Next Drysdale hearing Tuesday

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - A stay of a suspension and fine issued to trainer Neil Drysdale ended Friday, but the Illinois Racing Board cannot immediately impose Drysdale's penalties.

The board turned down a request for a 10-day extension of the stay, but Drysdale's attorneys petitioned a United States district court in Chicago on Friday for a temporary restraining order barring the board from imposing the rulings. The judge appointed to hear the matter was not available, so the court rescheduled the hearing for Tuesday.

If the temporary restraining order is then denied, Drysdale's penalties - a 45-day suspension and a $2,500 fine - will immediately be effective, according to board legal representatives.

Drysdale was fined and suspended, and the colt Flying Dash disqualified from his win in the May 11 Hawthorne Derby, after a urine/blood sample taken from Flying Dash tested positive for clenbuterol and a metabolite of acepromazine. Neither medication is legal on race day in Illinois.

Drysdale received his stay so that a split sample taken from Flying Dash could be tested. His attorneys requested an extension of the stay because official results of another urine/blood test and a DNA test performed on the sample weren't yet available.

If the temporary restraining order is granted Tuesday, the matter will go back before the board, but perhaps not until the board's September meeting.