Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit is facing disqualification after the horse failed a second post-race drug test.
Clark Brewster, the lawyer for Medina Spirit's ownerAmr Zedan, told theNew York Times that the second test found over the limit levels of betamethasone, which is an anti-inflammatory steroid.
The first drug test on May 9 revealed that the horse had 21 picograms of betamethasone in its blood, which is over the 11 picogram limit the Kentucky Derby allows.
Medina Spirit will become only the second horse in the 147-year history of the Kentucky Derby to be disqualified for a failed drug test.
Trainer Bob Baffert denied any wrongdoing after the first results were made public. He later admitted that the steroid likely came from Otomax, an ointment prescribed by a veterinarian to treat a skin rash on Medina Spirit.
The second failed drug test creates a strong case for Medina Spirit's disqualification, but Baffert is pushing for additional testing, according to a statement his lawyers sent to WAVE. The statement said:
In response to the inquiries, this will acknowledge that the Medina Spirit split sample confirmed the finding of betamethasone at 25 picograms. There is other testing that is being conducted, including DNA testing. We expect this additional testing to confirm that the presence of the betamethasone was from the topical ointment, Otomax, and not an injection. At the end of the day, we anticipate this case to be about the treatment of Medina Spirit’s skin rash with Otomax. We will have nothing further to say until the additional testing is complete.
The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission has not yet commented on the latest test results.
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