FanDuel host Ken Rudulph pulled off air after horse ‘death’ tweet

It’s just not worth the tweet.

Ken Rudulph, a host and analyst on TVG and FanDuel TV, has been taken off the air due to a tweet that called out horse racing that quickly drew notice from his employer.

“Horse racing needs to stop pretending and just be what it is,” Rudulph tweeted on Monday before deleting. “It’s a great combo of WWE/reality TV/sports/ with a healthy dose of BS on the side. It’s a great game. Cheating is a part of it. Death is a part of it. Winning makes it all worthwhile.”

That came while the sport is dealing with a spate of deaths at Churchill Downs surrounding the Kentucky Derby, with eight horses in total having suffered fatalities. The eighth, Rio Moon, died Sunday.

Prior to that, all seven had died in the lead-up to the Derby, casting a pall over the biggest event of the year for the sport.

In recent years, there’s also been controversy surrounding Santa Anita, where 42 horses died in 2019, leading to safety improvements at the California track.

Gambling companies — surprise! — also don’t like it when the integrity of the sports they take wagers on get called into question.

By Tuesday, Rudulph was off FanDuel TV and on Wednesday, the site issued a statement addressing the situation. 

“Recently, FanDuel TV host Ken Rudulph made disappointing comments online about the integrity of horse racing, as well as the safety and welfare of its participants,” FanDuel said. “As the market leader in legal sports wagering, FanDuel takes the issues of sports integrity and track safety very seriously, and we disagree in the strongest terms with the sentiments expressed by Mr. Rudulph.

“FanDuel strongly supports equine safety reforms, including our longstanding support of equine retirement and aftercare programs as well as organizations focused on the health and safety of jockeys. We also work in close partnership with international and North American based sports integrity agencies to identify any illicit activity occurring within our racing or sportsbook platforms. Pending a full review of this matter, Mr. Rudulph will not be appearing on FanDuel TV.”

Rudulph was the first person to appear on-air for TVG, which is now owned by FanDuel, working there from 1999-2011 and returning in 2019.

Rudulph issued an apology on Twitter Tuesday, writing, “Monday evening I made a mistake and used a very poor choice of words to make what I hoped would be a compelling thought regarding horse racing. I apologize to my colleagues and the industry for my lack of proper forethought. I truly felt you all would have the open dialogue with me. I will find a better way in the future.”