By: Jeremy Balan
Los Pollos Hermanos Racing and Jay Em Ess Stable’s Masochistic was not allowed to enter the Dec. 31 Midnight Lute Stakes (gr. III) at Santa Anita Park because he lacks a clean drug test following his positive post-race test for stanozolol after the Nov. 5 TwinSpires Breeders’ Cup Sprint (gr. I).
California Horse Racing Board stewards informed trainer Ron Ellis Dec. 28 that the 6-year-old Sought After gelding would not be eligible to enter a race until he tested clean. The Breeders’ Cup Sprint positive put him on a stewards’ list and to be removed from the list, Masochistic must pass an examination and a drug test, according to CHRB equine medical director Rick Arthur.
“He’ll have to test clean to enter, and that was how the stewards ruled,” Arthur said.
Ellis, however, said that he was told by Arthur last week that Masochistic would be able to run, as long as he tested clean by race day. Ellis had Masochistic tested Dec. 26, but won’t get the results back until Dec. 29 or Dec. 30.
“It’s all a big mess. Rick Arthur told me, as long as he tested clean by race day, we’d be OK,” Ellis said. “It is frustrating. You think you do everything within the rules and something doesn’t work out, and everyone thinks you’re a bad guy.”
Arthur said Wednesday that he did not tell Ellis Masochistic would be able to run under those circumstances.
Masochistic is expected to be disqualified from his second-place finish in the Sprint during a Dec. 30 hearing with CHRB stewards at Santa Anita. His $255,000 purse share is also expected to be redistributed.
Ellis said he was unsure when Masochistic might run next.
“What we’ll do is to just make sure that he’s all clear test-wise and then we’ll all move on,” the trainer said. “I didn’t have any other plans other than this race.”
