Life Is Good | Horse Racing Free Tips

Baffert On Charlatan’s Malibu: ‘He Exceeded Our Expectations’

It was business as usual Sunday morning for Bob Baffert, less than 24 hours after Charlatan demolished his rivals with a 4 ½-length victory in the Runhappy Malibu Stakes at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif., the final Grade 1 race of a tumultuous 2020.

It was the 16th Grade 1 win of the year for Baffert, four more than runner-up Chad Brown, enhancing the two-time Triple Crown-winning trainer's chances for an Eclipse Award, although personal triumphs are not high on his priority list.

But with Authentic's Kentucky Derby and Breeders' Cup Classic victories and pending Horse of the Year honors a mere formality, Baffert assuredly has the credentials to merit such a singular honor.

But this morning it was all about the horse.

“He came back great,” Baffert said of Charlatan, a Speightstown colt making his first start since May 2, when he crossed the wire first by six lengths in the first division of the Grade 1 Arkansas Derby, only to be disqualified on a medication violation that has been appealed.

“We haven't really decided what we're going to do with him yet,” said Baffert. “It's too early. We'll give it a week.

“I thought he was going to need the race but he was a lot readier than I thought. We were hoping he would pick up where he left off, and he exceeded our expectations.

“He's just a brilliant horse. He came out of it in really good shape so we're excited. It was a good way to cap off the year.”

Now it's on to 2021, and Baffert wasn't letting the grass grow under his feet, so to speak.

“I breezed a lot of good horses today,” he said, among them Life Is Good, sensational winner by 9 ½ lengths of his debut race Nov. 22 by 9 ½ lengths for owner China Horse Club, Inc. and WinStar Farm LLC. The $525,000 son of Into Mischief is among five Baffert trainees nominated to Saturday's Grade 3 Sham Stakes for 3-year-olds at one mile.

Life Is Good went six furlongs in a bullet 1:10.60. In all, Baffert supervised 14 recorded works this morning.

“The track was really good today,” he said. “It was faster and they were getting over it good. It had a lot of bounce to it. We're still debating whether Life Is Good will go in the Sham or the seven-eighths (the G2 San Vicente Stakes on Feb. 7). I have to talk to Elliott Walden first.”

Walden is president and CEO of racing operations at WinStar, near Versailles, Ky.

Baffert does plan to enter debut winner Medina Spirit in the Sham.The Florida-bred son of Protonico owned by Zedan Racing Stables Inc. was a three-length winner going 5 ½ furlongs at Los Alamitos on Dec. 11 under Abel Cedillo. Medina Spirit breezed five furlongs today in 1:02.

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Baffert Pointing Life Is Good to Sham

Two-year-old sensation and ‘TDN Rising Star’ Life Is Good (Into Mischief) will likely make his next start in the GIII Sham S. on Jan. 2 at Santa Anita, reports trainer Bob Baffert. The one-mile event carries a purse of $100,000.

“If all is going well, it looks like the Sham will be his next race,” Baffert said. “It will give me a chance to stretch him out. Then I will decide on what’s next and look at races like the Rebel at Oaklawn.”

Owned by WinStar Farm and the China Horse Club, Life Is Good was purchased for $525,000 at the 2019 Keeneland September Sale. He made his debut Nov. 22 at Del Mar and instantly stamped himself as a contender for the 2021 Triple Crown with a 9 1/2-length win in which jockey Mike Smith never appeared to ask the horse for his best. His final time for the 6 1/2 furlongs was 1:15.50 and he earned a 90 Beyer figure.

In the first round of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager, Life Is Good was the top choice after the “all others” option. He closed at 5-1, putting him ahead of Essential Quality (Tapit). The winner of the GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and the likely 2020 champion 2-year-old male, Essential Quality closed at 8-1.

Baffert noted that his 2020 GI Kentucky Derby winner Authentic (Into Mischief) also won at first asking during the Bing Crosby meet at Del Mar before winning the Sham in his second career start.

“You can’t get an allowance race for these horses to fill around here,” Baffert said. “I ran Authentic in the Sham last year after he broke his maiden at Del Mar. The Sham looks like a logical spot.”

Baffert said he is looking forward to finding out more about Life Is Good.

“He’s got a great sire and they way he ran was impressive,” he said. “He’s got raw talent like American Pharoah and Justify. I think Authentic had that raw talent, too. But he was just immature at the time. This horse gives us something to get excited about, but they’ve got to go two turns first. I didn’t know how good American Pharoah was until he did it.”

