Appeal fails; Zedan concedes Muth is out of Kentucky Derby

Saying suspended trainer Bob Baffert “is an indispensable party in this proceeding” even though he did not bring the lawsuit, the Kentucky Court of Appeals late Wednesday afternoon turned down Zedan Racing Stables’ 11th-hour call for an emergency injunction to get Grade 1 winner Muth into Kentucky Derby 2024.

With the option to make a last-ditch, long-shot appeal with the Kentucky Supreme Court, the Zedan legal team conceded defeat Thursday morning.

“We are disappointed with the single judge decision of the Court of Appeals and saddened that our horse Muth, one of the fastest 3-year-olds in the country, will be denied the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity he earned to contend in the 150th run for the roses and, potentially, the Triple Crown. Filing this lawsuit was the last thing we wanted to do,” the Zedan team said in a written statement. “That is why (owner Amr Zedan) reached out to the Churchill Downs CEO (Bill Carstanjen) this past December and January to attempt to resolve this issue amicably. Zedan Racing Stables was compelled by its substantive business interests to take legal action to secure Muth’s rightful opportunity to run in the Kentucky Derby.”

A motion for emergency relief to allow Muth to be stabled at Churchill Downs in time for a Saturday morning deadline was denied by judge Jeff Taylor. So, too, was Zedan’s call to make an oral argument to try and get his Arkansas Derby winner into the run for the roses on May 4.

“CDI is pleased with the Kentucky Court of Appeals’ Order issued today,” a Churchill spokesperson said Wednesday night. “We remain focused on the horses and connections who qualified to compete in this year’s Kentucky Derby, and we look forward to welcoming another champion into the history books as we celebrate the milestone 150th running of this extraordinary tradition.”

In handing another legal victory to CDI, the Court of Appeals repeated one big reason that Zedan lost in Jefferson County Circuit Court last week. That it waited so long to file its lawsuit when the core of its case was the extension last summer of Baffert’s suspension by Churchill Downs Inc. The ban was punishment for Medina Spirit, a colt owned by Zedan and trained by Baffert, failing a drug test that eventually wiped out his 2021 victory in the Kentucky Derby.

“The court does not reach the threshold issue of whether Zedan has suffered irreparable injury ... under the doctrine of laches (unreasonable wait to make a claim), Zedan’s inexplicable delay in seeking relief from the extension of Baffert’s ban by CDI precludes consideration of the emergency relief sought before this court,” Taylor wrote.

Zedan claimed Churchill went back on its word when it added 1 1/2 years to Baffert’s two-year ban after Medina Spirit failed a drug test after the 2021 Kentucky Derby. Zedan said he spent about $14 million on horses and had the reasonable expectation that Baffert, who has had no violations in nearly three years, would be back in the good graces of CDI. When Muth, one of those horses, won the Arkansas Derby, Zedan sued on the basis that the victory would have qualified Muth for the Kentucky Derby.

In its 12-page document, Taylor said Wednesday that “the absence of Baffert as a party to the proceedings” was an important reason it ruled in favor of CDI. Noting Churchill’s rule against allowing a suspended trainer to put a horse for the Kentucky Derby, the court wrote that granting emergency relief “would allow Baffert to circumvent CDI’s ban without taking any legal action whatsoever.”

Taylor declared “Baffert is an indispensable party to this proceeding. Any action taken by this court to allow Zedan to participate in the Derby with Baffert as his trainer would eviscerate CDI’s suspension of Baffert without Baffert even appearing before this court. On its face, that would be totally unfair and unjust for CDI and the other owners who have complied with CDI rules for entry of horses into the Kentucky Derby. ... Since Baffert is not before this court to contest his suspension and is otherwise an indispensable party to this action, we decline to grant the requested extraordinary emergency relief.”

Wednesday’s denial also included acknowledgement of a motion by Zedan for interlocutory relief, which “shall be assigned to a three-judge motion panel of the court in accordance with this court’s customary procedures.” That, however, was not the object of the lawsuit. Instead, presuming the suit is not dropped, it will be part of the mop-up of the case long after the Kentucky Derby has been run.

“We hope that Churchill Downs will follow up on (Jefferson County circuit judge Mitch) Perry’s request that both sides work out an ongoing agreement in order for Bob Baffert to once again bring horses to Churchill Downs’ tracks,” Zedan said in its Thursday statement.

All along the case was a race against the clock. The deadline for Kentucky Derby horses to be at Churchill Downs is Saturday at 11 a.m. EDT with the draw coming 8 1/2 hours later. Muth, a $2 million colt, still would have had to be flown from Baffert’s Southern California stable at Santa Anita. That idea was mooted by Taylor’s decision.

“I had the pleasure of speaking with Alex Rankin, the chairman of Churchill Downs, and I congratulated him on the 150th running of the Kentucky Derby and wish him and racing fans around the world a competitive, captivating, and safe race,” the Zedan statement concluded. “I look forward to bringing Muth to the Preakness.”