AMERICAN GRADED STAKES STANDINGS brought to you by Keeneland: SHOULD ECLIPSE VOTERS CONSIDER ETHICS?
By Ray Paulick
Should character and rules violations come into play when votes are cast for honors such as horse racing’s Eclipse Awards or Hall of Fame? My belief is that they should.
That question came to mind yesterday when Daily Racing Form first reported on the lawsuit filed by a bank against Ahmed Zayat, whose Zayat Stables was the leading owner in North America in 2008 by earnings and currently ranks third in that category. The bank alleges Zayat owes more than $34 million on equine-related loans.
Zayat wasn’t even one of the three finalists in 2008 Eclipse Award voting in the outstanding owner category. The award went to Frank Stronach’s Stronach Stables, which edged IEAH Stables by one vote, with Godolphin Racing third.
In light of the lawsuit (which, I need to remind readers, is simply the bank’s allegation and does not tell the other side of the story), it will be interesting to see if Eclipse voters again shun Zayat, whose stable earnings are within $300,000 of the leader, the Juddmonte Farms of Saudi Arabian Prince Khalid Abdullah. Zayat Stables has also had a very good year in American Graded Stakes competition, with six individual American Graded Stakes winners. Only the two entities controlled by Dubai’s Sheikh Mohammed have more: Godolphin and Darley have nine AGS winners apiece.
One of Zayat’s biggest stars, Zensational, is a leading contender for champion male sprinter. That begs another question: should a horse be punished by real or perceived misdeeds of his connections? That’s a trickier one to answer.
In Zensational’s case, I don’t thinkan owner’s potential financial problems or character should be a factor in the vote. However, if there are horses trained by individuals who have experienced numerous medication violations (and that isn’t the case with Zensational), I think it’s fair game to bring that into the thought process.
That brings us to Rachel Alexandra, who is a cinch to win the Eclipse Award as champion 3-year-old filly and, in my mind, remains the frontrunner for Horse of the Year over the unbeaten Zenyatta. (Full disclosure: I don’t have a vote for Eclipse Awards, but if I did I would vote for Zenyatta over Rachel Alexandra in a very difficult decision.)
Rachel Alexandra is trained by Steve Asmussen, who is fighting a six-month suspension in Texas for a medication violation detected by post-race testing in a horse he trains and that ran at Lone Star Park in 2008 (click here for details). If it was Asmussen’s first violation, I think voters could easily overlook it. But as the Paulick Report disclosed in June 2008, Asmussen has a long list of rules violations over the last 20 years, including a number of medication positives.
Would Asmussen’s lengthy rap sheet be a factor in how I would vote? Yes, it would. Perhaps it would be enough of a factor to tilt the scales in the Rachel Alexandra vs. Zenyatta Horse of the Year vote.
I also believe it’s fair game to look at a trainer’s record of violation when casting a ballot for outstanding trainer. Asmussen won his first Eclipse Award in this category for 2008, and he’s almost certain to repeat this year. But if I had a vote, it would be very difficult for me to cast a ballot in favor of Asmussen over someone like John Shirreffs, the trainer of Zenyatta. In a search of the California Horse Racing Board database, Shirreffs comes up with zero rulings for medication violations.
Character and a track record of following medication rules should matter when we take time to honor the best in Thoroughbred racing.
Tags: ahmed zayat, American Graded Stakes Standings, daily racing form, eclipse awards, Frank Stronach, godolphin racing, hall of fame, IEAH Stables, john shirreffs, Juddmonte Farms, Keeneland, Khalid Abdullah, Paulick Report, Rachel Alexandra, Ray Paulick, sheikh mohammed, steve asmussen, Zensational, zenyatta
December 17th, 2009 at 2:28 pm
Ethics in the gambling business? LOL
December 17th, 2009 at 2:29 pm
Character counts……but because it doesn’t in such major awards is yet another reason why the major players in the industry are an utter joke. And honoring shady characters sends a very loud message, “Just win, baby.”
December 17th, 2009 at 2:31 pm
Too bad you don’t have a vote, Ray. You are far more thoughtful and informed than many of those who do.
December 17th, 2009 at 3:28 pm
100% agree with this article. I wish Mr. Paulick had a vote. What a shame the majority of Eclipse voters apparently don’t see things this way but at least one person with a voice in the industry is saying something about it.
December 17th, 2009 at 3:30 pm
Voting for HOY? As the criteria is undefined and subjective, a vote is appropriate. Yet I’d rather hear from the collective wisdom of the owners, breeders, trainers, jockeys, grooms and fans rather than a limited gathering of writers (whose opinions are readily expressed in editorials/blogs/reports as it is).
Voting for divisional honors? That’s rather curious, if not simply disingenuous. Figure skaters dance on ice to painstakingly choreographed music while wearing carefully selected costumes. After their performance they adjourn to await the decision of judges. Thoroughbreds race, the objective is definitive. Our champions are identified by their trips to the Winner’s Circle, not waiting in a Kiss and Cry Room for the decision of a panel. There is no credible reason for the need to vote on divisional honors. We can debate a point system, tie-breakers, etc., yet any such criteria provides an absolute known at the beginning of the racing calendar rather a subjective interpretation at the conclusion. That’s my vote.
