KEY POINTS

  • Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit tested positive for betamethasone
  • Churchill Downs suspended Hall-of-Fame trainer Bob Baffert
  • Baffert called the drug test results "disturbing"

Former President Donald Trump called a Kentucky Derby horse a “junky” after it failed a drug test Sunday.

Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit had tested positive for betamethasone following its victory last weekend at Churchill Downs. A postrace test showed that the horse had more than double the legal threshold of the anti-inflammatory corticosteroid, which is used for joint pain in horses.

Reacting to the horse's failed drug test, Trump wrote a post on his website, saying: “So now even our Kentucky Derby winner, Medina Spirit, is a junky. This is emblematic of what is happening to our Country. The whole world is laughing at us as we go to hell on our Borders, our fake Presidential Election, and everywhere else!”

Medina Spirit's Hall-of-Fame trainer, Bob Baffert, said he was “shocked” by the drug test results but denied that the horse had been treated by the drug. He also said that his team would launch their own investigation.

“Yesterday I got the biggest gut-punch in racing for something I didn’t do,” Baffert told reporters. “It’s disturbing. It’s an injustice to the horse.”

Following the development, Churchill Downs suspended Baffert from having entries for races.

"Failure to comply with the rules and medication protocols jeopardizes the safety of the horses and jockeys, the integrity of our sport and the reputation of the Kentucky Derby and all who participate," Churchill Down’s statement read.

Medina Spirit, a three-year-old brown colt, will undergo more tests to determine if it had too much steroid in its system during its race last week. If the results are upheld, it will strip Medina Spirit of its win, and Mandaloun, the horse that was placed second, would be named the winner.

"To be clear, if the findings are upheld, Medina Spirit's results in the Kentucky Derby will be invalidated and Mandaloun will be declared the winner," Churchill Downs' statement said, adding: “We will await the conclusion of the Kentucky Horse Racing Commissions' investigation before taking further steps."

In April, Baffert had also been the subject of a controversy after the Arkansas Racing Commission upheld a ruling that two of the Hall-of-Fame trainer’s horses had elevated levels of lidocaine. However, the commission dropped a 15-day suspension.

US intelligence believes that Russia meddles in the 2016 election which brought Donald Trump to power
US intelligence believes that Russia meddles in the 2016 election which brought Donald Trump to power AFP / SAUL LOEB