Bob Baffert | Horse Racing Free Tips

Essential Quality Leads Group Of 326 Early Nominees To Triple Crown

Led by 2-year-old champion and two-time Grade 1 winner Essential Quality, a total of 326 3-year-old Thoroughbreds were made eligible to compete in this year's Triple Crown during the early nomination phase, which closed Jan. 23.

Each of the 326 horses from the 2018 foal crop were made eligible through a $600 payment to compete in any leg of the Triple Crown series. The 2021 Triple Crown opens Saturday, May 1 with the 147th running of the 1 ¼-mile Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (GI) at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. The 146th Preakness, its 1 3/16-mile second jewel, is set for Saturday, May 15 at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md. The 153rd running of the Belmont Stakes, the series' 1 ½-mile final leg, is scheduled for Saturday, June 5 at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.

Essential Quality, owned by Godolphin, is scheduled to make his 3-year-old debut in the $750,000 Southwest Stakes (GIII) on Feb. 15 at Oaklawn, according to his trainer Brad Cox. The champion 2-year-old of 2020 was one of 14 horses Cox nominated to this year's Triple Crown series.

Trainer Todd Pletcher led all conditioners with 45 horses nominated to the Triple Crown followed by Bob Baffert (23), Steve Asmussen (22) and Chad Brown (18).

Godolphin led all individual owners with 11 horses nominated followed by Brad Kelley's Calumet Farm with 10.

Overall, 42 stakes winners were nominated to the Triple Crown. Among them are Brooklyn Strong (Remsen); Caddo River (Smarty Jones); Capo Kane (Jerome); Fire At Will (Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf); Get Her Number (American Pharoah); Greatest Honour (Holy Bull); Jackie's Warrior (Champagne); Keepmeinmind (Kentucky Jockey Club); Life Is Good (Sham); Medina Spirit (Robert B. Lewis); Midnight Bourbon (Lecomte); Senor Buscador (Springboard Mile); Sittin On Go (Iroquois); Spielberg (Los Al Futurity).

Total nominations were 21 fewer horses than last year's 347 during the early stage, a slip of 6.1%.

Early Triple Crown Nominees by the numbers:

· $1.5 million: Tied for the highest public auction purchase price between Conquer the World (2019 Fasig Tipton August) and Golden Whim (2019 Keeneland September Yearling).

· 265: Number of Kentucky-bred horses. Other states represented are California (5), Florida (14), Illinois (1), Louisiana (2), Maryland (1), New Jersey (1), New York (17), Pennsylvania (2), Virginia (1), Washington (2) and West Virginia (1).

· 20: Horses produced by top sire Into Mischief. He's followed by Curlin (14), Uncle Mo (14) and Constitution (13).

· 14: Horses foaled outside of the United States. Other countries are Canada (7), Ireland (4) and Japan (3).

· 13: Number fillies that were nominated. Among them are champion 2-year-old filly and Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (GI) winner Vequist and Ashland (GI) winner Simply Ravishing.

· 5: Number of horses nominated who are based in Japan including Zennippon Nisai Yushun winner Alain Barows (JPN) and Cattelya Sho winner Lemon Pop.

Horses not nominated during the early phase can be made eligible until Monday, March 29 with a $6,000 payment. Any horse not nominated during the early or late phases can become Triple Crown eligible through payment of a supplemental nomination fee due at the time of entry for each Triple Crown race: the Kentucky Derby ($200,000), Preakness ($100,000) and Belmont ($50,000).

Thirteen horses have swept the Triple Crown series: Sir Barton (1919), Gallant Fox (1930), Omaha (1935), War Admiral (1937), Whirlaway (1941), Count Fleet (1943), Assault (1946), Citation (1948), Secretariat (1973), Seattle Slew (1977), Affirmed (1978), American Pharoah (2015) and Justify (2018).

The full list of Triple Crown nominees is available here: 2021 Early Triple Crown Nominees

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Gamine DQ’d from Oaks Third

Michael Lund's Gamine (Into Mischief) has been disqualified and purse money was forfeited from her third-place effort in last year's GI Kentucky Oaks after testing positive for betamethasone, an anti-inflammatory medication that is classified as a Class C drug, and trainer Bob Baffert has been fined $1,500. The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission issued the ruling last Saturday. Baffert waived his right to a formal hearing on the infraction.

Gamine's disqualification promotes Speech (Mr Speaker), originally fourth, to third in the Oaks.

The positive test was first reported publicly by The New York Times last October. The KHRC had been conducting a follow-up investigation and the finding of its official testing laboratory, Industrial Laboratories, was confirmed by UIC Analytical Forensic Testing Laboratory.

Betamethasone is a permitted medication in Kentucky, but has a mandated two-week withdrawal time. Following the Times story in October, Baffert's attorney Craig Robertson said the filly had been administered the drug Aug. 17 by her veterinarian. The Oaks was held 18 days later. Robertson's statement said Gamine's test revealed 27 picograms of betamethasone and that Kentucky's threshold for the medication is 10 picograms.

