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Magee, Concepcion Capture Laurel Titles

Veteran trainer Kieron Magee and five-pound apprentice jockey Axel Concepcion claimed their respective meet titles as Laurel Park closed its spring meet Sunday.

Magee, 62, entered the eight-race, closing-day program without a starter, but an 11-8 lead over Jamie Ness in the trainer standings. Hugh McMahon won twice Sunday to pass Ness for second, while Brittany Russell wound up fourth with seven wins.

“It feels great because I'm down to 25 horses. To pull off a training title with 25 horses, that takes some doing,” Magee said. “I lost a bunch of them, but they won on the way out. Everybody that got claimed, won. I was thrilled to win it with such few starts. To have a high percentage is fantastic.”

A native of Ireland who worked as an exercise rider for recently retired trainer Dale Capuano after coming to the U.S., Magee led all Maryland trainers in wins from 2014-2016 and now owns or shares a total of 10 meet titles at Laurel and Pimlico Race Course. It was his first meet title since Pimlico's 2018 spring stand.

Concepcion, who turned 18 Mar. 16, entered Sunday with 12 wins, one behind co-leaders Jevian Toledo and Jeiron Barbosa. Concepcion won the opener on I Have Courage to make it a three-way tie before riding Fancee Grace C to victory in the fifth race to earn his first riding title.

A native of Puerto Rico, where he won 21 races after attending the Escuela Vocacional Hipica jockey school and turning pro Jan. 1, Concepcion registered wins on nine of 16 racing days with doubles Apr. 1, 13, 14 and 29 prior to Sunday.

Represented by agent Tom Stift, Concepcion made his Maryland debut Feb. 24 and picked up his first winner, Shinelikeadiamond, the next day at Laurel in his fifth U.S. mount.

“I'm very confident for my work and the job Tom does for me. I don't have pressure. The wins are coming and thank God for two wins today,” Concepcion said. “I ride all my horses with confidence. Thanks to all the owners and trainers that help me. In the morning I work very hard for this, my first meet that I win. I'm very grateful. Thanks to everyone for giving me the opportunity. I'm ready for Pimlico.”

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Mastery Filly Runs Them Ragged On Laurel Unveiling

3rd-Laurel, $52,600, Msw, 3-10, 3yo, f, 5 1/2f, 1:05.39, ft, 12 3/4 lengths.
GOODGIRL BADHABITS (f, 3, Mastery–Dazzler, by Vindication), the 11-10 favorite for this unveiling on the back of four speedy works over this surface–including a five-furlong bullet in 1:00 flat Mar. 1–never gave them a chance. Blinkered and speeding to the lead after breaking only fairly, the filly put up :22.58 and :46.32 splits from the rail and was seven lengths ahead with three-sixteenths of a mile to race. She continued to build on that advantage while not asked for her best and reported home 12 3/4 lengths to the good of fellow firster and 32-1 longshot Run Around Slew (Practical Joke). The half-sister to GII Louisiana Derby placegetter Dazzling Gem (Misremembered), SW-PR, MGSP-USA, $508,303 was the second dominant winner on the card for her conditioner, who also sent out 9 1/2-length maiden breaker Uncle Jake (Uncle Mo) in the opener before adding a third winner later in the program. Goodgirl Badhabits, whose deeper female family includes the legendary Serena's Song (Rahy), also has a stakes-winning half-sister in Rose to Fame (Gemologist), who is represented by a yearling Mastery colt. Dazzler is the dam of a 2-year-old Palace Malice filly that fetched $110,000 at KEESEP last fall and a yearling filly by Global Campaign. Their dam is due to Knicks Go for this season. Sales history: $135,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $31,200. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.
O-Jim Bakke & Gerald Isbister; B-Lisa Reynolds, Jennifer Feiner & Woods Edge Farm, LLC (KY); T-Brittany T. Russell.

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Report: More Baffert Horses, Including Arabian Knight, Moved to Yakteen Barn

According to a report in the Los Angeles Times, four more possible GI Kentucky Derby starters made the move Sunday from the Bob Baffert barn to the stable of Tim Yakteen. The four are possible Derby favorite Arabian Knight (Uncle Mo), National Treasure (Quality Road), Fort Bragg (Tapit) and Mr. Fisk (Arrogate). They join Arabian Lion (Justify), Carmel Road (Quality Road), Hejazi (Bernardini) and Reincarnate (Good Magic) who landed in the Yakteen barn earlier this month. Reincarnate finished a troubled third in Saturday's GII Rebel S. for Yakteen, Baffert's former assistant.

