Potts to appeal 15-day suspension for flunixin overage

Wayne Potts, the top trainer at Monmouth Park in New Jersey this year, has appealed a 15-day suspension handed down by the New Jersey Racing Commission after a horse he trains tested over the allowable limit for the regulated anti-inflammatory medication flunixin, Potts said.

Potts, who has 24 winners from 93 starts this year at Monmouth, said that the appeal will not be heard until “January or February,” which would allow him to continue training until the end of the Monmouth meet this year. Under New Jersey rules, a suspension must be served during live racing at the track where the violation occurred, and Potts predicted he would serve the days at the beginning of the Monmouth meet next year if his appeal is denied.

According to the ruling in the case, Kentucky Cool, a 3-year-old gelding, had a level of 10.1 nanograms per milliliter of blood of flunixin in his system after winning a race on June 5. The threshold for flunixin in New Jersey is 5 nanograms. Stewards issued the ruling after conducting a hearing on July 28. The suspension was to run from Sept. 1 through Sept. 15.

Potts said that he believes the horse may have been “double-treated” with flunixin in the lead-up to the June 5 race. Kentucky Cool was stabled in New York and had been treated with flunixin prior to shipping to Monmouth Park two days prior to the June 5 race, Potts said. Flunixin is marketed under the trade name Banamine.

“We use Banamine, so I’m not saying the horse didn’t get it,” Potts said. “But he may have gotten it five days before and then again two days before, which is where the overage comes in. It was just a mix-up if that happened.”

Under New Jersey regulations, flunixin is not permitted to be administered within 24 hours of a race. The minimum suspension for an overage of the medication is 15 days, with a fine of $500.

Overall in 2021, Potts has won 48 races in 318 starts, with $1.6 million in total purse earnings.