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KY Horse Council Offers Training in Large-Animal Rescue

Blood-Horse - Tue, 2025-07-08 15:25
Three-day training session designed to educate emergency responders, veterinary professionals, animal control officers, horse industry professionals, and other interested parties on how to care for and extract equines in hazardous situations.

Ed Brown Society, TJC Providing Students Opportunities

Blood-Horse - Tue, 2025-07-08 15:25
The Ed Brown Society and The Jockey Club are in the second year of their partnership that provides opportunities for more students to access resources and gain experience within the equine industry. 

NTRA Concerned About Tax Change on Gambling Losses

Blood-Horse - Tue, 2025-07-08 15:25
Dollars & Sense with Frank Angst

Fifth Generation Horseman Nuckols Carries Family Legacy

Blood-Horse - Tue, 2025-07-08 15:25
BH interview: Alfred Nuckols Jr.

Fasig-Tipton Kicks off Yearling Season with July Sale

Blood-Horse - Tue, 2025-07-08 15:25
This year, for the first time, the Fasig-Tipton July Selected Yearling Sale and the July Horses of Racing Age Sale will be held on the same day, starting at 10:00 a.m.

BH Monday: Kornacki Helps Pick Mid-Season Award Winners

Blood-Horse - Tue, 2025-07-08 15:25
On the July 7 episode of BloodHorse Monday, Louie Rabaut, Sean Collins, and Steve Kornacki select their picks for a "Mid-Season" Eclipse Awards based off the first half of the racing year.

NTL Relocating Seattle Franchise to St. Louis

Blood-Horse - Tue, 2025-07-08 15:25
The NTL announced that St. Louis native and multi-diamond, award-winning artist Nelly has taken a significant ownership in a team that will move to St. Louis. The league is relocating the Seattle franchise and will name the team the Nellies.  

Godolphin Broodmares in Tattersalls July Sale Spotlight

Blood-Horse - Tue, 2025-07-08 15:25
Buyers heading to this week's Tattersalls July Sale have a 942-lot catalog to get stuck into. Those on the hunt for a broodmare have one major target to aim at in particular: the Godolphin draft. 

Eclipse-Winning Apprentice Jockey Concepcion Joins Colonial Downs Colony

Thoroughbred Daily News - Tue, 2025-07-08 14:21

Eclipse Award-winning jockey Axel Concepcion, who was named top apprentice in 2023, will return to the Mid Atlantic and make his first appearance at Colonial Downs this summer as the 20-year-old has joined the local riding colony for the 2025 summer session.

“It feels great to be here,” Concepcion said. “I want to take advantage of these opportunities that the trainers are giving me. My goal is to win as many races as I can and to try to win a title.”

No stranger to the Mid Atlantic circuit, Concepcion won the Laurel Park riding title as an apprentice and those connections. Along with his familiarity with the Maryland jockey colony, put him in a good position to have success at Colonial.

“I know a lot of these riders from my first years based in the Mid-Atlantic,” Concepcion said. “I rode not just at Laurel but also Charles Town, Delaware Park, and Monmouth. There are so many good riders here. I am very blessed to be able to compete with them. You need to know all the riders who you are in the race with, you need to know all the horses, and how all that comes together to win a race.”

“We hope to ride for [Vicki] Oliver, as well as Mike Tomilson, Keith Desormeaux, and others,” said Concepcion's agent Liz Morris. “We'll also be looking to rekindle some of Axel's East Coast connections from when he was leading apprentice, as well as continue success with other Kentucky trainers who will be shipping in.”

The post Eclipse-Winning Apprentice Jockey Concepcion Joins Colonial Downs Colony appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

2025 Saratoga Events

New York Thoroughbred Breeders - Tue, 2025-07-08 12:05

There are no shortage of special events throughout the Saratoga meet! A selection, in alphabetical order, is included below. Keep an eye on NYTB social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X) for changes, additions, and more. A press release including a more extensive list of NYRA’s events can be found here.

Belmont Child Care Association Racing for the Children
BCCA’s popular annual fundraiser and auction is on tap for Thursday, August 21. Further information and tickets will be available here.

Breakfast & Breeding Farm Tours
Hosted in conjunction with NYRA, Breakfast & Breeding Farm Tours are offered on most racing days throughout the meet. Fans can enjoy breakfast on-track before visiting Song Hill Thoroughbreds on Thursdays, Old Tavern Farm on Fridays, and Sugar Plum Farm on most Saturdays and Sundays. Details are available here; tickets are available here.

