Federico Villafranco

In an era where most every trainer has grown way too cautious and overly patient, 86-year-old Wayne Lukas has emerged as a breath of fresh air. Lukas announced last week that he was going to run his star filly Secret Oath (Arrogate) in the Apr. 2 GI Arkansas Derby against the colts instead of in the safer pick, the GIII Fantasy S. run the same day. It's not just a bold choice, it is a smart choice. With the contingent of males heading to the Arkansas Derby an unusually weak...

Two winners and two second-place horses who subsequently tested positive for caffeine at Oaklawn Park back in February have been disqualified from their placings and purses, and the trainer of all four, Federico Villafranco, will be suspended for the first 30 days of the Oaklawn Park meet under the Arkansas Racing Commission (ARC)'s "absolute insurer" rule. Caffeine, a stimulant, is listed as a Class 2, Penalty Category B drug on the Uniform Classification Guidelines for Foreign Substances list published by the Association of Racing Commissioners International (ARCI). For a first-offense...