Racehorse trainer Bob Baffert will not be held liable to disgruntled gamblers who bet on the second place horse in the 2021 Kentucky Derby, as his first-place finisher, Medina Spirit, was disqualified for using a performance enhancing drug. The gamblers’ claims under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act were dismissed by the US District Court for the Western District of Kentucky due to Kentucky law and being too speculative.
The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission stewards disqualified Medina Spirit months after the 2021 Kentucky Derby, despite the bets already being paid out. This decision led to the gamblers seeking compensation from Baffert, but the court ruled in his favor, stating that he is not liable for the situation. The judge, Claria Horn Boom, made the decision on December 13.
Overall, the court’s ruling determined that Bob Baffert is not responsible for compensating the disgruntled gamblers who bet on the second place horse in the 2021 Kentucky Derby. Despite Medina Spirit’s disqualification for using a performance enhancing drug, the gamblers’ claims under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act were deemed too speculative and foreclosed by Kentucky law.
