Bob Baffert, trainer, had half a dozen horse die in his barn in one year. Insurance. Sponge up the nose. Even the notoriously corrupt powers of the racing world were forced to take notice.
The odds of Medina Spirit running in the $1 million TVG.com Haskell Stakes at Monmouth Park were growing longer with each passing day.
But Monmouth Park officials were in contact with trainer Bob Baffert over the weekend, and on Tuesday confirmed that Medina Spirit, who failed a post-race drug test after winning the Kentucky Derby, would not be making the trip from Southern California to the Jersey Shore for the July 17 race.
“Medina Spirit’s not coming,” said Monmouth Park racing secretary John Heims. “The race just comes up too quickly.”
Medina Spirit has just one published workout since running third in the Preakness on May 15 in his last start, going three furlongs at Santa Anita on June 14, with Baffert, whose won the Haskell a record nine times, saying last week that the colt might not be ready
https://www.app.com/story/sports/2021/07/06/bob-baffert-medina-spirit-officially-out-haskell-monmouth-park/7871962002/