My Soapbox for Equestrian Writings
Medina Spirit will be laid to rest among legends of horse racing at Old Friends, the Thoroughbred Retirement facility in Georgetown, KY. His ashes will be interred in Old Friend’s Nikki Bacharach Memorial Garden alongside Kentucky Derby Winners Charismatic (1999) and War Emblem (2002), both of whom were retired to Old Friends following breeding careers, as […]
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Two hundred and ninety one days after Medina Spirit crossed the finish line first in the 2021 Kentucky Derby, the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission stewards have overturned his win and disqualified the colt for testing positive for betamethasone after the race. In addition, trainer Bob Baffert was fined $7,500. His lawyers are now appealing this […]
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Medina Spirit’s necropsy was released yesterday and the results are inconclusive, although consistent with heart failure. The 3-year old colt died on Dec. 6 after working five furlongs at Santa Anita Park. The necropsy was conducted by veterinarians and forensic experts at the University of California, Davis. The report only states “sudden cardiorespiratory arrest/cardiac failure” […]
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Medina Spirit collapsed and died after a workout today at Santa Anita, presumably from a cardiac event. The three-year old colt finished first in this year’s Kentucky Derby, but failed a post-Derby drug test, testing positive for betamethasone, an anti-inflammatory steroid used to treat joint pain in horses. “Near the end of his breeze this […]
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Knicks Go barrelled out of the starting gate and never relinquished control of the Breeders’ Cup Classic, laying down a wire-to-wire win. While most handicappers expected Medina Spirit to go after Knicks Go at the start, Medina Spirit broke slowly and never challenged Knicks Go. The 5-year old colt came into this race having won […]
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The “B” sample of Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit has tested positive for betamethasone, at a prohibited level, putting his Derby win in contention. Trainer Bob Baffert chose a laboratory at the University of California, Davis, from a list of approved labs, to perform the second test. In response to the findings, Churchill Downs immediately […]
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Ten horses will contest the 2021 Preakness Stakes, including Medina Spirit, who passed three rounds of pre-race drug tests. There was some debate over whether Pimlico would let the Kentucky Derby winner run, even while officials in Kentucky wait for results from the “B” sample of his blood test, but Preakness organizers announced they would […]
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Could we have another Kentucky Derby DQ? Medina Spirit has failed a post-Derby drug test, testing positive for betamethasone, an anti-inflammatory steroid used to treat joint pain in horses. Betamethasone is not an illegal drug, but Kentucky restricts its use to more than 14 days before a race. The test showed that Medina Spirit revealed […]
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