Falcon Points
Justify's failed drug test casts light on a bigger problem in gambling
Sep 12, 2019, 2:49 pm
Santaanita.com
In 2018, Justify won horse racing's Triple Crown, sweeping the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes. It was the second time a horse had accomplished the feat since 2015. Before that, the last winner was in 1978. It is one of the most difficult accomplishments in sports.
The horses that have won it are instantly enshrined in history and compared to the all-time greats, like Secretariat and Seattle Slew. When American Pharoah won in 2015, that was indeed the case. He would go on to win the Breeders' Cup Classic, becoming the first horse to win the Triple Crown and the Classic. It was an amazing year, and he was truly a brilliant race horse who captivated fans around the country.
When Justify won just three years later, it did not feel the same. He beat a very suspect group of three year olds, and was not impressive doing it. And then he retired as if his connections were afraid to see him lose against older horses and taint his legacy. No one compared him to any of the all time greats. It simply felt weird.
Now it makes sense
As the memory of Justify was slipping into history, a bombshell broke on Wednesday. Joe Drape of the New York Times dropped an in depth piece on the horse. Justify failed a drug test after the Santa Anita Derby. He should have been disqualified from his win in the race, and would not have even been in the Triple Crown. But the ruling was put off, kept under wraps, and the horse was allowed to race. After he won the Triple Crown, the board lessened the penalty for use of the particular drug he was caught with, effectively changing the rules to avoid a bad look.
Then it was somehow kept under wraps for two years.
Bad looks all around
As a longtime fan and supporter of the sport, stories like this are beyond frustrating, and goes to a deeper problem: Inconsistent rules. Each state has its own set of rules, and they are not all enforced consistently. When Maximum Security was disqualified from the Kentucky Derby, it was a controversy of the first order. Whether or not it was the right call varies from state to state, and even track to track. Stewards make those calls, and they are subjective. What is enforced in one place is not in another. Not everyone plays by the same standards.
Why Justify?
There is no reason to doubt Drape's reporting. He is one of the best in the business, especially when it comes to the news of the sport, and his story is well worth your time. So the real question is why?
The California Horse Racing Board took almost a month to confirm the results, ostensibly because they wanted to be sure. But that put them up against the Derby, and a DQ at that point would have been problematic. There is nothing wrong in being sure and getting the ruling right. But then once the horse wins the Triple Crown, imagine the outrage had it gone public.
There were three real problems; the lack of transparency, changing the rules and potential conflict of interest. Some of the board members are horse owners; the chairman owns horses raced by Justify's high profile trainer, Bob Baffert.
The board may have very well been, er, justified in all of its moves. But these three issues make it a very bad look.
The ruling that it was accidental, then, is easy to question. Baffert has had a ton of success and does not need to cheat, but he is not the only one in the barn or with contact to the horses. So it is possible the ruling was the right thing, but the way it happened is simply unacceptable. That the rules were changed after the Triple Crown makes it look even worse.
Black eyes?
Those calling it yet another black eye on a sport that has had its share this year - the deaths at Santa Anita and the Derby itself - are merely scratching the surface. The sport has no eyes left. They have been beaten so hard it doesn't begin to tell the story. I have seen it all over the years; fixed races, horses being held back, inconsistent rulings, high profile cheating trainers. There are more good people than bad in racing, as there is in all of life. But it's always the bad that get the attention and ruin it for everyone else. Were these bad people? No. But when you try to hide something like this, there is no way to spin it into a positive.
The biggest issue - players have no rights
Lost in all this is the person who bets. Those of us who bet against Justify have no recourse. As sports betting becomes legal everywhere, these are issues that will impact more than horse racing. We already see it in boxing and MMA; you bet on a fight, lose and then a few days later whoever won failed a drug test and is disqualified. What if you bet on the Saints to cover Monday night, and two days after Deshaun Watson is suspended for PEDs and should have never played? While that is extreme - you made your decision based on the fact that he was playing - the player has no voice.
Horse racing should be more cognizant of that than any sport. Without betting, it does not exist. With sports betting coming to more states, horseplayers will gravitate away, especially as controversies like this keep happening. It is a sport that has been filled with controversy with years. Horse racing is where steroids started. Everyone in the sport should be aware of that.
There aren't a lot of us broken down horseplayers left. Decisions like this make it harder to keep trusting that the races we are betting on are honest.
The final analysis
Justify's breeding rights were sold for $60 million. As for his legacy? Most considered him the worst Triple Crown winner in history before. This won't do anything but reinforce that, but the breeding money spends just the same. Drape's story doesn't really change anything in the grand scheme. It simply casts light on a problem that needs to be dealt with whenever gambling and people's investments are involved: Transparency. Honestly. Consistency.
