Messier | Horse Racing Free Tips

Messier Has It Easy In Bob Hope At Del Mar

After a last-out victory in a maiden special weight race at Santa Anita Park, Messier made a successful move up to stakes company in the Grade 3 Bob Hope at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, biding his time early and drawing away late to win by three lengths.

In a short field of four, Bob Baffert had a strong hand with Messier, Kamui, and Winning Map, who went to the lead out of the gate, trading the frontrunner status with Richard Mandella's Forbidden Kingdom down the backstretch. Messier hung back in last, relaxed behind a fast pace, the first quarter in :21.40 and the half-mile in :43.23.

Around the far turn, Messier went to the outside of the two front runners, pulling even with them as they entered the stretch. Down the Del Mar stretch, those early quick fractions took their toll on Forbidden Kingdom and Winning Map who tired as Messier quickened his pace and passed them to win easily. Forbidden Kingdom was second, Winning Map third, and Kamui was fourth.

The final time for the seven-furlong Bob Hope was 1:22.74. Find this race's chart here.

Messier paid $4.40 and $2.60. Forbidden Kingdom paid $4.00. With only four starters, this race did not have any show betting.

Bred in Ontario by Sam-Son Farm, Messier is a 2-year-old colt by Empire Maker out of the Smart Strike mare Checkered Past, a listed stakes winner at Woodbine. He is owned by Golconda Stable, Madaket Stables LLC, SF Racing LLC, Siena Farm LLC, Starlight Racing, Waves Edge Capital LLC, Catherine Donovan, Robert E. Masterson, and Jay A. Schoenfarber. Messier was consigned by Sam-Son Farm and sold to SF/Starlight/Madaket for $470,000 at the 2020 Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearling Showcase. With his win in the G3 Bob Hope, the 2-year-old has two wins in three starts for career earnings of $105,600.

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Empire Maker ‘Rising Star’ Rallies Into Fast Pace to Take Bob Hope

Heavily-favored Messier sat off of a supersonic pace in Sunday's GIII Bob Hope S. at Del Mar and rallied to score going away in the end, giving Bob Baffert–who had three of the four starters–his 11th victory in the seven-furlong test for 2-year-old males.

Hammered down to 1-2 favoritism on debut June 27 at Los Alamitos, the $470,000 Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearling buy cruised to an easy 6 1/2-length graduation off a brief layoff Oct. 22 at Santa Anita to earn 'TDN Rising Star' honors. Taking the bulk of the play here while removing blinkers, the bay broke smoothly but was out-footed by his three rivals early and sat at the back of the pack under Flavien Prat as the lone non-Baffert entry, Forbidden Kingdom showed the way through a scorching :21.40 half. Poking his head into third as the half went up in a blistering :43.23, he spun into the clear approaching the lane as the field started to condense. Forbidden Kingdom fought valiantly until around the eighth pole, but the early fractions took their toll and Messier took charge before kicking clear for a comfortable victory in the end.

“We were in a good spot,” said Prat. “There was plenty of pace in the race and that was to our advantage. When I asked, he was there. And I think this horse will be fine with running on.”

“Messier shipped down this morning. He didn't train here during the summer and had never been here,” added Baffert. “First time on a trailer, first time he'd seen Del Mar and he walked into the paddock like he owned it. The track is pretty glib so the fractions were fast. In the summer, 21 and [two] wouldn't hold up, but this time speed carries and they were rolling.”

Pedigree Notes:
With the win, Messier becomes the 67th stakes winner and 37th graded stakes winner for the late Empire Maker. He's the lone foal to race thus far out of his dam, who took back-to-back renewals of Woodbine's Trillium S. in 2014 and 2015. His third dam is Canadian champion Catch the Ring (Seeking the Gold), who in turn produced a Canadian champion in Catch the Thrill (A.P. Indy). Sold to Silesia Farm for $290,000 as part of the Sam-Son Farm dispersal at Keeneland January this year, Checkered Past foaled a Candy Ride (Arg) filly Feb. 7 before being bred to Authentic.

