Kentucky Derby Winning Horse Dies Sparking Steroid Rumors

Kentucky Derby winning horse, Medina Spirit, died yesterday at the Santa Anita park track after completing what was a very routine workout for the animal. Doctors on site claim that the horse collapsed suddenly after completing a 5 furlong run (about 1 km, or 0.6 miles). Reportedly the horse had not worked out since finishing second in the Breeder's Cup Classic in early November; another very highly touted horse racing event.

Doctors on site though confirm that the horse is going to go through an entire necropsy process including a toxicology report. The main reason why this is all so relevant is because the horse's former trainer Bob Baffert has been in massive legal trouble regarding some of his training methods, and that may or may not include giving his horses a little extra juice!

The death of the Kentucky Derby winning horse comes just days after lawyers for trainer Bob Baffert claimed to have been able to prove that the substance that Medina Spirit tested positive for at the Kentucky Derby came from a topical ointment. In simple terms, the trainer claims that the horse had a rash, and they put something on him that caused a positive drug test. With the horse now dead just days after the legal team announced this news doctors are UC Davis are getting ready to find out the truth! Dr. Jeff Blea, the California Horse Racing Board's equine medical director said an interview today,

"He'll go out to UC Davis in San Bernardino for a full and comprehensive necropsy including toxicology, forensics and tissue sampling. We will take a close look at the heart to try and identify the cause of death."

This year's Kentucky Derby was held on the first of May. Now heading towards the end of the year and with the original winning horse dead, the Kentucky Horse Racing commission has yet to hold an official meeting to sort out of the result of the race. As we mentioned both trainer, Bob Baffert, and the horse's owner Amr Zedan had been hopeful that they would be able to put these issues behind them. With Baffert though already getting hit with massive suspensions from the New York horse racing commission. Now his dead Kentucky Derby winning horse may be the key to clearing Baffert or see him face serious punishment that could potentially include jail time!

Medina Spirit was training to potentially head out to compete in the Saudi Cup in February. Since his owner Amr Zedan is a native of the country it would've made sense that he wanted to show off his horse in his native land. As is the case for Baffert, Amr Zedan's future in horse racing could also be tied to what veterinarians at UC Davis find in the body of their dead horse. Just when these two gentlemen thought they would be in the clear.