In addition, Fort Warren (Curlin) was sent from Baffert's stable to Brittany Russell and Harlocap (Justify), who broke his maiden for Baffert, ran for Steve Asmussen when sixth in the GII Risen Star S.

Because of a suspension put in place by Churchill Downs, Baffert is not eligible to enter horses in the Derby and any horse still in his barn after Tuesday will not be eligible to accrue points for the Derby.

“I was trying to set up as smooth a transition as I could for the horses and the owners and still allow them to get Derby points,” Baffert told the Times. “It's hard on the grooms that have been working with the horses for a year or so. We've all been around these horses and in some cases we found them [at sales]. Our whole program is based on 3-year-olds and the Kentucky Derby. It's tough to give them up. We thought we had a good chance to get an injunction, but we didn't. So, we've got to move forward, we've got to move on.”

Yakteen told the Times he will have five horses in the field for Saturday's GII San Felipe S. at Santa Anita: Hejazi, Mr. Fisk, Fort Bragg, National Treasure and Practical Move (Practical Joke). Practical Move, the winner of the GII Los Alamitos Futurity, has been in the Yakteen barn from the start.

According to the Times, Arabian Knight's next start will likely come in either the GI Santa Anita Derby or the GI Arkansas Derby. His most recent workout was Feb. 13 when he went three furlongs in :35.60.

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Baffert’s Gotham Noms Switched to New Trainers

The nominees for the Mar. 4 GIII Gotham S. at Aqueduct include four horses that have been under the care of Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, but were nominated under the names of new trainers.

Baffert is banned from running in this year's GI Kentucky Derby and any horse under the care of a trainer suspended by Churchill Downs must be moved to a new barn by Feb. 28 in order to earn Derby qualifying points. On Friday, a U.S. District Judge ruled against Baffert as he sought a temporary injunction that would have allowed him to enter the Derby. Baffert was also banned by the New York Racing Association, but its one-year suspension ended Jan. 26.

The news that Baffert-trainees are switching stables for a possible run in the Gotham was first reported by the Daily Racing Form's David Grening.

The Baffert Gotham nominees are the Amr Zedan-owned pair of Arabian Lion (Justify) and Hejazi (Bernardini) and Carmel Road (Quality Road) and Fort Warren (Curlin). The latter two are owned by partnerships consisting of SF Racing LLC, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stable LLC and others. Arabian Lion, Hejazi and Carmel Road were nominated under the name of Tim Yakteen. Fort Warren was nominated under the name of Brittany Russell. It was not clear who, if any of the Baffert/Yakteen/Russell horses, will start in the Gotham.

With Baffert also suspended from running in the 2022 Kentucky Derby, the two starters in the race from his barn, Taiba (Gun Runner) and Messier (Empire Maker), competed for Yatkeen, a former assistant to Baffert.

Several other Baffert trained 3-year-old colts will also likely be on the move within the next few days. Nominations for the GII San Felipe S. at Santa Anita, also to be run Mar. 4, close Thursday and any horse from the Baffert stable with eyes on a possible Kentucky Derby start will need to find a new home.

The GII Fountain of Youth S. at Gulfstream will also be run Mar. 4. Baffert nominated Hard to Figure (Hard Spun), the runner-up in the GIII Robert B. Lewis S. According to Grening's report, Baffert was listed as the trainer on the nomination.

Plans for Arabian Knight (Uncle Mo) and Cave Rock (Arrogate), generally considered the top two 3-year-olds in the Baffert stable, have yet to be announced.

Baffert is expected to have starters in Saturday's GII Rebel S. at Oaklawn. All of his nominees to that race are listed under his own name. But the Rebel takes place before the Feb. 28 deadline.

The Gotham starters were not the first 3-year-olds from the Baffert barn to find a new home. After breaking his maiden for Baffert Jan. 22 at Santa Anita, Harlocap (Justify) ran for Steve Asmussen in Saturday's GII Risen Star S. He finished sixth.

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