Should Life Is Good make it to the Kentucky Derby, he will be in position to give Baffert his third win in the race over the last four years and his fourth since 2015. With six Derby wins, he is tied with Ben Jones for most by a trainer.

“I train for all the big guys, like WinStar,” he said. “I’ve made it to point where these people send me good horses and that makes my job easier. And we’ve figured out what to do with them when we do get a good one.”

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Life Is Good, 5-1, Lowest-Priced Horse In Kentucky Derby Future Wager’s Opening Pool

With the Kentucky Derby still 22 weeks away, the pari-mutuel field of “All Other 3-Year-Old Colts and Geldings” closed as the 6-5 favorite in Pool 1 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager (KDFW) and the Bob Baffert-trained Life Is Good was the 5-1 second choice.

Life Is Good, who won his Nov. 22 debut at Del Mar by 9 ½ lengths for the record-equaling six-time Derby-winning trainer, edged Breeders' Cup Juvenile (GI) winner Essential Quality, who closed at 8-1 in the betting. Other horses who attracted interest from bettors: Hopeful (GI) and Champagne (GI) winner Jackie's Warrior (18-1); Nyquist Stakes winner Highly Motivated (18-1); and Saturday's Kentucky Jockey Club (GII) winner Keepmeinmind (19-1).

Horses in order of the public's betting choice (with trainer, Pool 1 odds and $2 Win will pays): #24 “All Other 3-Year-Old Colts and Geldings” (6-5, $4.60); #11 Life Is Good (Bob Baffert, 5-1, $12.80); #3 Essential Quality (Brad Cox, 8-1, $18.40); #8 Jackie's Warrior (Steve Asmussen, 18-1, $38.20); #6 Highly Motivated (Chad Brown, 18-1, $39.80); #9 Keepmeinmind (Robertino Diodoro, 19-1, $40); #1 Caddo River (Brad Cox, 27-1, $57.40); #20 Speaker's Corner (Bill Mott, 29-1, $61); #4 Fire At Will (Mike Maker, 30-1, $62.80); #7 Hot Rod Charlie (Doug O'Neill, 34-1, $71.40); #14 Red Flag (John Shirreffs, 35-1, $72); #15 Reinvestment Risk (Chad Brown, 35-1, $72.60); #17 Savile Row (Bob Baffert, 36-1, $75.80); #18 Scarred (Steve Asmussen, 49-1, $100.40); #22 Ten for Ten (Shug McGaughey III, 51-1, $105.80); #23 “All 3-Year-Old Fillies” (56-1, $114.40); #12 Midnight Bourbon (Steve Asmussen, 59-1, $120.40); #10 King Fury (Kenny McPeek, 60-1, $122.40); #5 Get Her Number (Peter Miller, 64-1, $130.40); #19 Sittin On Go (Dale Romans, 68-1, $139.20); #2 Dr. Shivel (Mark Glatt, 72-1, $146.80); #16 Rombauer (Michael McCarthy, 88-1, $178.80); #13 Pickin' Time (Kelly Breen, 96-1, $194.60); and #21 Super Stock (Steve Asmussen, 103-1, $209.60).

Total handle for the Nov. 26-29 KDFW pool – the first of five scheduled wagering pools in advance of the 147^th running of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (GI) on Saturday, May 1 – was $249,331 ($191,984 in the Win pool and $57,347 in Exactas).

Inaugurated in 1999, the Kentucky Derby Future Wager has been offered for a 23^rdconsecutive year, but this marks just the eighth time that Churchill Downs has hosted a KDFW pool on closing weekend of its Fall Meet.

This year's early Derby betting menu also included the Kentucky Derby Sire Future Wager, which, for the sixth consecutive year, provided bettors with a unique opportunity to wager on select breeding stars and their entire crop of juveniles with the hope of winning next year's Kentucky Derby.

Into Mischief and “All Other Sires” attracted the most attention from bettors. Into Mischief, the sire of Life Is Good and Highly Motivated among others, closed as the 4-1 favorite ahead of “All Other Sires” at 5-1 and progeny by Tapit at 6-1.

