Medina Spirit, the winning colt in the last Kentucky Derby, died Monday after training Monday at the Santa Anita Racecourse.
The Bob Baffert-trained three-year-old had just completed five furlons of his second workout after finishing second in the Breeders Cup Classic a month ago at Del Mar, according to Craig Robertson, Baffert’s attorney.
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Santa Anita spokesman Mike Willman also confirmed the horse’s death.
Medina Spirit will undergo a full autopsy, something required by the California Horse Racing Commission.
The colt tested positive after the Derby on May 1, detecting betamethasone. It is a legal drug that is not allowed on race days. Baffert set a record with his seventh Derby victory.
Last Friday, Robertson reported that a series of tests in a New York laboratory “definitively confirmed” Medina Spirit’s positive for the steroid that was not applied by injection, but with an ointment used to treat skin rash. .
The Kentucky Racing Commission is still investigating the case and has yet to hold a hearing to possibly disqualify Medina Spirit.
In the Classic of the Criadores Cup, with a purse of 6 million dollars, Medina Spirit was left without strength for the auction against Knicks Go.
âVery proud of him. He had a great career, âBaffert said last month. âFor me, he is the best three-year-old. He proved it today. That’s what horse riding is all about, showing it on the track. And today he showed that he is a real horse â.
Medina Spirit accumulated five victories in 10 events, pocketing earnings of just over $ 3.5 million, according to Equibase. The horse was owned by Amr Zedan.
