The unbeaten Into Mischief colt Life Is Good will not be entered in the Grade 1 Runhappy Santa Anita Derby on April 3 after coming out of a six-furlong breeze on Saturday morning “a little off behind,” according to his trainer, Bob Baffert.
“It's nothing obvious but he cooled off a little behind,” said Baffert. “So he's going to miss the Santa Anita Derby and we've got to do some tests on him. The timing is not good.”
Baffert does not believe the setback will be career ending.
“He would show a little something while cooling out, but then he would walk fine,” he said. “They'll do a scan to see what they can find.”
Life Is Good worked alone at about 9 a.m. PT, going six furlongs in 1:11.40 and galloping out well past the seven-eighths pole. Santa Anita officials lit up the video screen in the field at Baffert's request after jockey Mike Smith said the colt was bothered by the screen when he last ran in the G2 San Felipe on March 6, winning by eight lengths but drifting in and out in the stretch.
“His work was unbelievable,” Baffert said. “He went perfectly straight. They had the screen on and he went around there like nothing. He was good. Then, all of a sudden, you get an uppercut like this. That's why you can't get ahead of yourself in this game.”
Workout video courtesy of XBTV.com.
Bred in Kentucky by Gary and Mary West, Life Is Good races for WinStar Farm and CHC Inc., which purchased the colt for $525,000 at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale. He broke his maiden at Del Mar in November, then added the G3 Sham Stakes at Santa Anita on Jan. 2 before his victory in the San Felipe.
Life Is Good was made the 2-1 favorite in the most recent Kentucky Derby Future Wager pool.
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