Gamine was also disqualified from an allowance victory at Oaklawn Park May 2 after testing positive for lidocaine. Her stablemate Charlatan (Speightstown) was disqualified from his win in the GI Arkansas Derby the same day for the same drug. Baffert continues to appeal both disqualifications.

Gamine went on to win the GI Longines Acorn S. and GI Longines Test S. and capped 2020 year with a win in the GI Breeders' Cup F/M Sprint. She was named last year's champion female sprinter.

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Gamine Disqualified From Third-Place Finish In Kentucky Oaks, Baffert Fined $1,500

The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission has released its official ruling on Gamine's positive test in the Kentucky Oaks, disqualifying the filly from her third-place finish and issuing her trainer, Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, a $1,500 fine after he waived his right to a hearing.

Gamine's prize money from that race, $120,000, was ordered redistributed, while fourth-place finisher Speech has been elevated to third.

Gamine's post-race test after her third in the Kentucky Oaks on Sept. 4 at Churchill Downs showed a positive for the Class C drug betamethasone. It was the Into Mischief filly's second positive test of 2020: Gamine ran on Arkansas Derby day (May 2) at Oaklawn Park, winning an allowance race, but subsequently tested positive for lidocaine and has since been disqualified.

Another Baffert-trained runner, Arkansas Derby winner Charlatan, also tested positive for lidocaine and was disqualified.

Baffert plans to appeal the Arkansas rulings, but will not appeal the ruling by the KHRC, attorney Craig Robertson told bloodhorse.com.

Gamine developed into one of the top 3-year-old fillies of the year, earning an Eclipse Award as the top female sprinter after wins in the G1 Test and G1 Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint.

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Oaks Points On The Line As Moonlight D’Oro Will Be Tested In Las Virgenes

Richard Mandella's impressive recent maiden winner Moonlight d'Oro and Bob Baffert's graded stakes winning Kalypso headline a field of five sophomore fillies going one mile in Saturday's Grade 3, $200,000 Las Virgenes Stakes at Santa Anita.

An important prep to the Grade 2 Santa Anita Oaks on April 3, the Las Virgenes winner will receive 10 Kentucky Oaks (April 30) qualifying points, with four, two and one given to those finishing underneath.

The 4-5 favorite in her first try at two turns, Moonlight d'Oro pressed the early pace and drew off to a solid three length win going a flat mile on Dec. 13 at Los Alamitos under Flavien Prat, who will ride back in the Las Virgenes. A $620,000 Keeneland September Yearling, Moonlight d'Oro finished a close second as the 3-5 favorite in her five furlong debut Aug. 2 and was then third, beaten 1 ½ lengths going six furlongs on Nov. 7.

Owned by MyRacehorse and Spendthrift Farm, LLC, Moonlight d'Oro is by Medaglia d'Oro and is out of the Bernardini mare Venetian Sonata. With a Las Virgenes-best 87 Beyer Speed figure in hand, she'll be making her fourth career start on Saturday.

Never worse than third in five starts, Kalypso was second going a mile and one sixteenth in the Grade 1 Starlet at Los Alamitos on Dec. 5 and cut back in distance to register a 1 ¾ length win going seven furlongs in the Grade 2 Santa Ynez Stakes here on Jan. 3 as the 4-5 favorite. Off at 11-1 in the Starlet, she tired late, calling into question her ability to beat top caliber competition routing.

Owned by David Bernsen, LLC and Rockingham Ranch, Kalypso, a chestnut filly by Brody's Cause out of the Malibu Moon mare Malibu Cove, got an 81 Beyer in winning the Santa Ynez and retains the services of Joel Rosario.

A gutty nose maiden winner going six furlongs on Jan. 10, the Shelbe Ruis-trained Honor America will stretch out for the first time in her third start and be ridden back by leading man Juan Hernandez. Owned by Ruis Racing, LLC, Honor America is by Into Mischief, out of the Honour and Glory mare Honour Isabel, Honor America sold for $250,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Mid-Atlantic 2-year-olds in training sale in May of 2020.

Claimed two starts back on Nov. 20 out of a maiden $50,000 claiming win going six furlongs, Doug O'Neill's Brilliant Cut was then head and head with Kalypso for the early lead in the Santa Ynez and finished third, beaten 3 ¼ lengths. Owned by ERJ Racing, LLC, David Kenney, William Strauss and Dennis and Doug O'Neill, Brilliant Cut will be ridden back by Ricky Gonzalez as she tries two turns for the first time in what will be her sixth start.

THE GRADE 3 LAS VIRGENES STAKES WITH JOCKEYS & WEIGHTS IN POST POSITION ORDER

Race 3 of 10 Approximate post time 1 p.m. PT

Moraz—Umberto Rispoli–120
Kalypso—Joel Rosario—120
Moonlight d'Oro—Flavien Prat—120
Honor America—Juan Hernandez–120
Brilliant Cut—Ricky Gonzalez—120

Early first post time for a 10-race card on Saturday is at 12 noon. All of Santa Anita's races are available free of charge at santaanita.com/live and fans can watch and wager via 1st.com/Bet.

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