Despite horse being in race, Pitino vows not to return to Kentucky

Disgraced former Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino vowed never to return to the state of Kentucky after his October firing, and he's holding firm on that pledge even though his three-year-old filly, "Coach Rocks", figures to race in the May 4 Kentucky Oaks.

Pitino did offer a caveat however, saying he would attend the event only if two members of the University of Louisville board of trustees were removed.

"I will not (go to Churchill Downs) unless David Grissom and the pizza guy, Papa John (Schnatter), retire from the board of trustees," Pitino said, according to BloodHorse's Charlie McCarthy. "Then, I'll be there."

Pitino was dismissed along with Louisville athletic director Tom Jurich in the wake of the NCAA scandal that included the family of a Cardinals recruit receiving a $100,000 cash payment. Pitino has placed the blame for his firing on federal prosecutors and the school's board of trustees.

"Every night I go to bed, I'm bitter at the U.S. attorney's office and at the 'board of traitors' at Louisville," Pitino told ESPN's Jeff Goodman. "I'm not bitter at the school, but at the board of traitors."

The Kentucky Oaks is the stage-setter for the May 5 Kentucky Derby, held at Churchill Downs - a stone's throw from the Louisville campus. Pitino, who earned approximately $7.7 million in his last year coaching the Cardinals, has been involved in horse racing for several years.