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Yes, the horse that won the biggest race in the world might have never set his hoofs on any track if Christy Whitman wasn’t there that day in Ocala. In 2009, America fell in love with the crazy story of Mine That Bird, who was bought for a measly $9,500 as a yearling and won the Derby as a 50-1 longshot.ĭon’t let the 12-1 closing odds fool you, that Medina Spirit got into the starting gate and won as the sun went down on the spires on Saturday is Seabiscuit levels more unlikely. The horses death has once again shed a light on the dark underbelly of thoroughbred racing. Medina Spirit, the Kentucky Derby winner disgraced for failing a post-race drug test, has died. Last modified on Mon 13.20 EST Medina Spirit, the horse at the centre of a doping controversy at this year’s Kentucky Derby, has died during a workout. His horse came from the best bloodline made up of with the highest-priced sires in horse racing in A.P. Medina Spirit (center) leads the pack during the 146th running of the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course. In winning, Medina Spirit beat out the favorite, Essential Quality, owned by the mighty Goldolphin Stables, which is owned by a Dubai sheikh with a seemingly endless amount of money. The colt had just completed five furlongs in his second workout since finishing. Trainer Bob Baffert said in a statement that the horse suffered a heart attack. On Saturday, Medina Spirit was bypassed by 10 of the 11 NBC commentators and handicappers when asked to choose who was going to win. Medina Spirit, a 3-year-old colt whose Kentucky Derby victory in May came under scrutiny because of a positive drug test, has collapsed and died after a workout in Southern California. On this day at the Derby, Medina Spirit’s first prize purse was worth $1.86 million.Īgainst all odds, this horse ran in five races, winning two and never finishing worse than second, including the San Felipe Stakes and the Santa Anita Derby. Whitman took a shot on the horse that would be named Medina Spirit and Saturday that horse, who was bought a year later for $35,000, made a mockery out of horse racing’s practice of spending big bucks based on bloodlines. I had to look him up to see where the stallion even stood.” “I never even heard of Protonico at the time. “This colt came up and no one was even looking at him because of his page,” Christy Whitman, who bought the horse that day, told Brisnet. Baffert denied allegations that he drugged the horse after a split urine test, saying the drug was due to a topical ointment in the medina spirit system. A yearling out of Protonico and Mongolia Changa, hardly names that got anyone to pull out their wallet. Kentucky state law allows horses to be treated with betamethasone up to 14 days before a race.Of those 23 horses was a horse with hip number 448. Medina Spirit tested positive over the legal limit after the derby for betamethasone, a drug used to reduce joint inflammation. In comparison, he recently paid $1.7 million for an unraced two-year-old.Ĭontroversy surrounded trainer Baffert after some of the horses in his stables tested positive for banned substances. The colt was purchased by Zedan for a bargain price of $35,000. Medina Spirit, on the other hand, faced odds of 12-1. (Reuters)Īn underdog by a huge margin at the Kentucky Derby, Medina Spirit beat competitors including Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid’s Essential Quality, which was a 5-2 favorite to win. John Velazquez guides Medina Spirit to the front of the pack during 147th running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs.