The rancid culture of cheating in racing makes rival drug circuses like professional cycling and athletics seem like Teddy Bears’ Picnics. So, news that Medina Spirit, the Kentucky Derby winner trained by Bob Baffert, tested positive for excess amounts of betamethasone, an anti-inflammatory, should not come as any surprise. The fifth doping case against Baffert in 12 months, the 31st of his career. When it comes to doping in baseball, the NFL or just about any sport, America’s default setting is complete indifference. That some in the industry quickly filed a lawsuit to try to prevent that kind of oversight demonstrates the problems here go much deeper than Baffert’s serial doping and risible excuses.

Source: The Irish Times May 13, 2021 04:52 UTC