In a ruling issued June 22, California stewards suspended trainer Doug O'Neill seven days and fined him $2,500 for not having the required primary and secondary veterinary examinations of the horse Ivan the Great when the 3-year-old colt resumed training following a layoff of more than 90 days.
According to California Horse Racing Board records, the Great Friends Stables and Mark Davis-owned runner had a fatal musculoskeletal injury to his humerus—the upper arm bone—while working out April 20 at Santa Anita Park after a resumption of training March 11. The son of Kantharos had raced five times in 2024, winning a maiden race at Del Mar over the summer and capping his juvenile season with a seventh-place finish in the Oct. 6 Zuma Beach Stakes (G3T) at Santa Anita.
"I take full responsibility for this and I have since implemented a system to avoid these oversights going forward," O'Neill noted in a statement published on social media. "I respect the CHRB's decision, and I'll continue to work on always putting our horses first."
O'Neill will serve his suspension July 6-12.
CHRB equine medical director Dr. Jeff Blea stated during the board's May meeting that the majority of shoulder injury fatalities involve the humerus and typically occur in horses returning from time off. Blea said during last month's CHRB meeting that training soundness examinations have been effective in spotting horses at risk.
READ: 'More Work to be Done' on Equine Shoulder Fractures