Fasig-Tipton Yearling Sales
The Saratoga Sale occurs August 4-5. The New York-Bred Preferred Sale takes place on August 10-11. Catalogues will be available here.

Jockey Club Safety Net
The annual Fashionable Fillies Luncheon will take place at Saratoga National Gold Club on Monday, August 4. The keynote speaker and honoree is sports journalist Lindsay Czarniak, an owner through America’s Best Racing’s “A Stake in Stardom” initiative. Full details are here.

Lustgarten Foundation Day
NYRA honors the late trainer Dominic Galluscio by fundraising for the Lustgarten Foundation, fighting pancreatic cancer, in his honor. A bevy of trainers will be available for an autograph session on August 16.

National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
The NMRHOF hosts a number of events throughout the meet. The first two Saturdays feature farm tours, the first of McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds and the second of Mill Creek Farm. The annual Hall of Fame induction ceremony is scheduled for Friday, August 1. The Racing Partnership and Syndicate event, connecting interested parties with the world of owning racehorses, is on Saturday, August 9. Their full calendar of events and more details can be found here.

New York Thoroughbred Aftercare Day
NYRA, NYTHA, and NYTB join forces to host the third annual New York Thoroughbred Aftercare Day on Thursday, July 17. OTTBs and the people and organizations that care for them will be in the spotlight throughout the day. Full details are available here.

New York Thoroughbred Breeders Special Events
Join NYTB on Thursday, August 7, at Rood and Riddle for a BBQ to kick off the NY-bred Preferred Yearling Sale! Breeders, consignor, bloodstock agents, and friends are welcome to join us from 6-9:30pm at 63 Henning Rd for handcrafted BBQ, an open bar, and live music from The Wallies cover band. Admission is free with registration – here.

Celebrate the program and spend time together on-track at Paddock Suite on Friday, August 8! Enjoy a day at the races and a VIP experience. Tickets are available here.

In addition, NYTB will be on-site at the races every Friday at a booth near the paddock entrance.

NYRA Giveaways
There are six giveaways scheduled throughout the meet – July 11, July 20, July 25, August 8, August 22, and August 31. Full details, including images of some of the items, are here.

PDJF
A jockey autograph session is among the activities planned for Saturday, July 26, to raise funds and awareness for the Permanently Disabled Jockeys’ Fund. The popular annual Jockey Karaoke event will take place the following evening at Vapor Night Club. Details and tickets are available here. PDJF and TRF host a joint “For Jocks and Horses” fundraiser at the Adelphi in on Wednesday, July 30. Details are here.

Race Track Chaplaincy of New York
One of the most popular events of the season, the annual basketball game, is scheduled for Wednesday, August 6. Head to the Saratoga Rec Center (15 Vanderbilt Ave) for the 15th annual charity basketball game, as jockeys face off against a collection of horsemen. Full details are here.

Leona and John Velazquez are the honorees at the annual brunch, which will be held on Wednesday, August 13, at Saratoga National. The event raises crucial funds for the organization. Tickets and details are available here.

ReRun’s On the River
ReRun Thoroughbred Adoption Program, a Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance accredited organization which is the largest of its kind in the area, hosts its annual Saratoga fundraiser at The Basin Grill from 5:30-9:30 with guest of honor Katie Davis McCarthy. Full details and tickets are available here.

Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation
The TRF hosts a trio of fundraisers – Gumbo with Kendrick Carmouche on July 21, the joint “For Jocks and Horses” evening at the Adelphi with PDJF on July 30, and Backyard BBQ hosted by Rood & Riddle on August 19. Details for all three are available here.

The post 2025 Saratoga Events appeared first on New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. News.

Bolt d’Oro Filly Our Lady Along In Time In Malvern Rose

Thoroughbred Daily News - Mon, 2025-07-07 18:33

Our Lady (Bolt d'Oro) made those that swallowed the 3-10 starting price sweat it out to the very finish, but the Canadian-based galloper saved her best for the final 100 yards, racing over the top of her fellow Pennsylvania-bred rivals to remain unbeaten in her three career starts to date in Monday's state-bred restricted Malvern Rose Stakes at Presque Isle Downs.