Sires in order of favoritism for the Kentucky Derby Sire Future Wager (Odds and $2 Win Will Pays): #12 Into Mischief (4-1, $10.20); #24 “All Other Sires” (5-1, $12); #20 Tapit (6-1, $15.20); #6 Curlin (12-1, $27.80); #1 American Pharoah (13-1, $29); #5 Constitution (17-1, $36.40); #22 Uncle Mo (19-1, $41.20); #8 Frosted (21-1, $44.80); #18 Quality Road (22-1, $47.40); #10 Hard Spun (24-1, $50); #19 Street Sense (25-1, $53.20); #9 Ghostzapper (27-1, $56.80); #17 Pioneerof the Nile (30-1, $62.60); #16 Not This Time (30-1, $63.80); #14 Medaglia d'Oro (35-1, $72); #21 Tiznow (35-1, $73.20); #2 Bernardini (36-1, $74.20); #23 Union Rags (43-1, $89.80); #11 Honor Code (44-1, $91.40); #15 Munnings (47-1, $97); #4 Candy Ride (ARG) (47-1, $97.80); #13 Liam's Map (49-1, $100.40); #3 Bodemeister (60-1, $123.60); and #7 Flatter (80-1, $162.80).

Total betting on the Kentucky Derby Sire Future Wager was a record $47,567 ($33,269 in the Win pool and $14,298 in the Exactas).

The KDFW and Sire Future Wager combined to handle $296,898 compared to $397,394 in 2019 and $291,313 in 2018.

The other Future Wager dates are tentatively set for Jan. 22-24 (Pool 2), Feb. 12-14 (Pool 3), March 5-7 (Pool 4) and March 26-28 (Pool 5). The lone Kentucky Oaks Future Wager will coincide with Kentucky Derby Future Wager Pool 4 on March 5-7.

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Sunday’s Insights: Keeneland April 2yo Topper Debuts at Churchill Downs

3rd-CD, $85K, Msw, 3yo/up, f/m, 1m, 2:00 p.m. ET
First-time starter MISS TAPIRADO (Tapit) topped the 2019 Keeneland April 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale, bringing $1.3 million from Prince Sultan bin Mishal Al Saud after breezing in a co-bullet :10 flat. Consigned by Hartley/De Renzo Thoroughbreds, agent, she was previously a $775,000 KEENOV weanling purchase by Baccari Bloodstock. Grade I winner My Conquestadory (Artie Schiller) brought $1.5 million from SF Bloodstock & Newgate Farm while carrying Miss Tapirado at the Conquest Stables dispersal at the 2016 Keeneland November Sale. Miss Tapirado’s 4-year-old full-brother Bourbon War was second in the 2019 GII Xpressbet Fountain of Youth S. Miss Tapirado, drawn widest of all in post seven for this debut run, worked a bullet four furlongs in :47 4/5 (1/100) over the training track at Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott’s Belmont base back on Oct. 11. TJCIS PPs

7th-CD, $85K, Msw, 2yo, 6 1/2f, 4:06 p.m. ET
Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse unveils GHOSTLINER (Ghostzapper) in this full field of juveniles. John Oxley went to $475,000 to purchase the gray as a FTSAUG yearling. He was produced by a winning daughter of 2006 champion 3-year-old filly Wait a While (Maria’s Mon). Ghostliner’s worktab features several bullet moves, including a five-furlong drill in :59 1/5 (1/19) in Louisville Oct. 22.
The unlucky Sound Money (Flatter), favored at 2-1 on the morning line here, lost little in defeat rallying for second after a gate malfunction caused him to spot the field several lengths on debut for Chad Brown at Keeneland Oct. 11. TJCIS PPs

2nd-DMR, $57K, Msw, 2yo, 6 1/2f, 4:00 p.m. ET
LIFE IS GOOD (Into Mischief) looks like another live one for Hall of Famer Bob Baffert and his red-hot leading sire. The $525,000 KEESEP yearling, owned by CHC Inc and WinStar Farm LLC, tuned up for this with a five-furlong bullet from the gate in 1:00 (1/51) at Santa Anita Nov. 16 (XBTV Video). The 4-5 morning-line favorite’s second dam is former Baffert runner, SW & MGISP Bonnie Blue Flag (Mineshaft).
The field of six also includes fellow first-time starters: Scales of Justice (Uncle Mo), a son of MGISW Balance (Thunder Gulch); and $550,000 KEESEP yearling Roman Centurian (Empire Maker). TJCIS PPs

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