Basalt, you describe the Baffert I’d always heard, and yesterday that was all new info to me. Those stats on that blog were eye opening. They didn’t appear to come from jealousy but I don’t know the reason behind all that research.
I understand there is all kinds of legal “cheating” that everyone engages in. Including human athletes. Substances aren’t banned.... until they are. I get that. But those stats about the deaths of Baffert’s horses vs anyone else were a bit shocking.
However, you bring up a good point. The blog entry did not research the rat poison thoroughly. For instance, if as you say it was only happening in the Hollywood Park stable. So that points to a careless pesticide sprayer there. Or ordering food from some source that had their crops sprayed with it? Or left the rat bait out where it got mixed with the hay or whatever.
I don’t want to slam the guy nor do I want to believe a cheater is a fair guy. It’s tough.
i dont know...common sense tells me he couldnt get to the level hes at if he was dangerously drugging horses and killing them....if you were an owner of a 5 million dollar colt that you just bought, would you send him to a trainer doing that? The fact that hes so in the eye of the media, hes one of the few true “personalities” in the sport, the scrutiny is there. Remember too, that blog is part of an anti-racing activist group that is determined to shut down racing. For what its worth, i remember hearing the same stuff about D.Wayne Lukas in the 1980’s when he was the top dog....