Gramm controversy widens in US racing as Repole slams ‘Mickey Mouse technology’

As The Jockey Club considers removing Marshall Gramm as a member following a HISA investigation that found he accessed veterinary information on horses he did not own, prominent owner Mike Repole blasted the situation as “one of the most embarrassing, disgusting and saddest days I’ve ever experienced in this sport.”

In a statement, The Jockey Club stressed that Gramm’s membership played no role in the incident, but it was considering its options in the widening scandal involving the analyst, punter owner and professor.

“His membership with The Jockey Club provided no special or additional access,” the organisation said. “The Jockey Club’s systems and its data were not breached.”

“The Stewards of The Jockey Club condemn Mr. Gramm’s actions and will be meeting to take steps to remove him as a member.”

On Monday, HISA charged Gramm with multiple rule violations, including fraud, over unauthorized access of confidential horse health information.

In a post he published on social media platform X, outspoken owner Mike Repole was withering in his assessment of the situation and how it emerged to the public,

“If Marshall did something wrong, punish him,” Repole wrote on social media. “But don’t make the mistake of pretending this is just about Marshall. THIS IS ABOUT THE SYSTEM.”

Repole argued that owners were required to trust HISA with sensitive information and questioned the authority’s data security controls.

“If HISA’s Mickey Mouse technology made confidential horse information this easy to access, then every owner in America should be asking: Who else got in? How many times? What did they see? And what did they do with it?” he wrote.

Repole said HISA must immediately disclose “exactly what happened, how long it happened, who had access and whether anyone else accessed the same information.”

He also demanded “a completely independent third-party investigation of HISA, The Jockey Club and everyone involved,” adding, “Not another bullshit press release. A REAL investigation.”

“Horse racing has a massive insider problem. Sales. Wagering. Data. Conflicts. Access. Power. And somehow the same small group of people is always sitting at the same tables, sitting on the same boards and protecting the same system,” he said.