Permission to race imminent for former Servis, Navarro horses

Horses formerly trained by trainers Jason Servis and Jorge Navarro – both indicted by federal authorities on horse-doping charges – could soon be permitted to be entered by their new trainers, according to Mike Lakow, Gulfstream’s vice president of racing operations.

The indictments of those trainers were handed down March 9, and in the days immediately following, owners of horses trained by Servis and Navarro had to move them to new barns. The horses were put on a veterinarian’s list and basically could not compete for 60 days. Those horses were required to pass a hair-follicle drug test, put in a satisfactory workout in front of a state veterinarian, and following that work pass blood and urine drug tests.

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Over the last week, many of those horses have put in workouts at South Florida tracks and training centers for the vet and now all that remains is getting the results of those blood and urine tests.

“I’m hoping by next week we’ll be able to take entries,” Lakow said.

Kelly Breen said he had four horses work for the state vet this week and expected it would take another week to get the test results back. Breen said the process in New York, where he has Firenze Fire and some other horses previously trained by Servis, “is a little bit behind.”

“We’re waiting to have a schedule to work and have blood and urine taken,” he said.