December 17th, 2009 at 4:33 pm
Often I agree w/Ray, but not this time….I beg to differ….I’m glad Ray doesn’t have a vote. To punish Rachel Alexandra because of violations by her trainer is unthinkable!! Perhaps there should be a point system rather than this subjective voting at the end of the year for the Eclipse Awards.
Quite honestly, few will recall who won the award several years from now, that’s how unimportant they are to the racing fan. However, the owners of these wonderful athletes more than likely takes these awards very seriously. Bottom line….no one has to tell me who was the best horse this past year on the U. S. tracks…..Rachel Alexandra, hands down! Race after race after race!! She is the epitomy of what “Horse of the Year” is all about. If she isn’t selected by these dubious voters as HOTY, then don’t bother holding Eclipse Awards….it’s all a sham. If they choose to honor both Rachel and Zenyatta, that’s okay, too, because Z was awesome in her final race, and it has been such an extraordinary year of racing, and that’s an understatement.
Zenyatta, unfortunately, seems to have an owner and/or trainer that lacked confidence in her…shame on them! Only when their backs were to the wall did they commit to run (first time) against the boys. Fortunately for them, Z won and looked splendid doing it…she probably could have been performing like that all year, giving us all thrills and excitement at the track, race after race…we’ll never know for sure; but we do KNOW without doubt that Rachel could handle it all…the boys 3 times…older, peers, etc….and she did indeed make this year of racing one of the most exciting ever……..she is A HORSE FOR THE AGES!
December 17th, 2009 at 4:57 pm
Yes.
December 17th, 2009 at 5:09 pm
i am on the side of steve asmussen….he has about 500 horses..i know steve & his #1 scott blasi..i have been around the best of the best…& they are one of the best..i have been in the shed rows & barns of MR FITZ,SHERRILL WARD,CITATION MAC,JACK SKINNER,PRESTON BURCH,NICK ZITO,D.WAYNE,BOBBY FRANKEL,TODD PLETCHER &etc..AS FAR AS TEXAS
IS CONCERNED>>>ISNT THAT THE STATE WHOS GOVERNOR WANT TO SUCCEED FROM THE UNION???????HE IS A WHACO ALONG WITH THAT STUPID RACING COMM.
THAT REMINDS ME OF THE TIME I WAS DRIVING SOUTH IN MY BROTHER’S NEW LINCOLN CONTINETAL BACK IN 1953 FROM NY STATE TO MIAMI & GOING THRU A REALLY SMALL GEORGIA ONE HORSE TOWN AT 10:30 AT NITE, A POLICE CAR WITH HIS GIRL FRIEND IN IT STOPPED ME FOR GOING 20 MILES PER HOUR…I ASKED WHAT I DID…HE SAID I HAVE N.Y. LICENSE PLATES..GOODS HONEST TRUTH…ANY STATE THAT WANTS TO HAVE O TOLERANCE IN RACING IS A JOKE..1,2 5 NANO’S IS A BIGER JOKE..YOU CANT FIND THAT IN YOUR DRINKING WATER
December 17th, 2009 at 5:31 pm
I recognize that we all seek attention by creating controversy but I think that it is grossly unfair to penalize based on petty party line politics. Both fillies ran outstandingly, passed all the tests for competition and chemicals. Rachael passed them in a half dozen states and many labs. The choices should be based on merit and ability not popularity or region. When you start taking the horse out of horse racing Ray, you begin to do a disservice to the very core of the sport. Let’s keep it sensible!
December 17th, 2009 at 6:01 pm
Some of Asmussen’s violations look like they were basically clerical errors and that doesn’t bother me. The drug violations bother me. I definitely think his doping rap sheet should be considered when voting for the Eclipse trainer award.
Eugene - Texas governors threatening to secede from the union is nothing new. I lived there through 3 governors. 2 out of 3 of them said they wanted to secede and this was long before the current Gov. Perry took office.
Aside from their rather odd politicians, it’s a very nice place to live. Just ask Steve Asmussen - he grew up there.
December 17th, 2009 at 6:15 pm
Eugene,
Your post speaks volumes of your worthiness to be anything but laughable..
I’m with Ray on this. Rule violaters and their horses shouldn’t recieve awards. Perhaps if a horse was punished, more owners would think twice about who they hire.
December 17th, 2009 at 7:03 pm
YES & I GUESS YOU ARE RIGHT…I WAS AT THE BREEDERS CUP AT LONESTAR & HAD TO LEAVE AFTER THE 6TH RACE..MY WIFE TOOK ME BACK TO THE HOTEL & CALLED 911..THEY CAME AND GOT ME & TOOK ME TO THE CLOSEST HOSPITAL AS I HAD MY 3RD HEART ATTACK >THEY SAVED ME & I WOULD SAY THATS THE BEST & NICEST HOSPITAL I VE BEEN IN..I HAD TO MISS BOBBY’S HORSE “GHOSTZAPPER IN THE 12TH RACE THE “CLASSIC”.
