Walsh suspended 10 days for 'stacking' anti-inflammatory medications

Trainer Brendan Walsh has been suspended 10 days by Kentucky stewards after a horse he trained tested positive for excessive levels of multiple painkillers, a violation that falls under the commission’s relatively new rules prohibiting “stacking” of drugs.

Walsh’s suspension will run July 5-14, according to a ruling posted on the racing commission’s website. Walsh, who also was fined $500, waived his right to an appeal, according to the ruling.

The horse in question, Sahan, was tested after he finished third April 15 in the Transylvania Stakes at Keeneland. Sahan, who is owned by Sultan Bin Mishal, was disqualified, according to the ruling.

The ruling states Sahan tested over the primary threshold for ketoprofen and over the secondary thresholds for both phenylbutazone and flunixin. All are non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications with painkilling properties.

The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission put in place thresholds last year to prevent trainers from using multiple anti-inflammatory drugs in order to get a more potent effect. Under the rules, the regulatory thresholds are lower if post-race tests indicate more than one anti-inflammatory in the sample.