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Country Grammer Makes West Coast Debut for Baffert

After bringing $110,000 from WinStar Farm at the Keeneland January dispersal of the late Paul Pompa, Jr., Country Grammer (Tonalist) makes his first start for Bob Baffert in Saturday's GII Californian S. at Santa Anita.

Previously trained by Chad Brown, Country Grammer narrowly captured last summer's GIII Peter Pan S. at Saratoga with subsequent G1 Dubai World Cup winner and 'TDN Rising Star' Mystic Guide (Ghostzapper) back in third. The $450,000 OBS April 2-year-old, last seen finishing a well-beaten fifth in the GI Runhappy Travers S. Aug. 8, worked five furlongs in :59 1/5 (3/64) for this at Santa Anita Apr. 11.

Baffert will also saddle the lightly raced Magic On Tap (Tapit), a smart optional claiming winner off a lengthy layoff in his 5-year-old debut Mar. 28.

The field of five also features 8-5 morning-line favorite Independence Hall (Constitution), who has held his own versus much tougher in his last two. He outran 27-1 odds to finish a good third in the GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational S. at Gulfstream Jan. 23, then was a close fourth in the GI Santa Anita H. Mar. 6.

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Violence Colt Swiftest at OBS Thursday

A colt by Violence (hip 641) became the seventh horse of the week to work in under :10 seconds when he secured the furlong bullet time of :9 4/5 during Thursday's fourth session of the under-tack show ahead of next week's Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training. The bay colt is consigned to the Spring sale by Raul Reyes's King's Equine as agent for his breeder, Aaron and Marie Jones LLC.

The colt will be making his second trip through the sales ring next week in Ocala after RNA'ing for $27,000 at last year's Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

“We weren't getting enough for him as a yearling, we didn't think,” explained the Jones's longtime advisor Frank Taylor. “So Mrs. Jones decided to take him to the 2-year-old sale.”

Taylor continued, “Mrs. Jones usually has about 10 foals a year and usually there is one or two that we don't get enough for and we'll send to Raul to get ready for the 2-year-old sales.”

The colt is out of C'Mon Sister (Successful Appeal), who is a half-sister to multiple Grade I winner Iotapa (Afleet Alex).

“He's a very scopey, two-turn looking horse,” Taylor said. “He's from a heck of a family, there are a lot of good horses in that family.”

Of the colt's bullet breeze, Taylor said, “He's been training great all winter and Raul thought he was going to do really good. So we weren't overly surprised, but :9 4/5 is awful good. He had an amazing breeze. We are obviously very happy it and now we're hoping to have some luck in the ring. Hopefully he'll continue on to be a top horse.”

A colt by Pioneerof the Nile (hip 786) turned in Thursday's fastest quarter-mile breeze, covering the distance in :20 4/5 for consignor Eddie Woods. The dark bay colt is out of Fancy Day (Ire) (Shamardal), who is a daughter of graded winner Tizdubai (Cee's Tizzy). Tizdubai is a full-sister to champion Tiznow.

Bred by WinStar Farm, the juvenile RNA'd for $145,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale.

The under-tack show continues through Saturday, with each session beginning at 8 a.m. The Spring sale will be held next Tuesday through Friday and bidding begins each day at 10:30 a.m.

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Surgery for Life is Good

WinStar Farm and CHC's Life is Good (Into Mischief) has officially been taken out of consideration for the GI Kentucky Derby, trainer Bob Baffert confirmed on Los Angeles radio Sunday morning.

“He couldn't have worked more beautifully,” Baffert told Mike Willman on Thoroughbred LA radio. “It was a great, nice cruising work like he usually does. He's so light on his feet. He came back, the rider said he felt great…Then all of a sudden later in the morning, you could tell something was bothering him in the hind leg. He took a couple funny steps, so that's when we realized he had done something to his hind leg. He'll be fine, he'll be back. It wasn't anything serious, but it's enough that he'll need some time off.”

Later Sunday, XBTV's Millie Ball quoted Baffert in a tweet, “He has a very small chip in his left hind ankle. Dr. [Larry] Bramlage will do the surgery on Friday in Kentucky at Rood & Riddle.”

Life is Good is unbeaten in three starts, most recently romping by eight lengths in the Mar. 6 GII San Felipe S.

With Life Is Good out of the GI Runhappy Santa Anita Derby, Baffert said he's planning on running San Felipe S. runner-up Medina Spirit (Protonico) and possibly Defunded (Dialed In), a Mar. 6 maiden winner at Santa Anita in the Apr. 3 race.

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Life Is Good Exits Breeze ‘A Little Off Behind,’ To Miss Santa Anita Derby

The unbeaten Into Mischief colt Life Is Good will not be entered in the Grade 1 Runhappy Santa Anita Derby on April 3 after coming out of a six-furlong breeze on Saturday morning “a little off behind,” according to his trainer, Bob Baffert.

“It's nothing obvious but he cooled off a little behind,” said Baffert. “So he's going to miss the Santa Anita Derby and we've got to do some tests on him. The timing is not good.”

Baffert does not believe the setback will be career ending.

“He would show a little something while cooling out, but then he would walk fine,” he said. “They'll do a scan to see what they can find.”

Life Is Good worked alone at about 9 a.m. PT, going six furlongs in 1:11.40 and galloping out well past the seven-eighths pole. Santa Anita officials lit up the video screen in the field at Baffert's request after jockey Mike Smith said the colt was bothered by the screen when he last ran in the G2 San Felipe on March 6, winning by eight lengths but drifting in and out in the stretch.

“His work was unbelievable,” Baffert said. “He went perfectly straight. They had the screen on and he went around there like nothing. He was good. Then, all of a sudden, you get an uppercut like this. That's why you can't get ahead of yourself in this game.”

Workout video courtesy of XBTV.com.

Bred in Kentucky by Gary and Mary West, Life Is Good races for WinStar Farm and CHC Inc., which purchased the colt for $525,000 at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale. He broke his maiden at Del Mar in November, then added the G3 Sham Stakes at Santa Anita on Jan. 2 before his victory in the San Felipe.

Life Is Good was made the 2-1 favorite in the most recent Kentucky Derby Future Wager pool.

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