Sunday, Del Mar
BOB HOPE S.-GIII, $98,000, Del Mar, 11-14, 2yo, 7f, 1:22.74, ft.
1–MESSIER, 120, c, 2, by Empire Maker
1st Dam: Checkered Past (MSW, $334,284), by Smart Strike
2nd Dam: Catch the Flag, by A.P. Indy
3rd Dam: Catch the Ring, by Seeking the Gold
'TDN Rising Star' 1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES
WIN. ($470,000 Ylg '20 FTKSEL). O-Golconda Stable, Madaket
Stables LLC, SF Racing LLC, Siena Farm LLC, Starlight Racing,
Waves Edge Capital LLC, Catherine Donovan, Robert E.
Masterson & Jay A. Schoenfarber; B-Sam-Son Farm (ON);
T-Bob Baffert; J-Flavien Prat. $60,000. Lifetime Record:
3-2-1-0, $105,600. Werk Nick Rating: A.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Forbidden Kingdom, 120, c, 2, American Pharoah–Just
Louise, by Five Star Day. 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE. ($300,000
Ylg '20 FTKSEL). O-MyRacehorse & Spendthrift Farm LLC;
B-Springhouse Farm (KY); T-Richard E. Mandella. $20,000.
3–Winning Map, 120, c, 2, Liam's Map–Starlet O'Hara, by
Discreetly Mine. 1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE.
($55,000 Ylg '20 KEESEP; $525,000 2yo '21 OBSMAR). O-HRH
Prince Sultan Bin Mishal Al Saud; B-H & E Ranch (KY); T-Bob
Baffert. $12,000.
Margins: 3HF, 1 3/4, 4HF. Odds: 1.20, 5.00, 1.60.
Also Ran: Kamui. Scratched: Rock N Rye. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

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Baffert Has Bob Hope Surrounded

The always well-stocked Bob Baffert barn, fresh off its victory in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile last week with Corniche (Quality Road), has three more pricey and full-of-potential juvenile colts entered against just two other rivals in Sunday's seven-furlong GIII Bob Hope S. at Del Mar. Baffert already owns a record 10 Bob Hope trophies and has won four of the last six renewals.

Breaking from the rail is 'TDN Rising Star' Messier (Empire Maker), a 6 1/2-length second-out winner at Santa Anita Oct. 22. He now sheds blinkers off the graduation–a move Baffert has employed in the past with the likes of Bob Hope winner Mastery, Triple Crown winner Justify, champion juvenile Game Winner, etc. Drawn to Messier's right is $400,000 KEENOV weanling Kamui (Quality Road), who was second–demoted to third for interference–behind re-opposing Forbidden Kingdom (American Pharoah)–at Del Mar Aug. 21. The Baoma Corp. colorbearer aired by six lengths at Los Al Sept. 11. Winning Map (Liam's Map) rounds out the Baffert trio and boasts the field's top Beyer Speed Figure of 85. The $525,000 OBSMAR (:20 3/5) acquisition justified 2-5 odds when cruising clear to a 4 1/4-length debut victory in Arcadia Oct. 3.

The aforementioned Forbidden Kingdom returns to the main track after checking in third as the favorite in Santa Anita's Speakeasy S., a prep for the GII Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf. Rock N Bye (Stay Thirsty) ventures for the first time out of Cal-bred company, where he annexed the local Graduation S. in August before two more stakes placings.

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Baffert To Saddle Three Out Of Five Entries In Sunday’s Bob Hope Stakes

Trainer Bob Baffert has Sunday's Grade 3 Bob Hope Stakes at Del Mar surrounded.

The white-haired, Hall of Fame conditioner has not one, not two, but three of the five 2-year-olds in the lineup for the seven-furlong headliner that carries a $100,000 purse. It will go as the day's 8th race on a nine-race program that has a first post of 12:30 p.m.

The Baffert threesome consists of SF Racing, Starlight Racing, et al's Messier; Baoma Corp's Kamui, and HRH Prince Sultan Bin Mishal Al Saud's Winning Map.

The rest of the compact lineup is filled by Lovingier, London or Zondio's Rock N Rye and MyRacehorse.com and Spendthrift Farm's Forbidden Kingdom.

However, trainer Walther Solis indicating Friday morning that Rock N Rye would be scratched from the Hope in favor of a stakes for California breds later on.

Baffert is the king of the 2-year-old set at Del Mar – and he's some degree of royalty at other tracks around the country in that regard, too. By way of example locally, he's won Del Mar's top race for 2-year-olds, the Del Mar Futurity, 14 times. When it comes to the Bob Hope, which has been run locally seven times, Baffert has headed to the winner's circle after it four times already.

Here's the full field in post-position order with riders and morning line odds:

Messier (Flavien Prat, 8/5)
Kamui (Abel Cedillo, 5/2)
Winning Map (Mike Smith, 7/5)
Rock N Rye (Umberto Rispoli, 15-1)
Forbidden Kingdom (Juan Hernandez, 9/2)

Favored Winning Map has run only once, but, not surprisingly, it was a dandy. The gray colt by Liam's Map scooted six furlongs at Santa Anita in 1:10.20 on October 3 to win by better than four lengths at 2-5. He's put in a series of solid works since.

Messier clicked by more than six lengths in his second start October 22 at Santa Anita in the same 1:10.20 for six furlongs. He's a bay colt by Empire Maker.

Stablemate Kamui, a Quality Road offspring, was a six-length winner at Los Alamitos on September 11 in his most recent outing.

Forbidden Kingdom, a son of Triple Crown champion American Pharoah, scored at first asking at Del Mar on August 21, then came back to run third in the Speakeasy Stakes on the grass at Santa Anita on October 1. He's trained by Hall of Fame conditioner Richard Mandella.

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