Baffert horses test positive

Two of them he denies wrong

Learning two horses from the barn of trainer bob baffert have tested positive for a banned substance at a recent meet in arkansas.

According to the new york times and louisville courier journal they tested positive for lidocaine... a regulated anesthetic widely used in equine medicine.

Lidocaine is considered a class two drug by the association of racing commissioners international... and carries a penalty of a 15 to 60 day suspension... a fine of 500 to 1-thousand dollars for a first attempt, according to the times.

Without mitigating circumstances...a horse would be disqualified.

One of those horses was charlatan... who is an early favorite for the kentucky derby in september..

In a statement baffert said quote: "the rules of the arkansas racing commission mandate confidentiality concerning any investigation into an alleged rule violation until there is a written decision of the stewards."

He went on to say: "i am extremely disappointed that, in this instance, the commission has not followed its own rules on confidentiality.

#### time