Maria Borell has filed a lawsuit against Gallery Racing Stables
LLC and owners James and Linda McIngvale for breach of contract and
defamation in the aftermath of Borell being fired by the McIngvales as
trainer of Breeders’ Cup Sprint winner Runhappy.
The suit, filed in Fayette Circuit Court on Monday, also names
Breeders’ Cup Limited and Keeneland Association as third-party
defendants holding funds to which Borell claims she is entitled.
Borell, 32, a native of Syracuse, N.Y., has been a licensed trainer
since 2013 but quickly rose to prominence after Runhappy’s victory in
late August in the Grade 1 King’s Bishop Stakes at Keeneland and
subsequent victories in the Grade 3 Phoenix Stakes at Keeneland and the
Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Keeneland Oct. 31. She was fired the day
after the Breeders’ Cup by Laura Wohlers, the McIngvales’ racing
manager and Runhappy’s former trainer. Wohlers is Linda McIngvale’s twin
sister.
In the complaint, which only tells the plaintiff’s side of the story,
Borell said she was hired “in or around April 2015” as Gallery Racing’s
trainer with the “understanding that she would be paid according to the
industry standard for Thoroughbred horse trainers, i.e., $1,000 per
week, 10 percent of Gallery Racing’s share of purses won by horses
trained by Ms. Borell, 10 percent of any amounts received by Gallery
Racing for horses trained by Ms. Borell that subsequently won claiming
races and one lifetime breeding right for each Grade 1 win by a horse
trained by Ms. Borell.”
The complaint states Borell “has confirmed that other trainers
previously hired and utilized by Gallery Racing received compensation
according to this industry standard, including in particular the 10
percent of the owner’s share of race winnings.”
Specifically, Borell is seeking $117,752, equal to 10 percent of
purse monies won by Runhappy and a second Gallery Racing horse
Triplehott, plus $5,000, equal to 10 percent of the $50,000 claiming
price Gallery Racing received for Triplehott. The complaint also states
that Borell is entitled to two lifetime breeding rights for Runhappy’s
two Grade 1 victories in the King’s Bishop and Breeders’ Cup Sprint
while under her care.

Borell is suing both James and Linda McIngvale of Houston, Texas, for defamation for statements made by them in a Nov. 4 article
published in the Paulick Report. The complaint alleges Borell was
“subjected to numerous false, libelous, defamatory and damaging
statements” by the McIngvales. “…Mr. McIngvale and Mrs. McIngvale have
each published and thereby wrongfully and erroneously imputed
dishonesty, incompetence, a lack of knowledge and concern for the
well-being of horses and a lack of knowledge and competence as a trainer
to Ms. Borell. As a direct and proximate result of such false and
defamatory statements, Ms. Borell’s professional reputation has suffered
and continues to suffer damage as a result of Mr. and Mrs. McIngvale’s
libelous and defamatory statements published in the Paulick Report and
other Thoroughbred industry publications.”
Borell is seeking compensatory and punitive damages, in addition to
the aforementioned compensation. She is asking for a jury trial on all
seven counts of the complaint.
Keeneland and Breeders’ Cup have filed a response to the complaint
asking for dismissal, citing rules of the Kentucky Horse Racing
Commission that require only jockey fees be deducted from an owner’s
purse account. A hearing has been scheduled for Friday on the motion to
dismiss.
Borell is being represented by Lexington attorneys Richard Getty,
Danielle Brown and Matthew English. Houston attorney Monica Orlando,
representing the McIngvales and Gallery Racing, could not be immediately
reached for comment on the suit.