stewards

Finger Lakes-based jockey Christian J. Navarro has been suspended 30 days and fined $1,000 for alleged violations of a New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) rule that prohibits jockeys from betting on races unless they wager "through the owner of and on the horse that such jockey rides." Beyond stating that Navarro's alleged offenses occurred Nov. 22, 2023, (the closing date of last year's Finger Lakes season) details were scant on the NYSGC's online rulings portal. TDN sent a Monday afternoon email to Brad Maione, the NYSGC's communications director, asking...

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. Among this week's rulings, trainer Silvino Ramirez was suspended for 30-days and fined $2,500 after his trainee, Perfect Day, tested positive for an alkalinizing agent (TCO2) when finishing fifth at Parx Racing on April 17. High total carbon dioxide (TCO2) levels could be an indication of bicarbonate loading—otherwise known as milkshaking—which can neutralize the buildup of lactic acid in muscles, thereby helping the horse's performance. Veterinarian Donald McCrosky was also suspended 30-days for violating the terms of a prior suspension. HIWU's publicly-posted...

In what could be the first dual penalization of its kind, the stewards at Mountaineer Park have fined jockey Jose A. Leon for going over the six-strike whipping limit and also for "failure to give best effort" in the same 4 1/2-furlong sprint. Both alleged infractions occurred in an extremely narrow time frame during the stretch run of the second race on May 14. Leon, a 25-year-old who has been licensed since 2018, was aboard the 0-for-9 maiden Keto Friendly (Mastery), an 8-1 filly racing against males, who vied for...

Two days after an exciting three-way photo for the win in the GI Kentucky Derby, public speculation continued to simmer about the roughly-run stretch battle between the second- and third-place finishers. It's the second time in five years that the stewards at Churchill Downs are being openly questioned over why they didn't announce an inquiry to let the public know they were actively investigating a potential infraction in America's most important and historic horse race. But despite the mild controversy that is largely playing out online and on social media,...

At a make-or-break time for Northern California racing interests as they attempt to build a racing circuit in the void left by Golden Gate Fields's imminent closure, two key players in those efforts have been on the receiving end of public records requests from Benbrook Law Group, a law firm well-known for their involvement in high-profile political campaigns, including the failed effort to recall Governor Gavin Newsom. Some Northern California stakeholders said they suspected political intimidation was the motive for the request when the balance of the industry's economic power...

When is a maiden not considered a maiden for entry purposes? Pennsylvania-based owner Albert "Abby" Abdala III lost $5,331 in second-place purse money trying to find out after an "ineligible entry" ruling was imposed upon him and his trainer, Bernard Dunham, on Feb. 2 by the Turfway Park stewards. Abdala, who has owned Thoroughbreds for 10 years after getting started in horse ownership with Standardbreds, told TDN in a Feb. 8 phone interview that he still doesn't understand why Turfway officials accepted his entry for the 0-for-9 Magnolia Wind (Central...

In the aftermath of the controversial running of Saturday's Great White Way S. at Aqueduct, in which Brick Ambush (Laoban) crossed the wire second but was disqualified and placed last, outspoken owner Mike Repole has called for the resignation of The Jockey Club's president and CEO Jim Gagliano and its chairman Stuart Janney III. He did so Wednesday in a post to his account on the social media website X. Repole, who did not have a horse in the race, recently announced the formation of The National Thoroughbred Alliance (NTA),...

The Jockeys' Guild and its Board of Directors released a statement Tuesday underscoring that the organization has taken the position that the United States should remain under the Category 2 approach for adjudicating potential interference during Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing. The press release was issued in advance of a panel discussion at Tuesday's Global Symposium on Racing hosted by the University of Arizona Race Track Industry Program (RTIP) in Tucson titled "Embracing Change: Are We Ready to Adopt Category 1 Rules In the US?" The Guild also noted that...

The chief state steward at Mountaineer Park, Jim O'Brien, on Friday defended his board's seemingly light $100 penalization of jockey Jose A. Leon after other licensees who were on horseback during training hours at the West Virginia track Sept. 10 testified that the 24-year-old rider dismounted from an unruly horse and struck it across the face with his whip. "He was wrong, but I guess he let his anger get the best of him, and he hit the horse in the face," O'Brien told TDN. O'Brien added that he and...

Jockey Jose A. Leon has been fined $100 for hitting a horse in the face during training hours at Mountaineer Park. According to a Mountaineer stewards' ruling, "Mr. Leon was caught striking a horse across the face on Sunday, Sept. 10, 2023, during morning exercising." The ruling didn't specify whether Leon struck the horse with his whip or his hand. Joe Moore, the executive director of the West Virginia Racing Commission, wrote in an email that he did not have any details about the incident beyond what the Mountaineer stewards...

Colonial Downs may be wrapping up a historic 2023 season with Saturday's GIII New Kent Country Virginia Derby but several firsts paved the way this summer for brighter things to come in New Kent, VA. In addition to hosting its first Grade I races, the Arlington Million and the 'WAYI' Beverly D., Colonial welcomed a new face in the steward's stand. North Carolina native Whitney Verbal joined veterans Jack Houghton and Pat Bovenzi in making the calls Wednesday-Saturday and has been nothing but a welcome breath of fresh air in...

The two jockeys currently ranked second and third for wins this season at Finger Lakes are both facing sanctions for their roles in two separate races last week in which one rider was piloting a long shot that altered course while the other rider was aboard the beaten favorite. According to a stewards' ruling posted Aug. 8 on the New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) website, jockey John Davila, Jr., who has been riding at Finger Lakes since 1983, has been fined $500 "for riding in manner contrary to the...