Positive on Joseph horse reversed by Pennsylvania Racing Commission
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The Pennsylvania State Horse Racing Commission has taken the unusual step of reversing a disqualification issued to a horse because of a positive drug test, a decision that will restore a stakes win for the mare Artie’s Princess and strike a suspension from the record of the mare’s trainer, Saffie Joseph Jr.
In a ruling issued July 28, the commission said that the positive test for gabapentin would be thrown out due to a number of factors, including the low concentration of the drug in a post-race urine sample, the failure to detect the drug in a post-race blood sample, and because “it is unlikely for gabapentin to have had an effect on the horse.”
Artie’s Princess tested positive for gabapentin after winning the Grade 2, $400,000 Presque Isle Downs Masters Stakes in September of 2022. After a split sample returned a positive test, Joseph was suspended for 15 days and Artie’s Princess was disqualified, but Joseph appealed and received a stay of the suspension.
After the penalty was handed down, Joseph told Daily Racing Form that he had “never heard” of gabapentin until he was informed of the positive test, and he denied administering the drug to Artie’s Princess. He also said that Artie’s Princess was subjected to out-of-competition testing prior to running in the Masters, and that the tests came back clean.
Gabapentin is used to treat nerve pain in humans, but it has also been used off-label in horses as a painkiller, according to regulatory officials.
After issuing the penalty and receiving notice that Joseph had appealed, the Pennsylvania commission said that “the liability for this positive is under investigation.”
The ruling issued on July 28 said that commission personnel had reviewed “the available literature, or lack thereof, on the effects of gabapentin in horses at the low levels detected” in Artie’s Princess and had discussed the test results with lab personnel.
“Certain factors related to the penalty may not be able to be proven to the applicable burden of proof” required to prevail in the appeal, the ruling said.
With the $240,000 winner’s purse restored, Artie’s Princess has won seven races from 15 starts and $564,000. She is owned by Ken Ramsey and the estate of his late wife, Kathern. In her most recent start, Artie’s Princess finished eighth in a listed stakes at Woodbine in Canada after a five-month layoff.
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