AMERICAN racing was again the subject of a major drugs scandal this week when the news broke on Sunday morning that the Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit had tested positive for a banned substance.

The Bob Baffert-trained colt was found to have 21 picogrammes per millilitre of blood of betamethasone, an anti- inflammatory medication that is a Class C drug in Kentucky. It is one of the most commonly used corticosteroids in racing, but the drug is currently not permitted to be administered within 14 days of a race and no amount is allowable in Kentucky.