new year's day | Horse Racing Free Tips

Maximum Security Just Gets Up in Dramatic San Diego Return

It’s never easy being the hunted.

Making his first start since the federal indictment of his former trainer Jason Servis and sent out for the first time by trainer Bob Baffert, Eclipse Award winner Maximum Security (New Year’s Day) looked destined for defeat in Saturday’s GII San Diego H. But the 4-year-old, last seen winning the $20-million Saudi Cup nearly five months ago, overcame some aggressive race riding and perhaps some ring-rustiness to grab Midcourt (Midnight Lute) to take it by a nostril.

Given a positive ride from the gates by Abel Cedillo, subbing for Luis Saez, Maximum Security led passing under the wire, but Victor Espinoza on Midcourt \was clearly intent on making the lead and Cedillo allowed him to do so rounding the turn. No sooner had that happened when Flavien Prat aboard Higher Power (Medaglia d’Oro) decided to up the ante, sending his mount quickly up outside of the favorite to put him in a pocket at the six-furlong peg. Steadied at that point, Maximum Security lost a couple of lengths and was ultimately steered into the clear, but he was under a ride with fully four furlongs to race, looking to have it all to do. Nevertheless, Maximum Security continued to grind away and was more or less on even terms as they hit the top of the lane. It looked as if he might edge clear, but Midcourt–in receipt of five pounds–boxed on gamely inside, only to be on the wrong end of the photo finish.

Winner of the GI Florida Derby and GI Haskell Invitational S. either side of his GI Kentucky Derby demotion, Maximum Security missed the GI Travers S. and GI Pennsylvania Derby, but would go on to defeat older rivals in the GIII Bold Ruler H. and in the GI Cigar Mile H., earning him the Eclipse. Connections elected to skip the GI Pegasus World Cup in January in favor of the Saudi Cup and he proved equal to the task, calling upon his determination to account for another Midnight Lute offspring–namely, champion Midnight Bisou–by three-parts of a length.

Maximum Security’s dam was acquired by Gary and Mary West for $80,000 in foal to Pioneerof the Nile at Keeneland November in 2014 and was sold to Korean interests for $11,000 carrying a full-sibling to the then unraced 2-year-old Maximum Security, who would make a victorious debut in a maiden $16,000 claimer about six weeks later. Lil Indy and her weanling Korean-bred full-sister to Maximum Security were acquired and returned to the U.S. and prepared for last year’s Keeneland November sale. Lil Indy fetched $1.85 million in foal to Quality Road, while the weanling was bought back on a bid of $190,000. Lil Indy, a half-sister to MGISW Flat Out (Flatter), produced a colt by Quality Road Apr. 23.

Saturday, Del Mar
SAN DIEGO H.-GII, $150,000, Del Mar, 7-25, 3yo/up, 1 1/16m, 1:44.54, ft.
1–MAXIMUM SECURITY, 127, c, 4, by New Year’s Day</strong
                1st Dam: Lil Indy, by Anasheed
                2nd Dam: Cresta Lil, by Cresta Rider
                3rd Dam: Rugosa, by Double Jay</strong
O-Gary & Mary West, Mrs. John Magnier, Michael B. Tabor &
Derrick Smith; B-Gary & Mary West Stables Inc. (KY); T-Bob
Baffert; J-Abel Cedillo. $90,000. Lifetime Record: Ch. 3yo
Colt & MGISW-US, 11-9-1-0, $11,891,900.
Werk Nick Rating: A.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Midcourt, 122, g, 5, Midnight Lute–Mayo On the Side, by
French Deputy. ($450,000 Ylg ’16 KEESEP). O-C R K Stable LLC;
B-Dixiana Farms LLC (KY); T-John A. Shirreffs. $30,000
3–Higher Power, 122, h, 5, Medaglia d’Oro–Alternate, by
Seattle Slew. ($250,000 4yo ’19 KEEAPR). O-Hronis Racing LLC;
B-Pin Oak Stud, LLC (KY); T-John W. Sadler. $18,000.
Margins: NO, 6 1/4, 1 1/4. Odds: 0.40, 6.00, 3.50.
Also Ran: Ax Man, Combatant. Scratched: Sharp Samurai
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

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Baffert Has ‘A Really Good Feeling’ About Maximum Security Ahead Of San Diego

The Del Mar barber's knowledge of Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, whose distinctive white locks he was trimming, apparently did not extend to the horses in Baffert's deeply talented stable.

