The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) issued a provisional suspension to trainer Angel Quiroz after horses associated with unusual betting activity tested positive for albuterol.
Key Takeaways
- Handicapper Doug Salvatore highlighted unusual betting activity surrounding five horses racing at Monmouth and Saratoga on Aug. 9.
- The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority initiated an investigation.
- All five horses were linked to Angel Quiroz, and three ultimately tested positive for albuterol.
The suspension is effective Sept. 1. Under provisional suspension, Quiroz will not be able to race, work out, or claim horses covered by HISA.
The investigation was initiated after handicapper Doug Salvatore took to social media highlighting unusual betting activity on five horses racing on Aug. 9.
The Fair Hill 5
— Doug Salvatore (@DougieSal) August 9, 2026
Five different horses ran today at either Monmouth or Saratoga for two different obscure trainers. Each horse was coming in off of a long layoff and they all had recent published workouts at the Fair Hill Training Center.
Story here: pic.twitter.com/MiLOmirTog
The five horses, later dubbed the “Fair Hill Five,” were linked to recent workouts at Maryland's Fair Hill Training Center and to Quiroz, according to ESPN. Four of the five horses won. Of particular note was the last-minute movement in the odds on Tepeyac, the winning horse for Race 4 at Monmouth Park. The horse's odds moved from 8-1 to just 3.8-1 ahead of the race.
As a result, the double featuring Race 3’s winner, The Great Amira at 17.6-1, and Tepeyac at 3.8-1 returned just $25.60 against a $178.56 parlay value, making it the lowest-paying double relative to its win odds in nearly 30 years, according to The Guardian.
HISA launched its probe less than 24 hours later. “HISA is aware of information circulating on social media and concerns raised directly to HISA personnel regarding events at multiple races on August 9 and is actively investigating those concerns,” HISA stated. “We take any potential violations of HISA rules extremely seriously.”
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Albuterol positives add to betting probe
HISA's investigation remains ongoing as officials look into the betting activity and subsequent drug tests.
Two horses associated with the Aug. 9 races, including Tepeyac, later tested positive for albuterol. A third Quiroz-trained horse, Bonita Rough, previously tested positive in July. Albuterol is predominantly used by asthma patients to enhance breathing by relaxing the bronchi muscle.
Quiroz’s lawyer plans to appeal the suspension.
“Mr. Quiroz will be requesting a hearing to dissolve HISA's provisional suspension,” lawyer Bradford J. Beilly told ESPN. “We will also establish that there was a valid veterinarian-client relationship between Bonita Rough, Scootaloo, and Tepeyac and the veterinarian that authorized administration of nebulized albuterol to these horses.”