A 6 1/4-length maiden winner at first asking over the Woodbine Tapeta on May 4, the $75,000 Fasig-Tipton February yearling turned $160,000 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic breezer added a May 24 optional claimer by better than four lengths against older rivals as the 1-4 chalk and was facing what appeared to be a step down in class for the Malvern Rose.

Off only fairly, Our Lady was taken back to race at the tail of the field behind slow fractions, and Patrick Husbands was in no hurry to make his move around the turn. Electing to chart an inside course as opposed to trying to loop the field, the Barbadian rider finally found daylight for Our Lady about five off the inside at the furlong grounds, and she lengthened her stride nicely to score in a fashion easier than the half-length margin of victory might indicate.

Our Lady is the 17th black-type winner for her sire in a race–then run over a two-turn mile–won by Shamrock Rose (First Dude) en route to a victory in the GI Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint in her 3-year-old season in 2018.

The previous black-type in the family is courtesy of the GIII Tempted Stakes-winning third dam Summer Raven, the dam of MGSW/MGISP Lewis Bay (Bernardini) and Grade III scorers Misconnect (Unbridled's Song) and Winslow Homer (Unbridled's Song). Summer Raven is the second dam of GSW Lost Raven (Uncle Mo).

Summer's Ready is also represented by the 2-year-old filly Jr Miss Buttercup (American Pharoah) and a colt foal by Volatile. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.

MALVERN ROSE S., $75,000, Presque Isle Downs, 7-7, (S), 3yo, f, 6 1/2f (AWT), 1:17.66, ft.
1–OUR LADY, 121, f, 3, by Bolt d'Oro
1st Dam: Summer's Ready, by More Than Ready
2nd Dam: Summer Frolic, by Pulpit
3rd Dam: Summer Raven, by Summer Squall
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN. ($75,000 Ylg '23 FTKFEB; $160,000 2yo '24 EASMAY). O-JDLP Holdings Inc; B-Blackstone Farm LLC (PA); T-Steven Chircop; J-Patrick Husbands. $44,550. Lifetime Record: 3-3-0-0, $110,188.
2–Queen's Wreath, 121, f, 3, Jimmy Creed–Ianthe, by Sky Mesa. 1ST BLACK-TYPE. ($27,000 RNA Ylg '23 KEESEP). O-Tom Coulter; B-Arrowwood Farm Inc (PA); T-Erin C McClellan. $14,850.
3–Icona Mama, 121, f, 3, Maximus Mischief–Classe Signora, by Bernstein. ($75,000 2yo '24 OBSAPR). O-DeSales 85 LLC; B-J Patrick Morell & Tanya Lobsiger (PA); T-Flint W Stites. $8,167.
Margins: HF, 1HF, 1 1/4. Odds: 0.30, 10.60, 5.10.
Also Ran: Boujie Betz, Honorable Win, Dixieland Belle. Scratched: Double Airo, Up N Runnin.

 

The heavy favorite #4 OUR LADY ($2.60) went from last to first to win the $75,000 Malvern Rose Stakes at @PID_Casino. The daughter of @spendthriftfarm's Bolt d'Oro is now a perfect 3 for 3 in her young career. Patrick Husbands was up for @chircopracing. pic.twitter.com/4ebX5CSih6

— FanDuel Racing (@FanDuel_Racing) July 7, 2025

 

The post Bolt d’Oro Filly Our Lady Along In Time In Malvern Rose appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Fasig-Tipton July Yearling Sale ‘Gets the Ball Rolling’ Tuesday in Lexington

Thoroughbred Daily News - Mon, 2025-07-07 17:21

LEXINGTON, KY – The Fasig-Tipton July Selected Yearling Sale kicks off, not just the yearling sales season, but also a bidding-packed day of action at Newtown Paddocks in Lexington Tuesday. The auction, with 261 head catalogued, begins at 10 a.m. and will be followed immediately by the Fasig-Tipton July Selected Horses of Racing Age Sale, with 70 catalogued ready-to-race offerings.

Buyers were out in force at the sales barns on a steamy day in the Bluegrass Monday, with temperatures inching over the 90- degree mark.

“We have been slammed all day today,” Mark Taylor said from the front of the Taylor Made Sales Agency barn around midday Monday. “I think the foot traffic, looking at data this year versus last year, we are trending right on par, but I feel good about it. There just seems to be good energy and optimism.”