So, asking about the best horses Baffert had on hand for the Del Mar summer meeting was a logical conversation starter or extender.

“Well, I've got this horse Maximum Security …” Baffert said.

“Oh, I know THAT horse,” the barber exclaimed.

Maximum Security, the horse that crossed under the wire the apparent winner of the 2019 Kentucky Derby before an extensively-chronicled disqualification, the first in Derby history. The multi-million-dollar earner that, also in extensively-chronicled circumstances, was transferred in March to the care of Baffert.

Maximum Security, the 4-year-old son of New Year's Day who will make his first start for Baffert, and first in nearly five months, in Saturday's $150,000 San Diego Handicap at Del Mar.

“He's a very famous horse,” Baffert said in a phone interview earlier this week. “I'm very excited and a little bit nervous for him to run. There's a lot of pressure when you're around really good horses and we always have that.”

Any trainer looks forward to a new horse in the stable and there are physical checks to be made upon arrival, which Maximum Security passed routinely. There was, however, one obstacle to overcome in the transition according to Baffert.

“Every trainer feeds a little differently and at first he was kind of a finicky eater when we got him,” Baffert said. “Which was strange, because he doesn't look like he ever missed a meal in his life. But once we got that worked out, he has been fine.

“He's very intelligent and around here he's been kind of quiet.”

Maximum Security had two works at Del Mar, one more than was originally planned after the race was delayed a week by COVID-19 positives in the jockey colony.

He covered five furlongs in :59.60 on July 11, fourth-fastest of 88 at the distance that day, and came back a week later – the original date of the San Diego – to work a bullet six furlongs in 1:11.60.

“He's a big, strong horse and I can't be happier with the way he's training,” Baffert said. “He trains like a really good horse.”

Maximum Security will be ridden for the first time by Del Mar-based Abel Cedillo. Luis Saez, aboard for the last seven starts, tested positive for COVID-19 two weeks ago at Keeneland and is subject to travel restrictions.

“When I got the word on Saez, I asked around about who was open.” Baffert related. “Some (jockey agents) said, 'If it's Maximum Security, maybe I could get open.' But I really didn't want to take anyone's rider.”

Trainer Mark Glatt had nominated the multiple-stakes winning 6-year-old gelding Sharp Samurai, a turf specialist, to both the San Diego on dirt and the Eddie Read Stakes the following day on grass. The obvious strategy: provide opportunity for Grade II honors on either surface and a way of avoiding Maximum Security.

“Bob thought that because Abel and Luis Saez have similar styles, Abel would be a good fit and was his first choice,” Cedillo's agent, Tom Knust, said. “I thought that was very complimentary of both Abel and Bob.

“We ride a lot for Mark Glatt and Sharp Samurai's owners (Red Baron Barn and Rancho Temescal). We told them we would hold the mount if they wanted to run in the San Diego. They were nice enough to say they didn't want Abel to miss having the opportunity to ride 'Maximum'.”

With Maximum Security committed to the San Diego, Cedillo – most recently aboard Sharp Samurai in a third-place effort in the American Stakes at Santa Anita on June 21 – was free to take the call from Baffert. Once, that is, Baffert got clearance from owner/breeders Gary and Mary West of Rancho Santa Fe and their partners.

“(Cedillo) is strong and aggressive,” Baffert said. “He won on Fighting Mad for Gary and Mary West, he's won other races for me and he seems like he can handle the pressure. I'm happy to have him.”

The victory by Cedillo for the West stable was in the Grade II $200,000 Santa Maria Stakes at Santa Anita on May 31.

Cedillo, a 31-year-old native of Guatemala, was a dominant presence in Northern California before making a successful transition to the Southern California circuit a year ago. He's been doing the due diligence for what could be career-boosting opportunity.

