Why Hall of Fame trainer Baffert isn’t at the Derby
Bob Baffert has been the face of American horse racing for nearly 30 years.
His success on the sport's biggest stages and his shock of white hair make him hugely recognizable, even to people who don't follow the sport outside of the Kentucky Derby.
He trained American Pharoah to the first Triple Crown in 37 years in 2015. He repeated with Justify in 2018. Baffert has won a record-tying six Kentucky Derbies, seven Preaknesses and three Belmonts.
But he won't be at Churchill Downs on Saturday for the 148th Derby, and it's not because he doesn't have any contenders.
Churchill Downs Inc. barred Baffert from entering horses at any of its tracks for this year and through mid-2023. The punishment resulted from his 2021 Derby winner Medina Spirit failing a post-race drug test and then being disqualified from that victory in a ruling this year.
Medina Spirit tested positive for betamethasone, an antiinflammatory medication. It's allowed in Kentucky but must clear a horse's system at least 14 days before a race. It's considered a Class C drug, with a lesser potential to influence performance, but any level of detection on race day is a violation.
At the same time, the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission suspended Baffert for 90 days because of medication violations involving the trainer's horses, including Medina Spirit.
That means he will miss the Triple Crown series: the Derby, Preakness on May 21 and Belmont Stakes on June 11.
The Hall of Fame trainer, 69, has saddled 34 horses in the Derby — third in history — since his first in 1996. Besides his six wins, he has had three seconds and three thirds. This year will be the sixth time he hasn't had a horse in the race.
The trainer said the positive test could be explained by an ointment for a skin rash on Medina Spirit. He said a veterinarian recommended an antifungal cream, applied daily. Attorneys for Baffert and Medina Spirit's owner, Amr Zedan, said urine testing conducted by a New York lab confirmed the colt was positive for the anti-inflammatory not via an injection but because of the ointment used.
Kentucky racing officials have said it doesn't matter how the anti-inflammatory was administered, only that it was present on race day, which isn't allowed.
The colt died in December after a workout at Santa Anita. Baffert said it was a heart attack. A necropsy failed to pinpoint the cause.
The 38 U.S. racing states operate on an informal system of reciprocity, meaning if an owner, trainer or jockey is banned in one state, the others typically will honor that suspension.
Owners, trainers and jockeys must be licensed in each state in which they compete. Licenses are issued by state racing boards.
Baffert is based in Southern California, where the rules involving suspensions go further. Any trainer suspended for 60 days or more is banned from racing board-licensed facilities.
Two former Baffert horses will run in the Derby. Messier, the 8-1 third choice, and 12-1 shot Taiba are the two Kentucky Derby starters who were previously trained by Baffert. After Baffert's suspension, some of his horses were transferred to other trainers by their owners.
Tim Yakteen, a former assistant under Baffert who has run his own stable for 18 years, is overseeing Messier and Taiba. Baffert isn't allowed to contact Yakteen during his suspension.
Baffert's suspension ends July 2. That gives him time to prepare for the start of the summer meeting at Del Mar, the San Diegoarea track that opens July 22.