Newgate | Horse Racing Free Tips

Baffert Has 14 Of 16 Nominees In Robert B. Lewis

Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert will attack next Saturday's GIII Robert B. Lewis S. at Santa Anita with quality and an awful lot of quantity. The nominees for the $200,000 race were released Saturday and 14 of the 16 nominated for the race hail from the Baffert stable.

This Lewis will be run just six days after the GII San Vicente S. In that race, also for 3-year-olds, Baffert trains four of the five starters. The lone horse to take on Baffert in the San Vicente will be 20-1 shot Man Child (Creative Cause) from the barn of Ryan Hanson.

All four of Baffert's San Vicente starters are nominated for the Robert Lewis, but that still leaves 10 potential starters. Among the top names for the Lewis are the Baffert trio of Reincarnate (Good Magic), Newgate (Into Mischief) and National Treasure (Quality Road), who finished one-two-three in the GIII Sham S.

Baffert will come into the Lewis having won the race four straight years and 10 times overall.

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‘Rising Star’ Rates Big Shot Against Baffert Foursome in Sham

Bob Baffert supplies two-thirds of the field for Sunday's GIII Sham S. at Santa Anita, but he is no slam dunk to walk away with a record-extending ninth renewal of the event, given the imposing presence of 'TDN Rising Star' Spun Intended (Hard Spun).

The chestnut had a bit of buzz about him ahead of his Oct. 30 debut over 6 1/2 furlongs of this main track, and he nearly overcame a slow start and wide trip to run Fort Warren (Curlin) to a half-length, a performance that was also deemed 'Rising Star'-worthy. Pounded down to 4-5 over the same trip at Del Mar Nov. 26, the $100,000 Keeneland September yearling and $125,000 OBS March bargain made light work of eight other rivals, graduating by a widening 6 1/2 lengths. Hall of Famer Mike Smith sticks around for this first two-turn voyage.

The task at hand certainly is not an easy one, as Spun Intended hooks GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile third National Treasure (Quality Road) in his sophomore bow. Having defeated future GII Los Alamitos Futurity winner Practical Move (Practical Joke) into third on his Sept. 3 unveiling at Del Mar, the $500,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga grad found only stablemate and 'TDN Rising Star' Cave Rock (Arrogate) too strong in the GI American Pharoah S. next time out and was beaten under four lengths behind likely champion Forte (Violence) in the Juvenile. The blinkers that went on for that try come off Sunday.

The Baffert shedrow is also set to be represented by the rail-drawn 'Rising Star' and recent GIII Bob Hope S. runner-up Newgate (Into Mischief); Speed Boat Beach (Bayern), who Beyered 104 when debuting on dirt at the seaside oval Sept. 10 and who exits a game victory in the grassy GIII Cecil B. DeMille S. Dec. 4; and Reincarnate (Good Magic), who broke his maiden going two turns at Del Mar Nov. 25.

The Sham field is completed by Packs a Wahlop (Creative Cause), a two-time graded winner on the turf.

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Uncaptured’s Havnameltdown Gives Bob Baffert 1-2 in Bob Hope

Looking to collect his second graded stakes win of the season, Havnameltdown proved he was up to the task with a professional score over stablemate Newgate in Sunday's GIII Bob Hope S. at Del Mar. One of three Baffert trainees in the short five-horse field, Havnameltdown and Hard to Figure (Hard Spun), breaking from the inside two gates, broke cleanly while Practical Move, exiting stall 6, was pinched back as the converging Newgate and Mixto (Good Magic) made their exit. The overly headstrong Hard to Figure proved hard to handle racing out of the chute as Havnameltdown, Practical Move and Newgate all pressed the issue four abreast through a quarter in :22.23. Taking charge heading into the far turn, the favorite carved out a half in :44.36 as the early pacesetter retreated leaving Practical Move and Newgate the only rivals in contention. A length and a half on top turning for home, Havnameltdown continued on with purpose late as Newgate loomed, however, the favorite proved best on the day to score by 1 1/4 lengths at the wire. Practical Move finished a clear third.

“He broke nice and easy today,” explained winning rider Juan Hernandez. “Before in his races, he was sling-shotting out of there. Today, he was more professional. Our other horse [trainer Baffert's Hard to Figure] inside of us on the rail was trying to get out into us, but my horse took it well. He's learning how to run. After we cleared that other horse, I had a nice trip from there.”

