The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) stripped trainer Bob Baffert and the now-deceased racehorse Medina Spirit of their 2021 Kentucky Derby victory, and a new winner was announced Monday.
Following its victory its 2021, Medina Spirit tested positive for betamethasone, which is banned by KHRC on the specific race day but legal in the state of Kentucky, the Associated Press (AP) reported. Baffert later admitted to using an ointment for skin inflammation that he knew contained the steroid, according to the AP. He was banned by Churchill Downs, the racetrack that hosts the Kentucky Derby, for 2 years after the initial positive test in 2021. (RELATED: Medina Spirit Cleared To Run In Preakness, Baffert Admits To Using Ointment Containing Banned Steroid)
Baffert was subsequently banned from New York tracks Belmont, Saratoga, and Aqueduct, by the New York Racing Association, according to the AP.
Bob Baffert suspended 90 days, fined $7,500, Medina Spirit DQed from Kentucky Derby victory. pic.twitter.com/IYquUCWeBN
— Ray Paulick (@raypaulick) February 21, 2022
Churchill Downs also announced on Monday a new victor for the 2021 Derby following the decision from KHRC.
“Today Churchill Downs recognizes Mandaloun as the winner of the 147th running of the Kentucky Derby and extends our congratulations to owner/breeder Juddmonte, trainer Brad Cox and jockey Florent Geroux,” Churchill Downs said in a statement.
The decision makes Brad Cox the first Louisville native to win the Kentucky Derby, according to the AP. Churchill Downs will reportedly give the owners of Mandaloun $1.8 million in belated winnings. (RELATED: Kentucky Derby Winner Medina Spirit Dead After Track Workout)
KHRC also suspended Baffert for 90 days and fined him $7,500 which he plans to appeal, CNN reported.
“I am very disappointed in the ruling,” Baffert told CNN. “It runs contrary to the scientifically proven facts in this case and the rules of the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission.”
The KHRC’s decision makes Medina Spirit and Bob Baffert the second trainer and horse to have the title stripped for banned substances in the Kentucky Deby’s nearly 150-year history, according to the AP.