Daily Racing Form National Digital Edition

Ellis fined, suspended for Masochisti­c positive

- By Steve Andersen

CYPRESS, Calif. – Trainer Ron Ellis has been fined $10,000 and suspended 60 days for Masochisti­c’s positive test for the steroid stanozolol following his second-place finish in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Santa Anita in November 2016.

Ellis said Sunday afternoon that he is considerin­g filing an appeal, pending a conversati­on with his attorney, Steve Schwartz. He described the penalty as “egregious.”

“I’ll meet with my lawyer and explore an appeal,” he said. “I want to explore my options.”

The decision was announced in a one-page ruling released by Los Alamitos stewards Luis Jauregui, Kim Sawyer, and Tom Ward on Sunday. The decision, recently adopted by the California Horse Racing Board, was proposed earlier this fall by stewards Grant Baker, Scott Chaney, and Sawyer, who had presided during hearings on the case in the last year.

Ellis’s suspension runs from Jan. 1 through March 1, and would essentiall­y shut down his stable for the first two months of the Santa Anita winter-spring meeting, which begins on Dec. 26. While suspended, Ellis cannot attend races or be in the stable area.

The ruling stated that Ellis must forfeit his stalls at Santa Anita and remove from the stables all “signage, colors, advertisem­ents, trainingre­lated equipment tack, office equipment and any other property.”

Ellis will not be able to transfer the horses in his care to a family member, or any licensee who has been an employee of his stable in the last year, the ruling stated.

Last December, Masochisti­c had been disqualifi­ed from his share of the BC Sprint purse, $255,000. He is owned by Will Shamlian and Samantha Siegel.

Before the BC Sprint, Masochisti­c underwent three medication tests that are part of the Breeders’ Cup’s protocol. The tests revealed the presence of stanozolol at a trace level. Ellis said in late 2016 that Masochisti­c was administer­ed stanolozol in an effort to add weight and with the expectatio­n that the medication would not be in the horse’s system on Nov. 5, 2016, the date of the BC Sprint.

“We reported it as required and we gave it in the time frame that was suggested,” he reiterated Sunday.

Ellis said Sunday he thought he was dealt with harshly considerin­g he has not had a significan­t medication violation in 37 years.

Steroids are not allowed at any level in post-race tests.

Because of the positive, Ellis was banned from running horses in the Breeders’ Cup at Del Mar last month, while Masochisti­c was barred from running in the Breeders’ Cup. The suspension­s are not in effect for 2018.

Last spring, Masochisti­c finished 13th in the Grade 2 Churchill Downs Stakes on the Kentucky Derby undercard in what was his final start for Ellis. Masochisti­c was taken out of training after the loss and rested at a Kentucky farm.

Masochisti­c was sent to trainer Bob Baffert when he returned to training this fall. Baffert said last week that Masochisti­c is a candidate for the Grade 3 Midnight Lute Stakes at Santa Anita on Dec. 30.

A 7-year-old gelding, Masochisti­c has won three stakes, most notably the Grade 1 Triple Bend Stakes at Santa Anita in 2015. Masochisti­c has won 8 of 16 starts and earned $857,550.

Ellis, 57, has won 1,123 races in his career, which began in 1980 at the age of 20. Among Ellis’s best horses were Declan’s Moon, the champion 2-year-old male of 2004, Rail Trip, Exotic Wood, and Benchmark.

 ?? BARBARA D. LIVINGSTON ?? Masochisti­c tested positive for a steroid after finishing second in the 2016 Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Santa Anita. Trainer Ron Ellis was fined $10,000 and suspended for 60 days.
BARBARA D. LIVINGSTON Masochisti­c tested positive for a steroid after finishing second in the 2016 Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Santa Anita. Trainer Ron Ellis was fined $10,000 and suspended for 60 days.

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