Nearly six years after the race, Triple Crown winner Justify has been disqualified from his Santa Anita Derby victory in a settlement of a lawsuit by the owner of the runner-up.
Mick Ruis, who also was the trainer of second-place finisher Bolt d’Oro, had sued the California Horse Racing Board in an effort to overturn the CHRB’s decision not to take action after Justify’s post-race test in 2018 came back positive for the prohibited substance scapolamine.
The settlement in Los Angeles Superior Court – first reported by BloodHorse – calls for Justify to be disqualified and placed last in the seven-horse race and for the CHRB to pay $300,000 to Ruis.
Bolt d’Oro now earns the $600,000 winner’s share of the $1,000,345 purse instead of $200,000 for second, while Justify and owners China Horse Club, Head of Plains Partners LLC, Starlight Racing and WinStar Farm are stripped of the $600,000 the colt had earned for winning by three lengths under jockey Mike Smith for trainer Bob Baffert.
The disqualification means Justify no longer was officially undefeated in six starts. It does not affect his sweep of the 2018 Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes, which made him the 13th American Triple Crown winner.
CHRB spokesman Mike Marten confirmed there has been a settlement but could not comment further because it’s an active case, meaning Justify’s connections could appeal the matter.
Baffert noted that he was not involved in the litigation or the resolution.
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“All parties clearly recognized that the test reported on Justify, and other horses at that time, came from a feed contaminant, specifically jimsonweed, found in the hay fed to the horses,” Baffert said by text message in response to a request for comment. “The recent announced decision dealt with whether the positive from the contaminant should have resulted in disqualification and purse redistribution.”
Scapolamine, an antispasmodic medication, is prohibited because it could improve horses’ performances by aiding breathing.