Taylor sees plenty to be optimistic about ahead of the first yearling sale of the year, starting right out of the gate with 94 yearlings in the July sale's traditional Freshman Sire Showcase.

“This sale has a strong representation of first-crop sires and I think it's an exceptional group,” Taylor said. “Not only in their popularity, but also in the physical specimens they are putting on the ground. There are some years that the freshman sires maybe aren't producing the quality and so this sale suffers. I think this year is a banner year for these first-crop stallions.”

Taylor continued, “And the recent tax legislation that got reinstated as far as bonus depreciation, I just think that is going to help the yearling market the whole way through. It just makes the economics of buying yearlings a lot better than it would have been otherwise.”

Mark Taylor || Fasig-Tipton

The July sale has perennially been known to attract a strong buying bench of pinhookers and, following a spring of record-setting juvenile sales, there were plenty of pinhookers looking to restock at the sales barns Monday.

“Fasig always tries to promote this as a trainer's sale, but at the end of the day I think the pinhookers are always the backbone of it,” Taylor said. “I've been talking to a lot of the Ocala guys coming through here and, by and large, most of them had a pretty good year. That always helps. Because they are so important to us yearling sellers, so I think that was a real blessing that most of them came out in pretty good shape.”

For the first time this year, Fasig-Tipton will award a bonus of $25,000 to the trainer who purchases the highest number of yearlings at the July sale. John Henry Mulholland of Mulholland Springs hopes efforts like that attract additional end-users to broaden the July buying bench.

“I think this sale is pretty dependent, generally speaking, on what kind of year the Ocala pinhookers have had,” Mulholland said. “So I think the ones that were pretty successful and had a good year, I think they will be here ready to shop. I am just hopeful that we get as many trainers and end-users as we can here. This is–for whatever reason–thought of as a sale mainly for pinhookers. We don't always get a whole ton of trainers, but I think as long as we get both pinhookers and end users, it will be fine. It will be a good, solid consistent sale.”

With a whole summer and fall of yearling sales to come, Mulholland thinks some buyers might take more of a wait-and-see approach at the July sale.

“It's the first sale of the year and everybody is probably going to tread lightly,” he said. “We've got a lot of sales in front of us. It's the transition for everyone. It's the sale that kind of gets the ball rolling for everybody. I don't expect any fireworks. I just think it's going to be the same thing. Whatever everybody perceives to be the top 20% of the sale, those horses will sell extremely well. And the middle market will be okay. I just hope that there are plenty of end-users, plenty of trainers that want to go to the races that come to this sale.”

Gabriel Duignan | Fasug-Tipton

From his Paramount Sales barn, Gabriel Duignan said he saw plenty of end-user shoppers.

“There were quite a few end users walking around today,” Duignan said. “It's the same old, same old. You have the right horse, I think you can sell them well here.”

He continued, “I think there is a lot of positivity in our business at the moment. We're running for record pots, we are coming off a good 2-year-old season, and the economy seems to be good.”

Freshman to the Fore

Of the seven horses in the Mulholland Springs' yearling consignment, six are by freshman sires, including Early Voting, Highly Motivated, Pinehurst, Drain the Clock, and Mo Donegal.

“I think it's a nice group,” Mulholland said of this year's class of freshman sires. “Those will be a lot of the ones people will want.”

With divisional leaders Flightline and Life is Good not represented in the July catalogue, Jackie's Warrior is the leading freshman sire by weanling average in the auction. Last year, 28 weanlings by the sprint champion sold for an average of $151,482. The stallion has six catalogued in the July Freshman Sire Showcase, including a filly from the Taylor Made consignment, which also features yearlings by first-crop sires Nashville, Drain the Clock, Early Voting, Pinehurst, Cyberknife, Epicenter, Olympiad, Idol, Mo Donegal, Corniche, Jack Christopher, and Golden Pal.

Jackie's Warrior | Sarah Andrew

The Freshman Sire Showcase brings a little extra buzz to the sales grounds and to the start of the July sale, according to Taylor.

“I think there are a lot of breeders who have supported these horses and they might have one going to September, but they like to walk around here and see what everybody else's look like,” Taylor said. “It's kind of a fun part of the sale.”