“I was very excited when (Knust) said I have a chance to ride this horse,” Cedillo said. “Right now, I'm watching the replays of all his races. It looks to me like I'll have to kind of stay busy on him, but I'm going to try to talk to Luis Saez in the next few days and, of course, I'll talk to Mr. Baffert and see what they say.”

Under normal circumstances, Cedillo's assignment would be a one-race replacement for the proven Saez. But these are not normal times, with COVID-19 protocols curtailing jockey travel. And, Baffert said, Maximum Security is staying put for the summer.

“It's a challenge. We've got this great horse and we've got this race as a prep for the (TVG) Pacific Classic,” Baffert said. Del Mar's signature race, the Grade I, $500,000 mile and a quarter is scheduled for Saturday, August 22.

Back when Quarter Horse racing was the name of Baffert's game, he had a good one named Gold Coast Express transferred to his stable.

“The first time he ran for me, I was so excited when I gave (jockey) Danny Cardoza a leg up I almost threw him over the horse,” Baffert said. Gold Coast Express won eight races in a row and was the 1986 World Champion.

Unlike most Del Mar stakes races, especially the ones for juveniles, the San Diego has not been good to Baffert. He's won it once (Fed Biz, 2014) and had a couple of seconds (Paynter, 2013, Dr. Dorr 2016). But there were a couple of nasty ones, too.

In 1998 he ran his Triple Crown star and champion Silver Charm in the San Diego at odds of 3-10. Alas, they had to send out the proverbial search party to find him at the end of that one. Then, even more uncomfortably, there was 2017.

Arrogate came into the San Diego as the No. 1 ranked Thoroughbred in world, having won the Breeders' Cup Classic, Pegasus World Cup and Dubai World Cup. Arrogate went off at odds of 1-20 but was never much of a factor and finished fourth, beaten 15 lengths, by the John Sadler-trained Accelerate.

“The track can be tricky. Some horses like it and some don't,” Baffert said. “Arrogate didn't. But this horse has worked well on it and I think he likes this track.

“I have a really good feeling about this horse and I really want him to run well. What he's gone through in his career is not his fault.”

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‘Very Excited, And A Little Bit Nervous’: Baffert Readies Maximum Security For San Diego Handicap

Asked about champion Maximum Security during Wednesday's media teleconference organized by the NTRA, Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert admitted to mixed feelings ahead of the colt's start in Saturday's Grade 2 San Diego Handicap at Del Mar.

“When I see him train, he trains like a really top horse,” Baffert said. “That's what I see, and I'm actually very excited, and a little bit nervous. I feel a little added pressure; there's a lot of pressure when you're around good horses.”

In his most recent start, the Gary and Mary West homebred won the inaugural $20 million Saudi Cup over Midnight Bisou. Since that effort at the end of February, the story around Maximum Security shifted from his historic Kentucky Derby disqualification in 2019 to the federal indictment of his former trainer, Jason Servis, on March 9, 2020.

Maximum Security was given a full medical evaluation and some down time, then transferred to Baffert's care in Southern California. His first gallop for Baffert was in late April; his first work not until June 1.

In his first start for Baffert, the 4-year-old son of New Year's Day will face a field of six others going 1 1/16 miles over Del Mar's main track. Maximum Security will break from post position five under a new rider, Abel Cedillo.

Regular jockey Luis Saez would be aboard the colt, except that he recently returned a positive test for COVID-19 and will be quarantined for the next two weeks. That left Baffert searching for a new rider, and his go-to big race jockey Mike Smith was already booked to be in New Jersey to ride Authentic in the Haskell.

Cedillo had committed to ride a horse for Mark Glatt in the San Diego, but Glatt let him out of the commitment when the trainer decided not to run his horse against Maximum Security.

“He sort of has the same kind of style [as Saez]; he's a strong rider, he's aggressive,” Baffert said of Cedillo. “He won on Fighting Mad for Gary and Mary West [the G2 Santa Maria on May 30 at Santa Anita], and he's won some races for me. He can handle pressure. I'm happy that I have him here.”

As is typical of Servis' style, Maximum Security had been used to turning in slow and steady morning workouts, more like two-minute licks than speedy breezes. Over the past six weeks, Baffert has focused on acclimating the colt to his style of training, working a bit faster, and his most recent breeze was a sharp five-furlong move in :59.60 on July 11 at Del Mar.

