Excellent post, Tex.  I bow north.  :-}

Maybe some progress....

https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/NYRA-can-start-process-to-suspend-Bob-Baffert-16510846.php

One step better for NYRA than nothing, so far.  As you say, it's possible there will be consequences for the ever slick Beta Bob.

If he can beat this through the courts that sends a bad message to all the cheaters that they should carry on. 

Imagine how much worse steroid use in the Olympics would be if athletes (or their national Olympic associations) can just get their lawyers to overturn positive drug tests at will.

I think you're exactly right.

Where is the line between the important right of due process and weaponizing the system to avoid consequences?

TexSquared said...

If he can beat this through the courts that sends a bad message to all the cheaters that they should carry on. 

This merely confirms that U.S. racing is incapable of timely decision-making, and can barely even stick with their own regulatory decisions and protocols anymore.

Dancer's Image was DQed in 3 days.  A yes/no on Medina Spirt's DQ and Baffert's licensing/trainig privileges at other tracks should be 2 separate issues, and the former should have already been decided, based on 2 positives.  

What we should all be more worried about is that Medina Spirit makes it to retirement "in one peice."     Based on what I've seen from Baffert, that's even more of a gamble than what will happen to this horse's KY Derby win, IMHO.   He's a neat horse and deserves the best of everything for his efforts. 

  

Medina Spirit's owner probably wants to win the Classic then if not retire right away, go for the Saudi Cup and/or Dubai, especially since there hasn't been any announcement on breeding rights.  

Wasn't Dancer's Image's DQ dragged through the courts for 4 years before his owners had exhausted all possible chances to overturn it?   I hope this doesn't drag on that long.   

I agree with you that the two issues are separate.  The horse should have been DQ'ed first and purse money redistributed long before penalizing Baffert with suspensions/fines/etc.   Let's consider careless riding - the horse is DQ'ed on race day, but the stewards hand down penalties to the jockey days later after a proper hearing.   They don't suspend the jockey and then take their sweet time with deciding the race result.

TexSquared said...

Wasn't Dancer's Image's DQ dragged through the courts for 4 years before his owners had exhausted all possible chances to overturn it? 

AFTER he was DQed

That was my whole the whole point.   The decision was made w/in 3 days.   Then they litigated afterwards for 3-4 years.  
 

Churchill Downs and the Kentucky authorities totally botched this.  It's not like they didn't have precedent...

TexSquared said...

Churchill Downs and the Kentucky authorities totally botched this.  It's not like they didn't have precedent.

Exactly.  

You know I am almost thinking that racing wants to be "entertainment" so badly now that they actually enjoy all this gossippy intrigue.  You know, Baffert spinning his fairy tales, has all the makings of CSI crossed w/People Magazine....never a dull moment in horse racing!

....and Baffert walking around mumbling "why me, why me, why me" while other HOY trainers snicker in the background as he walks by because nobody has THIS many *accidental drug positives" that occur under the most exotic circumstances........and 20 horses are entered every year in the Derby alone, not to mention all his other bizarre barn/medication events (dead horses, lame horses, drug positives, etc.) for which it's never his fault.   

I was watching old episodes of A&E television series *Hoarders* and his denial just reminds me so much of their behavior/pathology.   No accountability there at all.   I honestly think he's ........well.........got a mental disorder. Even poor barn management can't create this much crap....it's like he's in a world of his own and now we are finding out just how much?  Add extreme smugness to the pathology...