Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country.
The following rulings were reported on HISA's “rulings” portal and through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) “pending” and “resolved” cases portals. Among this week's rulings, Antonio Meraz has been banned two years and fined $5,000 after his trainee, First Kitten, tested positive for banned Cobalt Salts after winning at Mahoning Valley on February 12. His suspension began on Nov. 12.
Cobalt is a substance that's naturally present in a horse, generally in very low amounts, as well as in a horse's natural environment, like soil or water. It is also listed as an ingredient in many horse feeds and supplements.
According to the final decision by the arbitral body, on March 12 a HIWU investigator searched Meraz's barn at Hawthorne and found a one-gallon container of the supplement Furlong Gold in his feed and tack room which listed cobalt as an ingredient.
Meraz later testified that he gave all his horses the same feed and supplements every day, which included two other products that contained cobalt: Race Ready (a feed product) and Platinum Performance (a supplement). He also said that, although he read HISA's prohibited substance list at the end of 2023, he was unaware cobalt was a threshold substance on this list.
Experts forwarded by HIWU argued that, even accounting for the three cobalt-containing supplements and feed given the horses, the cobalt concentration detected in First Kitten's sample was more consistent with the administration of a cobalt injection.
Meraz countered that by arguing the intentional injection of Cobalt would have resulted in significantly higher levels of Cobalt in the horse's blood. The detected level was 30.5 nanograms per milliliter. HISA's threshold is 25 nanograms per milliliter. Meraz denied injecting any of his horses with cobalt.
Meraz also questioned the accuracy of the testing performed, arguing that HIWU's case is “based on inaccurate and unreliable test results,” according to the final decision.
Though the arbitral body stated there was no evidence Meraz had injected First Kitten with cobalt, the trainer nevertheless “failed to meet his burden of establishing, by a balance of probabilities, that the source of the AAF in excess of the 25 ng/mL Threshold was the three Cobalt-containing feeds and supplements he identified and provided to First Kitten,” according to the final decision.
“He did not provide any evidence that any of these feeds or supplements contained a higher amount of Cobalt than the amount or quantity of its labeled or listed ingredients. Nor did he submit any evidence that First Kitten has a unique digestive system that metabolizes or excretes Cobalt in feed or supplements in a manner or has an otherwise outlier physiology for a horse, which likely caused the Cobalt concentration of its blood plasma to exceed 25 ng/mL when its blood sample was collected on February 12, 2025,” the arbitral body added.
At the same time, the arbitrator writes that he was “concerned about the fairness and proportionality of his 2-year sanction based on the record evidence,” and that were it not for the way the rules were written, he would have imposed a three-month sentence instead.
“The ADMC Program Rules impose strict liability for a Rule 3212 threshold presence of a banned substance ARDV and require him to prove, by a balance of probabilities, the source of the Cobalt resulting in First Kitten's blood plasma concentration in excess of the 25ng/mL Threshold. This is a substantial burden of proof that is very difficult for a Covered Person whose limited financial resources quality him for pro bono legal representation to satisfy before an Arbitrator may consider their level of fault or negligence for a strict liability ADRV for a prohibited substance above a particular threshold, which is endogenous in horses, in a horse's natural environment (e.g., in soil and water), and an ingredient of feeds and supplements,” the arbitral body writes.
Resolved ADMC Violations
Dates: 11/19/2025
Licensee: Lisa Lugovich, trainer
Penalty: Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of $500; imposition of 1.5 Penalty Points. Admission.
Explainer: Medication violation for the presence of Phenylbutazone—a class C controlled substance—in a sample taken from Gregorian Solo, who won at Delaware Park on 10/15/25.
Dates: 11/19/2025
Licensee: Marvin Richards, trainer
Penalty: A fine of $500; imposition of 1.5 Penalty Points. Final decision of HIWU.
Explainer: Vets' list medication violation for the presence of Phenylbutazone—a class C controlled substance—in a sample taken from Awesome Prince on 10/10/25.