He continued, “Fasig actually put photos of all the new crop sires that are represented in the sale. There are conformation photos of each stallion and I've seen a lot of buyers looking at the horse that we are showing them and then they flip back to look at the stallion, so they can see if they are throwing themselves. I thought it was a cool touch.”

Other sires in the Freshman Sire Showcase include Mystic Guide, Happy Saver, Greatest Honour, Mandaloun, and Speaker's Corner

The July sale is an important step for the commercial success of these young sires, Taylor agreed.

“You look at some of the higher priced horses, they are not going to have a lot of representation here,” Taylor said. “But for those other sires, let's just say the $15,000 to $40,000 range, I don't think it's make or break by any means, but it definitely sets the tone. You're going to have a lot of them here and you're going to have a few in Saratoga. So if people have a positive outlook going into September, I think that it's easier for the momentum to continue. If they have a negative feeling, then they go in and the horse has to re-prove themselves. This is a select sale, so you have nice individuals in here, but the ones we have by first-crop sires are really knockouts.”

While the July sale may not be make or break, the clock is ticking in a fickle commercial market, according to Mulholland.

“You have such a narrow window,” Mulholland said. “They have to get off to a good start with weanlings and yearlings at the sale and then they have to do well at the 2-year-old sales or they have to come out running big early in the year at Churchill and Saratoga. It's an extremely unforgiving market anymore. I think that's because we are such a commercially driven industry. I understand we are losing a lot of tracks, I get all of the contraction of the racing business and all of that, there is a lot that needs to be solved there as well. But if you can get yourself a nice, decent racehorse, you can have a great time enjoying yourself and you can also make a hobby financially solvent. You can go have fun and actually make some money. These purses are just outrageous everywhere you look. I don't see why more people aren't on that end of the game, as opposed to just the commercial sales aspect of it.”

Perfect Time for a Horses of Racing Age Sale

The Fasig-Tipton July Selected Horses of Racing Age Sale begins immediately following the yearling auction and will offer buyers the chance to bid on horses ready to compete during a busy–and lucrative–time on the racing calendar.

“It's so well-placed on the calendar,” Duignan said of the horses of racing age sale. “You can get a quick reward for your buck because you have a whole lot of races in the next couple of months with great purses at a high level.”

The Paramount Sales consignment will provide a little extra sizzle to the end of the racing age sale when it offers the 2-year-old Romeo (Honor A. P.) (hip 370), who was supplemented to the auction after winning the June 29 Bashford Manor Stakes in stakes-record time for owner Joseph Lloyd and trainer John Robb.

“I want to give a shout-out to Paddy Campion who recruited him and did a good job landing him,” Dugnian said. “It's not every day you get a chance to buy a 2-year-old of his caliber at public auction, coming off a win where he broke the stakes record in a prestigious stakes.”

Romeo romped by 10 1/4 lengths in his debut at Laurel Park in May before finishing third in the June 5 Tremont Stakes.

Romeo | Fasig-Tipton

“It's such a good time of the year to buy a horse like him with the whole summer ahead,” Duignan said. “He's got everything you'd desire. We are looking forward to selling him.”

Mulholland Springs will offer six horses of racing age from the estate of the late Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas, who passed away June 28.

“Wayne is the trainer who started the whole trend that we see now,” Mulholland said. “He was decades ahead of everyone else. It's an honor for us to be selling his horses. Just that they came from Wayne's barn, they will sell themselves. It's a humbling, rewarding feeling to be able to help out his wife, Laurie, and his grandchildren and his partners. I am looking forward to them going off to good homes and continuing on. It's very special to both Martha Jane and me and everyone at the farm to be handling his horses.”

The group of horses from the Lukas estate includes the unraced 2-year-olds Summer Date (Essential Quality) (hip 362), a $125,000 purchase at last year's Keeneland September sale, Lost Valley (Liam's Map) (hip 363), a $90,000 acquisition last September, and Delancey Street (Street Sense) (hip 368). All three have been working in Kentucky towards their debuts.

Martha Jane and John Mulholland | Fasig-Tipton

Mulholland agreed July was a perfect spot on the calendar to sell racehorses.

“You've got every track that you would want open and you have the whole summer and fall of racing in front of you,” Mulholland said. “You've got great financial opportunities across the country. I am very happy to have some racehorses to sell.”