“To be around, he's a big, strong, beautiful horse,” Baffert said. “He's been doing everything well.”

Still, Baffert told the Paulick Report over the weekend that the colt may need a race, coming off the five-month break since the Saudi Cup.

“I feel I've done as much with him as I can for this,” Baffert said on Sunday. “I've been working him in company. He's a lazy horse in the morning and I can see now why they may ran him for $16,000 (maiden claiming) first out. He's a really smart horse; a lot of class, and a really intelligent horse.”

Maximum Security has been assigned 127 pounds under the handicap conditions of the 1 1/16-mile San Diego, five more than Higher Power (winner of the G1 Pacific Classic in 2019) and Midcourt (G2 San Pasqual winner in 2020). No horse since Native Diver toted 131 pounds in 1965 has carried more weight in winning the San Diego Handicap. California Chrome won under 126 pounds in 2016 in his first start since winning the G1 Dubai World Cup.

The San Diego Handicap field from the rail with jockeys and weights in parenthesis: Higher Power (TBD, 122); Ax Man (J.C. Diaz, Jr., 118); Midcourt (Juan Hernandez, 122); Dark Vader (Umberto Rispoli, 118); Maximum Security (Abel Cedillo, 127); Combatant (Drayden Van Dyke, 121) and Sharp Samurai (Edwin Maldonado, 119).

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Baffert Ready For ‘Change Of Scenery’ As Del Mar Meet Kicks Off Friday

The Del Mar racing season, which starts Friday, represents “a breath of fresh air,” for Southern California Thoroughbred racing in 2020 in the opinion of Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert,

“We needed a change of scenery – drastically,” Baffert, 67, said by phone Wednesday, anticipating his 32nd season here. Baffert and his fellow horsemen venture south following a Santa Anita winter/spring season interrupted and a Triple Crown Series turned inside out by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Baffert's batch of 3-year-olds with supreme Kentucky Derby potential – judged even deeper than usual this year – had their numbers trimmed by injury and other circumstances during a spring of discontent. But with the arrival of summer, and the postponement of the Kentucky Derby from the first Saturday in May to the first Saturday in September, Baffert remains a strong candidate to win a sixth Run For The Roses.

Over the years here Baffert has gone from winning training titles (seven straight from 1997-2003) to focusing on stakes and especially showcasing stars in the 2-year-old (14 Futurity, 8 Debutante winners) and Handicap divisions (5 Pacific Classics).

More of the same would appear in store this summer. But Baffert said the cooler and fresher air here would feel even better if it were breathed – albeit through a mask – with the owners who provide him the stars of his stable. Like most tracks around the country, Del Mar's season will operate, to begin at least, without spectators in the stands in accordance with protocols agreed upon with the San Diego County Board of Health and other governmental authorities.

A bevy of Baffert's stars are already stabled at Del Mar with potential to run this summer.

Scheduled first is Maximum Security in the $150,000 Grade II San Diego Handicap on July 18. Maximum Security, transferred to Baffert's care in March, was first under the wire in the 2019 Kentucky Derby before being disqualified. The New Year's Day colt rebounded with victories in the Grade I Haskell Invitational and Cigar Mile in a three-win streak from July to December and was voted an Eclipse Award as the top 3-year-old of the year.

“He looks great, he shipped down from Santa Anita well and he'll work this weekend,” Baffert said.

The San Diego Handicap is a traditional stepping stone to the TVG Pacific Classic, a race Baffert mentioned as a potential start for McKinzie, who shipped here from New York following a disappointing effort in the recent Met Mile at Belmont Park. The loss of two shoes during the race provides a major Met Mile explanation, Baffert said.

The rescheduling of the Kentucky Derby means that Del Mar will have a Derby prep race for the first time in history. That's the $100,000 Shared Belief Stakes on August 1. Baffert has Cezanne and Uncle Chuck, impressive recent winners at Santa Anita and Los Alamitos, here. “I'll definitely run one,” Baffert said.

Never short on talented 2-year-olds, Baffert declined to single any out as Debutante or Futurity prospects at this time.

“It's too early. I'm a little bit behind with them right now,” Baffert said.

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