LOS ANGELES -- Horse racing's commissioner said trainer Jeff Mullins' remarks were "inexcusable" when he called bettors idiots.
"Anybody realizes that horse racing depends on the bettor for its livelihood," D.G. Van Clief said Wednesday during a telephone interview from his Lexington, Ky., office. "As an industry, we do not overlook and we won't forget our No. 1 asset, which is our customer. They are valued and appreciated and we probably can't say that enough."
Mullins was quoted in Sunday's Los Angeles Times as saying: "If you bet on horses, I would call you an idiot. I don't bet; there's a reason why they call it gambling."
He did not return a phone message Wednesday.
Van Clief, commissioner of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, said he had no plans to contact Mullins.
"I'm assuming that was a one-time outburst," he said. "I can't imagine that anybody would make those kind of comments again."
The trainer's comments triggered more than 150 postings on an Internet fan forum hosted by the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club.
Some of Mullins' fellow trainers also were angered by his comments, including Laura De Seroux, who trained Azeri, the 2002 horse of the year.
The 41-year-old trainer moved his stable from Phoenix to Southern California in 2001. One of his biggest victories was the 2003 Santa Anita Derby, won by Buddy Gil.
Mullins was second in the Santa Anita trainers' standings before Wednesday's races, winning at a 23 percent clip. His horses have earned nearly $800,000 this year.
But his winning percentage has dipped since he was penalized last month after one of his horses tested positive for an excessive amount of sodium bicarbonate in its system. The milkshake-like mixture is suspected of masking other drugs in a horse's system and keeps the animal from tiring as quickly.
Mullins' horses must appear in a detention barn for 24-hour observation the day before they race. That penalty ends Thursday; however, his barn will be under surveillance for 15 days until March 25.
Trainers Julio Canani, Vladimir Cerin and Adam Kitchingman also have been accused of using milkshakes during Santa Anita's winter meeting. Their horses were assigned to the detention barn.
"After the 15 days, I doubt they'll be treated like a trainer that has had no problems," said Dr. Rick Arthur, who oversees the milkshake testing at Santa Anita.
Canani trains Sweet Catomine, last year's champion 2-year-old filly who is set to run in Sunday's $300,000 Santa Anita Oaks.
In a separate matter, Mullins has been fined $1,000 by stewards at the Fair Grounds in New Orleans after one of his horses tested positive for ranitidine on Feb. 12. The drug treats ulcers and is prohibited on race days.
