TVG commentator, former trainer Bray diagnosed with cancer

ARCADIA, Calif. – Simon Bray, a TVG racing commentator and former trainer, has been diagnosed with multiple myeloma and will undergo treatment this summer, TVG producer Kevin Grigsby said Saturday.

Bray, 45, is scheduled to undergo treatment for a recent back injury in coming weeks and will then begin chemotherapy treatment, Grigsby said.

In a statement released by TVG, Bray said the diagnosis was made after he underwent tests following the back injury.

“Unfortunately, the results of those tests turned my life upside down in an instant,” he said in a statement. “I have multiple myeloma, a rare form of blood cancer, and while not curable, it is treatable. Obviously this has been very hard to come to terms with, but my primary focus will now be fighting the disease. I am extremely lucky to have a very strong and supportive family, including my wife, my young son, and a baby daughter due in one month.”

Bray said he would like to return to work later this year.

In a statement, TVG said donations in support of Bray can be made to the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation and that TVG-Betfair will match the first $10,000 of donations.

A native of England, Bray has worked at TVG for more than a decade as an expert on foreign and domestic races and as a handicapper.

Bray has lived in the U.S. since 1992 and worked for trainer Bill Mott for much of that decade before training on behalf of Allen and Madeleine Paulson beginning in 1998. He trained until the early 2000s, winning 73 races, including the Grade 1 Gamely Stakes at Hollywood Park with Astra and other stakes with Cali, Casino King, Fighting Falcon, Mary Kies, Master Belt, Secret Garden, and Startac. Startac won the Grade 3 Generous Stakes at Hollywood Park in 2000.

Bray was the first trainer of Azeri, the 2002 Horse of the Year, before the filly was transferred to Laura de Seroux before her first start.