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No Pegasus For Godolphin’s Fair Grounds-Based Maxfield, Mystic Guide

Neither of Godolphin's two Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup aspirants based at the Fair Grounds, Maxfield nor Mystic Guide, will make the Jan. 23 race at Gulfstream Park, reports the Daily Racing Form. Both colts came down with minor respiratory illnesses and missed enough training to take them out of Pegasus consideration.

The undefeated Grade 1-winner Maxfield, who returned off a seven-month layoff to win the Dec. 19 Tenacious Stakes at the Fair Grounds, returned to regular training on Monday. Trainer Brendan Walsh expects the 4-year-old to be ready for racing in early to mid-February.

“Some horse came down with something when the temperature dropped here,” Walsh told DRF. “The only remedy is to back off on them. He showed some early signs, so we backed off. It's curtailed any aspirations of going for a race like the Pegasus. The good news is he's fine.”

Mystic Guide, trained by Mike Stidham, finished second last out in the G1 Jockey Club Gold Cup behind Happy Saver. Stidham said the colt is still coughing, but is back to tack walking in the shed row and will likely be pointed to a stakes race at the Fair Grounds or at Oaklawn in the coming months.

Gramm Sees Payoff as Horseplayer and Owner

The economics of horse ownership and playing the ponies are uphill battles, with owners strapped by the high cost of training fragile Thoroughbreds and horseplayers pitted against a takeout significantly higher than sports wagering.

Brody’s Cause Filly Kalypso Proves Best As Santa Ynez Favorite

In a performance befitting her short odds, Bob Baffert's Kalypso showed good early speed and took command turning for home en route to a facile 1 ¾-length victory in Sunday's Grade 2, $200,000 Santa Ynez Stakes at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif. Ridden for the first time by Joel Rosario, Kalypso got seven furlongs in 1:23.42 and provided Baffert with his record sixth win in the Santa Ynez, an early prep for both the Grade 2 Santa Anita Oaks and the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks.

Breaking from the far outside in a field of six sophomore fillies, Kalypso – from the first crop by Spendthrift Farm stallion Brody's Cause – enjoyed an early neck advantage on longshot Brilliant Cut, who broke from the rail. Heading up the backside, these two were head and head with Kalypso obviously well within herself. Turning for home, Kalypso asserted her dominance and she went on to a most impressive win as much the best.

“She broke good and put me right into the race, in a good position,” said Rosario, who notched his third stakes win through five days of racing. “I'm just happy to be on her. She was the best horse and she'll be better going longer distances.”

Most recently a close second going a mile and one sixteenth in the G1 Starlet at Los Alamitos Dec. 5, Kalypso was off as the 4-5 favorite and paid $3.80, $2.80 and $2.20.

“She has natural speed and she's a really fast filly,” said Baffert, who scratched morning line favorite Varda earlier but still ran three fillies. “She had the lead for a long time in the (Starlet), backing up it's a big difference to go seven eighths. The way she broke today, she was in a good spot and she was really training well coming into this race…

“I would try her long again, as they get older, they are maturing. You can slow her down a little bit, like today she was pretty relaxed. She wasn't too rank where she went real fast but we'll just see how (she) comes out of it.”

Owned by David A. Bernsen, LLC, Rockingham Ranch and Chad Littlefield, Kalyspo picks up 10 qualifying points to the Kentucky Oaks on April 30 and with her first graded stakes win, is now 5-2-2-1. With the winner's share of $120,000, she increased her earnings to $245,600.

Updated Kentucky Oaks points leaderboard

Ridden by Mike Smith, Frosteria rallied four-wide from well off the pace to outrun Brilliant Cut by 1 ½ lengths. The second choice at 7-2, Frosteria, a Godolphin homebred also trained by Baffert, paid $3.60 and $2.80.

Off at 30-1 with Ricky Gonzalez, the Doug O'Neill-trained Brilliant Cut finished 3 ½ lengths clear of Queengol and paid $5.80 to show.

Runner-up Frosteria picked up four Kentucky Oaks qualifying points, while Brilliant Cut got two and Queengol, one.

Baffert, who won last year's Santa Ynez with Bast, entered today's proceedings tied with D. Wayne Lukas with five lifetime wins in the race, which was run for the 70^th time today.

Fractions on the race were 22.53, 45.13 and 1:10.18.

Live racing returns with first post time for a nine-race card on Friday at 12:30 p.m. All of Santa Anita's races are available free of charge at santaanita.com/live and fans can watch and wager via 1^st.com/Bet.

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Mrs. Orb Ends Seconditis With La Verdad Upset; Entered In Keeneland January Sale

Mrs. Orb's persistence paid off with her first victory in more than a year when she made a move from the outside in the stretch and outkicked 2-5 favorite Sharp Starr to win Sunday's $100,000 La Verdad for New York-bred fillies and mares 4-years-old and up at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y.

Mrs. Orb, who was the runner-up in five consecutive stakes appearances, posted a one-length score, marking her first victory in seven starts dating to the Bay Ridge in December 2019.

Owned by Ruggeri Stable, Richard Coburn, Script R Farm and Michael Miceli, the trainer, Mrs. Orb broke last under jockey Dylan Davis but advanced to third as Prairie Fire led the four-horse field through the opening quarter-mile in 24.16 seconds and the half in 47.95 on the muddy and sealed main track.

All four horses stayed in contention out of the turn, with Davis tipping his charge outside of rivals for the stretch run. Mrs. Orb pressed on from the outside at the top of the stretch, dueling Sharp Starr to her immediate inside before gaining separation and completing the seven-furlong course in a final time of 1:24.54.

“She's a hard-trying filly,” Davis said. “I'm just happy that I could get to win with her again. If that's her last race, that's very nice and Mike has done a good job with her throughout her career. I'm just happy to be aboard her and get the job done today.

“I think with the seven-eighths, she had a little more kick to finish to the wire than when she was stretching out,” he added.

Off at the longest shot on the board at 5-1, Mrs. Orb returned $12.20 on a $2 win wager. The 6-year-old Orb mare, bred by Rhapsody Farm, improved her career earnings to $439.520.

“She ran a big race,” Miceli said. “She sat off the pace nicely, dragged Dylan [Davis] up to the leaders and when he asked her to run, she delivered. “She got floated wide, but she dug in nicely. She's tough and she always delivers. I was glad she got over the seconditis.”

The victory, which improved her career ledger to 6-8-3 in 23 starts, could be the finale to a career that started in 2018. Miceli said she is catalogued at Keeneland's Horses of All Ages Sale on January 11.

“That's still the intention. Things can always change, but right now that's still on,” Miceli said.”

Sharp Starr, owned by Barry Schwartz and trained by Horacio DePaz, was three lengths clear of Espresso Shot for second. Prairie Fire was fourth.

“She handled the track fine,” said Sharp Starr jockey Trevor McCarthy. “She sat off the slow pace and was comfortable. She gave me a good kick, but we just got outrun today. She was the big favorite but I have no excuses. The other mare was just a little bit better today.”

Timely Tradition and Sadie Lady scratched.

Live racing resumes Thursday at Aqueduct with an eight-race card. First post is 12:50 p.m. Eastern.

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