HE TOLD ME HE’D GET THE JOB DONE & HE DID
December 17th, 2009 at 8:30 pm
I agree with Chad Holtz (though I would also define objective criteria for HOTY). Voting for divisional honors has become a joke with the voters’ biases the primary criteria for their votes. One reason that I like racing is that the winner of a race is not determined by popular opinion but by the horse’s performance (otherwise every favorite would win). Why should the divisional championships be decided by popular opinion (particularly when that opinion is limited to sports writers).
December 17th, 2009 at 9:10 pm
My opinion is that racing needs to be very aggressive in identifying and distinguishing differences in rule violations. We are letting the baying hounds create an erroneous perception that everybody cheats.
There are lights years of difference in terms of serious offense between a trainer deliberately using an illegal performance enhancing “drug” and a trainer caught in some medication treatment error where the laudable intent was to keep the horse racing instead of heading to the meat wagon. Imo there needs to be a model racing commission rule distinguishing between offenses.
And, the NTRA or somebody should take this bull by the horns. Backstretch thieves and robbers should be codified hanging by the toe nails, and those making errors helping horses–see Jeff Mullins in Ny–need jay walking tickets with increasing penalties for multiple offense. Most likely stewards consider all this in making decisions. However, what is needed is national publicity that a “rap” sheet may in fact be akin to a driving record, and perhaps those committing felonies needs something else on their record.
December 17th, 2009 at 11:54 pm
Good story. I think it’s nice that Assumusen’s misgiven’s have been brought to bear. I’m not saying he did, but it does, after reading this article, make one wonder if perhaps his “super-filly” may have been subject to any medication’s? In Zenyatta’s case, my god, if that mare were medicated, she’d outrun a Corvette.
December 18th, 2009 at 1:57 am
The voters dont care about cheaters. He’ll get all the votes he needs.
December 18th, 2009 at 10:00 am
Steve deserves the title. He not only did great job with Rachel but when Kodiak Cowboy worked horrible over pro ride at Santa Anita he pulled him out and won Cigar Mile. He would have run last in Sprint . He now has a chance to get Champion Sprinter because of that move.
December 18th, 2009 at 12:31 pm
He got handed an already made horse in Rachel Alexandra. And i don’t think deciding to skip a race is worthy of Eclipse award honors. This guy is lucky he still has a license after all of the crap he has pulled.
December 18th, 2009 at 12:56 pm
I’m on the fence for HOY… but… regarding the rest of the article and some of the comments, ethics in ANY sport’s awards should matter. Breaking the rules is wrong. Anybody can be sabotaged or have the lab screw up once or twice. But repeatedly? Hell-o. It is unethical (and illegal) to use prohibited substances, unethical (and illegal) to have them in one’s possession on track property, and absolutely unethical to continue to use certain “therapeutic” steroids for short-term solutions to problems which SHOULD be solved by rest and rehab. I say subtract the number of fatalities/career-ending injuries from each trainer’s totals. THAT would certainly change things, wouldn’t it?
December 18th, 2009 at 3:02 pm
Zenyatta’s camp didn’t lack confidence, but her ethical, mature and compassionate owners and trainer team wanted to enjoy her as safely as possible and spare her the tough campaign and beating that RA received while chasing HOTY honors. The RA team asked “everything she’s got” of RA and more. She ended the year season exhausted while Zen could have gone around another mile after winning the Classic. How the two mares were campaigned should figure prominently in the Eclipse Awards voting.
The classy Zen camp had fun with their extraordinary mare and as the Mosses have said many times, they ran her in CA because they live there and also because their trainer is not an egomaniac, megalomaniac, do or die trainer. The Mosses and John Shirreffs developed and nurtured Zen. Jess Jackson bought ready-made talent. The Zen team weren’t willing to be hard on its mare and take unnecessary risks while chasing the HOTY honor. Her team was always comfortable and satisfied including Zenyatta. She was deeply appreciated for what she did and how she did it. She is their horse of the year already and horse of a lifetime, they are not sweating the votes. Zen was retired healthy, happy and with a lot to spare.
RA was “rode hard and put away wet”.
I would enjoy seeing Zen being voted HOTY to recognize class and honor top quality equine management and integrity. The Mosses should be owners of the year and the No rap sheet John Shirreffs, trainer of the year.
December 18th, 2009 at 6:43 pm
I FINALLY AGREE WITH JOE re: zenyatta & her trainer
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about the elite trainers in the USA… they are bashed from time to time about their being questioned about medications & etc.BY RACING FANS, HANDICAPPERS, GAMBLERS,& MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACKS how about the no name trainers around every track in the USA ….i guess they are all clean ..FYI . it has been going on before most of u nice people have been borrn
December 18th, 2009 at 6:49 pm
I STILL SAY THAT DRUGS HAVE BEEN USED SINCE THE 1800′S..DID U ALL NOT KNOW THAT ONE COULD WALK IN A DRUG STORE IN 1895- 1900- 1910 & BUY COCAINE WITHOUT A SCRIPT…