ edit] He also can be found at the Olympics, having just finished the Tokyo and Beijing double, marking his 11th Olympics. Arkansas racing officials vote not to suspend Bob Baffert - ESPN.com LOS ANGELES In 2018, as star trainer Bob Baffert led his thoroughbred Justify to the Triple Crown, California regulators embarked on a secret effort to exonerate Baffert after the horses positive test for a banned substance, according to confidential records obtained by The Washington Post that fully detail the saga for the first time. The month after that, Grays bill to limit Arthurs term was passed out of a committee. FILE - Trainer Bob Baffert walks out to the winner's circle after the Brooklyn Invitational Stakes horse race at Belmont Park, Saturday, June 9, 2018, in Elmont, N.Y. . In 2000, for instance, another of his horses, Nautical Look, tested positive for morphine, landing Baffert a two-month suspension. Officials worked secretly to clear Bob Bafferts Justify amid 2018 Triple Crown run, records show. Baffert was inducted into Lone Star Park's Hall of Fame in 2007, and in 2009, he was nominated and inducted to the National Museum of Racing's Hall of Fame, the same year as a filly he trained, Silverbulletday. 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. I think much of the GOP political party is moving too far to the right. 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. This in turn led to a ban from all California Horse Racing Board facilities beginning April 4 due to a rule removing any trainer under a 60 day or higher ban from all CHRB facilities. [2], Baffert graduated from the University of Arizona's Race Track Industry Program with a Bachelor of Science degree,[3] got married, and began training quarter horses at a Prescott, Arizona farm. After Uncle Sam, a 4-year-old colt, died during a workout at the track the following January, a vet wrote: This is the 3rd for this owner/trainer in about as many months collapsed and died.. 10, 2022. Regulators taped calls without consent with Baffert - Los Angeles Times But in 2018, Arthur was still on the job when another Baffert-trained horse tested regulators willingness to challenge him. Between November 2011 and March 2013, however, Baffert had seven of his horses die of sudden death, not on the race track. 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. In New York, chefs are redefining it. EXPLAINER: Why Is Bob Baffert Not in the Kentucky Derby? The Judge made her ruling based on the NYRA having not allowed Baffert a forum to refute their claims and stated that (they the NYRA).."had held no hearing let alone a prompt one. He's saddled. Robertson blamed the frequency of Bafferts drug-related violations on how often his horses are tested after winning races and said, Horse racings regulations need to catch up with the sensitivity of modern day testing., Jockey Club President James L. Gagliano dismissed that frequent complaint from Baffert. Has his success made people hate him more? Theres one thing that I will say positive about Bob is that he is a horseman. Kentucky regulators taped calls without consent with Baffert after Medina Spirit test. [11], Prior to Medina Spirit's death, Baffert had last been under intense scrutiny a decade earlier when seven horses in his stables at Hollywood Park died between November 2, 2011 and March 14, 2013, all from sudden and later unexplained heart attacks. [35], The most notable cases prior to Medina Spirit's test was the disqualification of Gamine after a third place finish in the 2020 Kentucky Oaks, also for betamethasone,[36] and Triple Crown winner Justify, who tested positive for scopolamine after winning the 2018 Santa Anita Derby, but the results did not become public until after the horse won the Triple Crown. John Cherwa is a special contributor to the Los Angeles Times. It seems the biggest problem trainer Bob Baffert had during the running of the $300,000 San Felipe Stakes on Saturday was keeping his face covering over his nose. And Madeline Auerbach, who later became a CHRB commissioner, had partnered with Baffert in thoroughbred breeding. Churchill Downs announced that any points earned in the leadup to the Kentucky Derby by horses associated with a suspended trainer would not be counted a move that seemingly targets Hall of Famer Bob Baffert. Anybody who walks with that swagger, people are going to love him or hate him, Pegram said. There wasnt any question in my mind, he said recently. Racing officials ruled that the positive test was a result of contamination and the wins of Charlatan and Gamine were restored. Time after time its not his fault. But by August, the plan had changed. The California Horse Racing Board cleared Baffert of any wrongdoing, but with reservation, calling such a cluster of deaths a less than 1-in-1,000 occurrence. Biography Bob Baffert is best known as a horse rider. 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. Arthur said the TOC was behind the effort to oust him because of his criticism of Lasix. 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.