Marking his debut at last July going five panels at Del Mar, the Florida bred made it two straight with a score in the GIII Best Pal S. at the seaside oval Aug. 14. Stepping into top-level competition for his latest, he finished 5 1/4 lengths behind subsequent Breeders' Cup Juvenile runner-up Cave Rock (Arrogate) in the GI Runhappy Del Mar Futurity Sept. 11.

Pedigree Notes:
Former Ocala Stud stallion Uncaptured–relocated to South Korea for the 2020 breeding season–is the sire of Havnameltdown and other 2022 graded winners Yes I Am Free, Willy Boi, and Lightening Larry, as well as two other graded winners. Of Uncaptured's 11 black-type winners total, two–Havnameltdown and additional graded winner Two Sixty–are out of Put It Back mares. The late Put It Back, an Honour and Glory/Relaunch stallion, also originally stood in Florida before his export to Argentina and has 30 stakes winners out of his daughters.

Havnameltdown and Two Sixty have another tie, as they are out of full-sisters. Two Sixty was bought by Stonestreet at last year's Keeneland November sale for $440,000 while in foal to Constitution and had a colt Jan. 23. Havnameltdown's dam, Ashley's Babe, has a yearling colt by Tapiture, who was a $4,500 RNA at Keeneland January, and was bred to Maximus Mischief for 2023. Her fourth dam, Rose Bowl (Habitat), was a champion in England and an excellent broodmare who produced three stakes winners, while her descendants include Canadian champion Strait of Dover (English Channel) and English highweight Iktamal (Danzig Connection).

Sunday, Del Mar
BOB HOPE S.-GIII, $100,000, Del Mar, 11-20, 2yo, 7f, 1:21.68, ft.
1–HAVNAMELTDOWN, 124, c, 2, by Uncaptured
              1st Dam: Ashley's Babe, by Put It Back
              2nd Dam: Charms Way, by Salt Lake
              3rd Dam: Remember Midnight, by Cure the Blues
($16,000 Ylg '21 OBSOCT; $200,000 2yo '22 OBSAPR).
O-Michael E. Pegram, Karl Watson Paul Weitman; B-Katherine
S Devall (FL); T-Bob Baffert; J-Juan J. Hernandez. $60,000.
Lifetime Record: GISP, 4-3-1-0, $288,000. Werk Nick Rating:
A++. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for
the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Newgate, 120, c, 2, Into Mischief–Majestic Presence, by
Majestic Warrior. 'TDN Rising Star'. 1ST BLACK TYPE,
1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE. ($850,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP).
O-SF Racing LLC, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables LLC, Robert
Masterson, Stonestreet Stables LLC, Jay A. Schoenfarber,
Waves Edge Capital LLC & Catherine Donovan; B-Town &
Country Horse Farms, LLC (KY); T-Bob Baffert. $20,000.
3–Practical Move, 120, c, 2, Practical Joke–Ack Naughty, by
Afleet Alex. 1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE.
($90,000 RNA Ylg '21 KEESEP; $230,000 2yo '22 OBSAPR).
O-Pierre Jean Amestoy, Jr., Leslie A. Amestoy & Roger K.
Beasley; B-Chad Brown & Head of Plains Partners (KY);
T-Tim Yakteen. $12,000.
Margins: 1 1/4, 2HF, 4 1/4. Odds: 0.90, 1.40, 9.30.
Also Ran: Mixto, Hard to Figure. Scratched: Giver Not a Taker, Lloyds Logic.
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG

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Velazquez To Winter In California

Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez won a pair of races on the opening day of the Bing Crosby meet at Del Mar and his presence is something that Southern California is about to get more used to. The 50-year-old is using his time at Del Mar as a steppingstone to the winter stand at Santa Anita Park, where he plans to ride full time.

“I wanted to get it started here so the trainers and owners know I'm going to be here for the winter,” Velazquez told the Del Mar press office. “Hopefully I'll get the opportunities to ride some real nice horses here and keep me going for the winter.”

Velazquez has ridden with success on the West Coast previously and just last winter, partnered with Bob Baffert to win the GII Sham S. with Newgrange (Violence), the GIII Robert B. Lewis S. with Messier (Empire Maker) and the GIII Las Virgenes S. with Adare Manor (Uncle Mo).

“It's like everything, you have to adjust to wherever you go,” Velazquez says. “Every racetrack has different turns and where the poles are. You have to get used to it and do your homework and hopefully you get some nice horses and they respond to what you like to do. I got lucky [on opening day]; the horses ran really well.”

Velazquez will be aboard Newgate for Baffert in Sunday's GIII Bob Hope S.

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