The post Fasig-Tipton July Yearling Sale ‘Gets the Ball Rolling’ Tuesday in Lexington appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Trainer Butler, Suspended for Having Employee’s Thyro-L in Barn, Sues HISA over Definition of ‘Possession’

Thoroughbred Daily News - Mon, 2025-07-07 16:43

The Illinois-based trainer Gerald Butler, who is currently suspended 20 months and was fined $10,000 after a Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA)'s arbitration panel for Anti-Doping and Medication Control Program (ADMC) matters ruled in February that he possessed the banned substance levothyroxine (Thyro-L) in his Fairmount Park barn last summer, sued HISA in federal court July 3, seeking a stay of his penalties in a case that challenges the  definition of the word “possession.”

According to the sequence of events described in the arbitrator's decision, on June 13, 2024, the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU), which enforces the ADMC rules for HISA, received an anonymous tip stating that Butler, a licensed trainer since 1991, was administering Thyro-L to his horses.

Eight days later, on June 21, four HIWU investigators conducted a search of Butler's premises in Barn I.

The search turned up a powder form of Thyro-L in the trainer's feed room.

Butler denied the Thyro-L was his or that he had been administering it to his horses.

A part-time worker at Butler's stable, Tory Hughes, subsequently said that the Thyro-L belonged to her, and that she used it for her non-HISA-covered ponies that were stabled nearby.

Eight months later, on Feb. 13, 2025, the arbitrator ruled that, “there is no evidence that Trainer Butler had actual, physical possession or that he had had 'exclusive control over the Prohibited Substance.'”

The arbitrator also wrote that, “Trainer Butler presented credible evidence by way of his own testimony, as well as the testimony of Assistant Trainer [Stacy] Muskopf, Ms. Hughes, and Dr. [Donald] McCrosky, a veterinarian from whom Ms. Hughes' brother had purchased Thyro-L in July 2022 for Ms. Hughes' pony horse, that the Thyro-L belonged to Ms. Hughes.”

The arbitrator further wrote that, “There is no evidence that Trainer Butler ever administered Thyro-L to any Covered Horse after the ADMC Program came into effect. In other words, there is no evidence that Trainer Butler intended to cheat or did cheat.”

But, the arbitrator continued, the totality of those points of evidence still wasn't enough to get Butler off the hook for the possession penalty.

Although the arbitrator's final decision did shave four months off of what could have been a 24-month suspension, and Butler's fine was reduced to $10,000 from a possible $25,000, the HISA arbitrator wrote that, “there can be no doubt that Trainer Butler had exclusive control over the premises where the Thyro-L was found [and that] it is undisputed that Trainer Butler was in charge of, and had control over, Barn I, including the feed room where the Thyro-L was found.”

Now, five months later, Butler has initiated litigation against HISA in United States District Court (Southern District of Illinois), seeking a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction enjoining HISA from enforcing the arbitration decision.

“This decision imposes severe and irreparable sanctions,” Butler's civil complaint stated, noting that the charge has cost him an additional $5,000 in adjudication costs. “Plaintiff is likely to succeed on the merits of his claim that the arbitration decision, based on HISA's definition and application of 'Possession' under Rule 3214(a) and Rule 1020, violates his Fifth Amendment right to due process.

“The rule, as applied, imposes strict liability for unknowing possession of a banned substance, even when that substance belongs to a third party and Plaintiff was unaware of its presence, thereby failing to provide fair notice or safeguard against arbitrary enforcement,” the lawsuit stated.

Butler's lawsuit asserted that, “the balance of equities tips in Plaintiff's favor, as the harm to Plaintiff from immediate enforcement far outweighs any prejudice to HISA from a temporary stay.”

Butler's suit further contended that, “An injunction serves the public interest by ensuring that administrative decisions made under federal authority adhere to constitutional protections and promote fairness within the horse racing industry.”

The complaint also stated that the requested injunction “is narrowly tailored [and] seeks to enjoin HISA from enforcing the specific arbitration decision only as it applies to Plaintiff Gerald Butler, without seeking to broadly invalidate HISA rules or affect other parties.”

On July 7, a spokesperson for HISA acknowledged an emailed request from TDN asking for the Authority's side of the story regarding Butler's lawsuit, but declined the opportunity to comment.

Butler's lawsuit explained his case like this:

“Although structured as a private organization, HISA exercises authority delegated by Congress under the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act of 2020, and is thus subject to constitutional constraints, including the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment. Due process requires, at a minimum, fair notice of prohibited conduct and safeguards against arbitrary enforcement.