I won't hold my breath.
Most Popular
SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome
Listen Live
Rockets stumble as Grizzlies snatch victory in controversial finish
Jan 31, 2025, 12:11 pm
Thursday night's one point loss at Memphis aside, what a run the Houston Rockets have been enjoying. Within a two week stretch the Rockets beat the last two NBA Champions (winning on the road in Denver and Boston), and twice beat the Cleveland Cavaliers who have the best record in the league this season and against all other teams are 39-7. Yes, the Nuggets were without Nikola Jokic in their loss to the Rockets but don’t nitpick. Entering February with a 32-15 record exceeds even optimistic preseason hopes. The preseason betting line for the Rockets' season win total was 43, give or take a game. They are on pace to win 55.
In the 2022-23 season the Rockets completed a three-year run as an on-court laughingstock with a 22-60 record. That tied for the second worst record in the NBA, following seasons of 20-62 and 17-55 which each were the worst record in the league. It was an embarrassing stretch for a proud franchise. The Rockets had just three losing seasons total in the 36 seasons prior to their recent three years in the toilet. Following the ‘22-’23 slog, the Rockets’ cross their fingers really hard hope was to win the draft lottery where the unquestioned grand prize was Victor Wembanyama. Alas, the Rockets drew only the fourth pick on lottery night. “Wemby” hasn’t disappointed the San Antonio Spurs at all, and in this his second season he stands a strong chance of winning the Defensive Player of the Year Award.Prevailing sentiment had point guard “Scoot” Henderson as the second-best prospect in the ‘23 draft. The Charlotte Hornets took forward Brandon Miller at number two because they already had LaMelo Ball at point guard. The Portland Trail Blazers then took Henderson at three. Would the Rockets have taken him at number two or three? We don’t know with certainty. Other than for laughs they have no reason to admit they'd have selected "Scoot," any more than Nick Caserio would have to admit the Texans’ would have drafted Bryce Young over C.J. Stroud if they had picked first not second in the 2023 NFL draft. What we do know is the Rockets picked Amen Thompson fourth. Amen to that.
Thompson individually best mirrors the Rockets’ rapid rise from mediocre last season (41-41) to legitimate contender. Thompson was the fourth pick in his draft class, after the Rockets took Jabari Smith third the year before, with Jalen Green the second overall pick the year before that. It was Smith’s broken hand in early January that spurred head coach Ime Udoka to insert Thompson into the starting lineup. I’m guessing neither Thompson nor Smith know the story of Wally Pipp (or perhaps Lou Gehrig either), but how can Udoka put Smith back in the starting lineup? The race is on for which in hindsight will be general manager Rafael Stone’s greater move, taking Thompson at four or swinging the post-draft trade that netted 2021 number 16 selection Alperen Sengun. Sengun Thursday night was named an All-Star game reserve for the first time. One can envision Thompson joining Sengun on an All-Star squad as soon as next season. Credit to Jalen Green for some improvement this season, but the idea that he has made a huge leap and should have made the All-Star game is silly. Green has stretches where hot shooting combines with his explosiveness to make him look like a star, but that is not his body of work. Green’s shooting percentages remain below average from the floor overall and from behind the three-point line.
The Rockets are second in the Western Conference while getting essentially nothing from the third pick in last June’s draft, guard Reed Sheppard. He’s just 20 years old and there is no reason for a pure shooter to lose that skill before he can legally buy a beer, so bust talk is way premature. But Sheppard looked like a poor man’s Bryce Drew (that’s not a compliment) in his early season opportunities, overmatched physically with the game way too fast for him.
When you draft in the top four for four consecutive years, you’re supposed to assemble some stout talent. In consecutive drafts the Seattle Supersonics/Oklahoma City Thunder picked Kevin Durant (at number two), Russell Westbrook (at number four), and James Harden (at number three). Success is no given however even with a raft of high lottery picks. The Minnesota Timberwolves in successive drafts selected third, fifth and sixth the same year, fourth, and second. Their “haul” was O.J. Mayo, Ricky Rubio/Jonny Flynn, Wesley Johnson, and Derrick Williams. Yikes.
The current iteration of the Thunder is obviously the best team in the Western Conference, but until OKC breaks through and wins a conference title, it’s not unreasonable to think OKC can be had in a best-of-seven. That the Rockets make the list of teams who wouldn’t require a miracle to topple the Thunder is a phenomenal development.
Still counting down to the start of spring training, but we have taken no offseason from discussing the Astros. Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me for a New Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday, with an additional episode now on Thursday. Click here to catch!
*Looking to get the word out about your business, products, or services? Consider advertising on SportsMap! It's a great way to get in front of Houston sports fans. Click the link below for more information!