Saudi Cup winner Jason Servis among 27 facing doping-related charges in US

Jason Servis, who saddled Maximum Security to victory in the world's richest race last month, is among 27 trainers, veterinarians, drug distributors and others connected to US racing who face charges as part of an alleged widespread doping scheme.

An indictment released on Monday in the United States District Court specifically states that a designer, performance-enhancing substance was administered to Maximum Security in 2019, when he was named champion three-year-old colt in the US.

Jorge Navarro, whose horses have earned more than $37 million since 2008, was also among the trainers listed in a 44-page indictment that listed 18 other individuals. Eight more were listed in three other indictments on similar charges.

In the indictment of the 19 individuals that included Navarro and Servis, it said the charges result from a "widespread, corrupt scheme by racehorse trainers, veterinarians, performance-enhancing drug (PED) distributors, and others to manufacture, distribute, and receive adulterated and misbranded PEDs and to secretly administer those PEDs to racehorses under the scheme's participants' control".

Jason Servis (fourth from the left) celebrates Maximum Security's victory in the Saudi CupCredit: Edward Whitaker

Servis, who won last month's Saudi Cup with Maximum Security, is accused of covertly obtaining and administering adulterated and misbranded PEDs, including one called SGF-1000, to "virtually all of the racehorses under his control".

The indictment says that from February 2018, Servis entered horses in approximately 1,082 races and his co-conspirators concealed the administration of PEDs from federal and state government agencies, racing officials, and the betting public.

It also states that PEDs were covertly transported between barns where Servis's horses were stabled by falsifying vet bills to conceal administration of SGF-1000 and using fake prescriptions.

Navarro, who has enjoyed big-race success in Dubai, is accused of "orchestrating a widespread scheme of covertly obtaining and administering various adulterated and misbranded PEDs to horses under his control" the indictment alleges.

The court papers state that SGF-1000 is a customised PED purportedly containing "growth factors" including fibroblast growth factor and hepatocyte growth factor, which are intended to promote tissue repair and increase a horse's stamina and endurance beyond its natural capability.

A statement from the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, in the name of president and chief executive Alex Waldrop read: “The charges documented in today’s federal indictment against 27 individuals in horseracing are abhorrent. There is no place in our sport for individuals who treat horses with disregard for their well-being or who undermine the integrity of our competition for personal gain.

"We support the effort to bring these charges to light and are hopeful that their swift adjudication will help assure other horseracing participants and the public at large that our sport will not condone or tolerate the behaviour alleged in the indictments."

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