“In this case, HISA's Rule 3214(a) on 'Possession,' as defined in Rule 1020 and applied by the arbitration panel, fails to meet these fundamental due process requirements. Rule 1020 defines 'Possession' to include 'constructive possession (which shall be found only if the Covered Person has exclusive control or intends to exercise exclusive control over the Prohibited Substance or Prohibited Method or the premises in which a Prohibited Substance or Prohibited Method exists),'” the lawsuit stated.

“The Arbitrator explicitly found that Plaintiff had 'exclusive control over the premises (his barn) and that, under HISA's rule, Plaintiff's lack of awareness of the Thyro-L's presence was 'of no legal consequence,'” the lawsuit stated.

“This strict liability interpretation, which holds a trainer accountable for a banned substance found on their premises even when they have no knowledge of its presence and it belongs to a third party, is unconstitutional as applied.

“It creates a punitive regime where an individual can be subjected to severe professional and financial penalties without any showing of intent. Such a standard is particularly egregious when applied to a rule that purports to regulate 'possession,' a term that inherently implies some degree of knowledge or control in common legal understanding,” the lawsuit stated.

“Furthermore, while the Arbitrator assessed 'significant fault' against Plaintiff for failing to inquire about substances Ms. Hughes was bringing onto his premises, this 'utmost caution' standard, when coupled with strict liability for unknowing possession, creates an impossible and arbitrary burden.

“It effectively requires trainers to constantly police every item brought onto their property by any individual with access, regardless of their relationship or the nature of the items, to avoid a violation,” the lawsuit stated.

“This places an unreasonable and unpredictable burden on individuals, leading to potentially arbitrary enforcement and a lack of fair notice regarding the precise conduct that constitutes a violation,” the lawsuit stated.

“The application of HISA Rule 3214(a) through its definition of 'Possession' under Rule 1020 is also unconstitutionally vague and overbroad,” the lawsuit stated.

“A regulation is unconstitutionally vague if it fails to provide people of ordinary intelligence a reasonable opportunity to understand what conduct it prohibits.

“It is overbroad if it prohibits a substantial amount of constitutionally protected conduct. While the latter may not be directly applicable here, the vagueness argument is potent,” the lawsuit stated.

The post Trainer Butler, Suspended for Having Employee’s Thyro-L in Barn, Sues HISA over Definition of ‘Possession’ appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Sackville Joins Juddmonte as Head of European Sales

Blood-Horse - Mon, 2025-07-07 15:24
Juddmonte announced July 7 the appointment of Ed Sackville in the new position of Head of European Sales.

Canterbury Adds Five New Hall of Fame Members

Blood-Horse - Mon, 2025-07-07 15:24
The Canterbury Park Hall of Fame's five newest inductees will be honored in a ceremony Friday, July 11 at the Shakopee, MN racetrack.

Los Alamitos Reports Larger Average Field Size at Meet

Blood-Horse - Mon, 2025-07-07 15:24
Another record-setting performance by Sweet Azteca, a record pool in the Players' Pick 5, increased field size for a second consecutive year, and a first local riding title for jockey Kazushi Kimura highlighted the Los Angeles County Fair meet.

Prat Wins First NYRA Title During Spring/Summer Meet

Blood-Horse - Mon, 2025-07-07 15:24
Jockey Flavien Prat, trainer Chad Brown, and owner Klaravich Stables earned leading titles for their respective categories during the Belmont at the Big A spring/summer meet, which included racing at Saratoga Race Course.

Lukas Horses Add Bittersweet Tone to F-T HORA Sale

Blood-Horse - Mon, 2025-07-07 15:24
Mulholland Springs, agent, is consigning six horses from the Estate of Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas at this year's Fasig-Tipton July Horses of Racing Age Sale.

Brilliant Berti 'The Best' of Klein Family Legacy

Blood-Horse - Mon, 2025-07-07 15:24
The Klein family has been racing and breeding Thoroughbreds for over 30 years, but, according to Richard Klein, none have been better than Brilliant Berti.

McMahon Grateful Fire Did Not Take Any Lives

Blood-Horse - Mon, 2025-07-07 15:24
In its 55 years of existence, McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds had never experienced a fire. So when one did occur July 5, founder Joe McMahon said he is grateful there was no loss of life.

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