To beat the odds in thoroughbred racing, it's helpful if you can beat the drug tests.

Jason Servis and Jorge Navarro, the two most prominent horsemen indicted in a sweeping drug scandal revealed Monday, ranked 1-2 in winning percentage among the nation's top 50 trainers last year.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York traces the success of the two trainers, at least in part, to their shared interest in a particular performance-enhancing drug, a customized compound designed to be untraceable known as SGF-1000.

Two months before his Maximum Security finished first in the 2019 Kentucky Derby, only to be disqualified for interference, Servis was recorded telling Navarro he had been using SGF-1000 "on everything almost." According to the indictment, Maximum Security received a shot of SGF-1000 on or about June 5 of that year that went undetected by New Jersey regulators prior to the Pegasus Stakes at Monmouth Park.

"They don't even have a test for it ..." the indictment quotes veterinarian Kristian Rhein telling Servis on an intercepted call. "There's no test for it in America."

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The four federal indictments unsealed Monday implicate Servis and Navarro among 27 individuals in a scheme to manufacture, distribute and falsify the use of adulterated and misbranded performance-enhancing drugs, or PEDs. To gain a competitive edge, federal prosecutors argue, the scheme also acted "to the detriment and risk of the health and well-being of the racehorses," through the use of unapproved drugs with unknown chemical composition that mask horses' pain and can make them more vulnerable.

"What actually happened to the horses amounted to nothing less than abuse," said William Sweeney, assistant director of the FBI's New York Field Office. "They experienced cardiac issues, overexertion leading to leg fractures, increased risk of injury and, in some cases, death. Conversely, the human beings involved in the scheme continued to line their purses as they manipulated this multibillion-dollar horse racing industry around the globe."

Servis' horses won more than $11 million last year and, just last month, $10 million in a single day when Maximum Security won the $20 million Saudi Cup, the world's richest race. (The colt's owners, Gary and Mary West, continue to pursue an appeal of his Kentucky Derby disqualification in federal court.)

Navarro, whose career 28% win rate far exceeds that of such Hall of Fame trainers as Steve Asmussen, Bob Baffert and D. Wayne Lukas, is accused of using multiple PEDs to improve his horses' performance, including substances referred to as "monkey" and "red acid." According to the indictment, the toll taken by his training methods required the surreptitious disposal of multiple dead horses.

“You know how many (expletive) horses he (expletive) killed and broke down that I made disappear?" indicted trainer Nicholas Surick wrote in a text message about Navarro. "You know how much trouble he could get in … if they found out … the six horses we killed?”

Earlier:As desperate as it is, Maximum Security owners still fight Derby loss in court

While acknowledging that the indictments contained "painful and controversial" allegations, a Jockey Club statement emphasized the constructive value of verifiable suspicions.

"Equine doping has long been a concern in racing circles, but one that has been difficult to investigate or prosecute effectively because the sport’s regulatory oversight has been diffused, and often lax, across more than 30 separate state regulatory and enforcement agencies," it said. "Most people in the sport have suspected that some level of doping occurs, but evidence has been mostly third-hand and circumstantial, and real information was needed to define the problem and craft a path to a solution."

With Congress considering legislation that would create independent third-party oversight of racing's drug use, Monday's disclosures underscore doubts about the industry's ability to regulate itself. Last week, Republican Rep. James Comer became the second Kentucky congressman to co-sponsor the Horseracing Integrity Act, now supported by 244 of the 435 members of the House of Representatives.

“The reprehensible actions described in the racehorse doping scandal announced today are likely just the tip of the iceberg for this industry," said Kitty Block, president and chief executive officer of the Humane Society of the United States. "... These individuals, and the industry, must be held accountable. Congress needs to pass the Horseracing Integrity Act to improve the welfare of racehorses throughout the country, and bring the industry into the modern century.”

Trainer Graham Motion responded to Monday's news on Twitter, calling it "a sad day for racing but a long time coming."

"A good day for those who try to play by the rules," Motion wrote. "We will all be better for it."

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Tim Sullivan: 502-582-4650, tsullivan@courier-journal.com; Twitter: @TimSullivan714. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: courier-journal.com/tims