California board dismisses complaint against trainer Metz

The California Horse Racing Board recently dismissed a complaint against veteran trainer Jeff Metz regarding a positive test for a bisphosphonate found in one of his runners in 2020, clearing the trainer of any potential sanction.

The racing board reached the decision in a closed session of its monthly teleconference meeting on Sept. 15, the board said in a statement released Friday.

In the statement, the racing board “believed it would be unfair to punish Metz when both testing and investigation revealed that the bisphosphonate administration occurred in 2018, well before Metz even trained the horse.”

Last December, Metz was cited after Camino de Estrella tested positive for the bisphosphonate tiludronic acid following a sixth-place finish in the third race at Santa Anita on Sept. 27, 2020.

Camino de Estrella finished sixth of seven and earned $500.

Camino de Estrella was disqualified from the prize money, leading to a portion of the purse being redistributed. The racing board said in its recent statement that the disqualification is not affected by the dismissed complaint.

In its decision, the racing board cited a law stating that the racing board can dismiss a complaint if the regulatory agency’s executive director and equine medical director mutually agree on such a recommendation.

Scott Chaney is the racing board’s executive director, while Jeff Blea is the equine medical director, a position he started in July.

Bisphosphonates are part of a class of drugs used to stimulate the repair of bone material, and have been at the forefront of regulatory discussions nationwide in recent years. Bisphosphonates are primarily used to treat navicular disease in horses age 4 years old and older and can stay in a horse’s system for more than a year.

Metz, 54, has a stable in Southern California and has won 27 races this year through Sunday. Metz was leading trainer at the 2018 Emerald Downs meeting, and was third at the Turf Paradise meeting in 2019-2020.