Dates: 11/13/2025 and 11/14/2025
Licensee: Gary Sciacca and Chris Englehart, trainers
Penalty: A written reprimand Admission.
Explainer: Violations for the breach of rule 3510(d), “Refusal or failure without compelling justification to comply with any other provision of the Protocol (where such refusal or failure does not constitute an Anti-Doping Rule Violation)” for an event dated 3/7/24. The case resolutions state that the trainers “failed to respond to a Demand for Business Records (“DBR”) personally and properly served by HIWU.” According to a HIWU spokesperson, these records involve “the care, treatment, training or racing of Covered Horses.”
Dates: 11/13/2025
Licensee: Sarah Davidson, trainer
Penalty: A fine of $500; imposition of 1.5 Penalty Points. Final decision of HIWU.
Explainer: Vets' list medication violation for the presence of Phenylbutazone—a class C controlled substance—in a sample taken from Midnight Lady on 9/30/25.
Dates: 11/13/2025
Licensee: William Robert Bailes, trainer
Penalty: 7-day period of Ineligibility for Covered Person, beginning on November 14, 2025; Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of $1,000; imposition of 1.5 Penalty Points. Admission.
Explainer: Medication violation for the presence of Methylprednisolone—a class C controlled substance—in a sample taken from Goodluckchuck, who won at Timonium on 8/29/25.
Dates: 11/12/2025
Licensee: Gustavo Rodriguez, trainer
Penalty: A written reprimand. Final decision of HIWU.
Explainer: Vets' list medication violation for the presence of Omeprazole (Gastrogard)—a class C controlled substance—in a sample taken from Pistol Liz Ablazen on 9/26/25.
Dates: 11/12/2025
Licensee: Antonio Meraz, trainer
Penalty: 2-year period of Ineligibility for Covered Person, beginning on November 12, 2025; 6-month period of Ineligibility for Covered Horse, beginning on February 12, 2025; Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of $5,000. Final decision of arbitral body.
Explainer: Medication violation for the presence of Cobalt Salts—a banned substance—in a sample taken from First Kitten, who won at Mahoning Valley on 2/12/25.
Pending ADMC Violations
11/18/2025, Bill McLean, trainer: Pending vets' list medication violation for the presence of Acepromazine—a class B controlled substance—in a sample taken from Mo Town Gal on 10/20/25.
11/18/2025, Jane Cibelli, trainer: Pending vets' list medication violation for the presence of Acepromazine—a class B controlled substance—in a sample taken from Mandalorian on 10/17/25.
11/17/2025, Kelsie Calvo, trainer: Pending medication violation for the presence of Tramadol—a class B controlled substance—in a sample taken from Chica Chula, who finished sixth at Mahoning Valley on 10/22/25.
11/14/2025, Fenneka Tracey Bentley, trainer: Pending medication violation for the presence of Betamethasone—a class C controlled substance—in a sample taken from Tiger Paw, who finished seventh at Laurel Park on 10/12/25.
11/14/2025, Robert Cline, trainer: Pending medication violation for the presence of Dimethyl Sulfoxide (DMSO)—a class C controlled substance—in a sample taken from Pittsburgh, who won at Thistledown on 10/8/25.
11/13/2025, Jamie Ness, trainer: Pending medication violation for the presence of Mepivacaine—a class C controlled substance—in a sample taken from Uncle Irish, who finished second at Laurel Park on 9/13/25.
11/13/2025, Marcelino Salas, trainer: Pending medication violation for the presence of Phenylbutazone—a class C controlled substance—in a sample taken from Just an Opinion, who finished sixth at Keeneland on 10/5/25.
Violations of Crop Rule
Churchill Downs
Gavin Ashton – violation date November 14; $1,000 fine, two-day suspension
Tyler Gaffalione – violation date November 13; $500 fine, two-day suspension
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