Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit drops dead at California race track
Medina Spirit, the horse that won the 2021 Kentucky Derby but later failed a drug test, died Monday morning after collapsing at a California race track.
The 3-year-old colt died at the infamous Santa Anita race track where dozens of horses died in 2018 and 2019.
Craig Robertson, an attorney for trainer Bob Baffert, told the Associated Press Medina Spirit had just finished five furlongs. It was only the horse’s second workout since placing second in the Breeders’ Cup Classic on Nov. 6.
“My entire barn is devastated by this news,” Baffert said in a statement. “Medina Spirit was a great champion, a member of our family who was loved by all, and we are deeply mourning his loss. I will always cherish the proud and personal memories of Medina Spirit and his tremendous spirit.”
A full necropsy will be conducted into the cause of death, but Baffert said it was a heart attack.
Medina Spirit won the 2021 Kentucky Derby in May, the seventh time a Baffert horse had won, but tested positive for betamethasone, a legal medication that horses are not allowed to be given the same day they race. The horse allegedly received a treatment that contained the substance for a rash.
In response, Baffert was banned from several race tracks and not allowed to enter horses in the next two Kentucky Derby races. The investigation into the incident remains ongoing and the horse had not yet been officially disqualified from its Derby win.
Medina Spirit had won five races in only 10 career starts.
With News Wire Services
