Sildenafil, the active ingredient in Viagra, was detected in four Quarter horses racing at Ruidoso Downs last July

Quarter horse trainer John Stinebaugh has been suspended 16 years and fined $40,000 after four horses in his care tested positive for Sildenafil, the active ingredient in the human erectile dysfunction drug Viagra. The horses were competing in Rainbow Futurity and Rainbow Derby Trials at Ruidoso Downs last July 5 and 6.

Seldenafil is a Class 3 drug that carries a Class A penalty – the most severe penalty category – under drug classification guidelines published by the Association of Racing Commissioners International. Viagra is not approved by the FDA for use in horses. The drug increases cardiac output and can be performance enhancing.

The New Mexico Racing Commission adopted new, stricter regulations for medication violations in June 2012 that corresponded with RCI guidelines. The move came in the wake of a series of investigative articles in the New York Times – Death and Disarray at America’s Racetracks – that focused on lax drug rules and penalties in New Mexico and several other racing states.

Four separate rulings against Stinebaugh were issued by the Sunland Park board of stewards on Monday after a hearing on Saturday at which the trainer was represented by legal counsel. He received three-year suspensions and $10,000 fines for each of the first two positive tests and five-year suspensions and $10,000 fines for each of the second two alleged violations. The suspensions are to run consecutively.

Under New Mexico’s regulations, the owners of the four horses were also cited, purses forfeited and redistributed, and the horses placed on the state veterinarian’s list for 90 days, from Feb. 10-May 11. They will need to pass a New Mexico Racing Commission approved examination prior to being allowed any future entry.

The four horses were My Dancing Angel, fourth-place finisher in the sixth race at Ruidoso Downs July 5, 2013; Bikinni  Bombshell, fourth in the seventh race July 5; Dynasty Edition, fourth in the eighth race July 5; and PJ Chick in Black, winner of the first race on July 6. The $23,737 PJ Chick in Black earned in the Rainbow Derby finals was also forfeited.

 

The owners cited were Jimmy Kirk Crouch and Martin O. Ramos (My Dancin Angel); Celina DeJesus Molina (Bikinni Bombshell); Allen Streelman (as the et al for the stable name Dutch Masters III) (Dynasty Edition); and Susan Marie Taylor, Dennis Charles Bowen and John Louis and Mary Lynn Smith (Jack Smith Farms) (PJ Chick in Black).

Stinebaugh, who has 10 days to appeal the ruling, has ranked in the top 10 trainers by earnings nationally, according to the American Quarter Horse Association. He qualified three starters to the 2012 All American Futurity, the sport’s most prestigious race held at Ruidoso Downs each Labor Day.

During the term of the suspension, which expires Feb. 20, 2030, Stinebaugh is excluded from all areas under the jurisdiction of the racing commission.

The tests were conducted by the University of California-Davis laboratory, the official testing lab for the New Mexico Racing Commission.