Bet down to 6-5 favoritism, Zedan Racing Stables Inc.'s Medina Spirit went to the front at the start, controlled the pace and romped to a daylight victory under Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez in the Grade 1, $300,000 Awesome Again Stakes on Saturday at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif.
Stilleto Boy, at 50-1 the longest shot in the field of eight, finished second, followed by Express Train in third, Tripoli (5-2 second choice) in fourth and Tizamagician in fifth.
Medina Spirit and Stilleto Boy were the only two 3-year-olds in the race taking on older horses. Medina Spirit paid $4.60 for the win and combined with Stilleto Boy to pay $83.30 on a $1 exacta.
Medina Spirit covered the 1 1/8 miles on a fast track in 1:49.67 after recording sectional times of :23.39, :47.72, 1:11.76 and 1:37.05.
The Awesome Again is a Win and You're In Challenge Series race for the Breeders' Cup Classic, to be contested at Del Mar on Nov. 6. The winner gets an automatic fees-paid berth in the Classic, but Medina Spirit's participation is uncertain because trainer Bob Baffert's participation in the Breeders' Cup World Championship is being reviewed by the organization's board of directors in the wake of five medication violations over a one-year period, culminating with a failed drug test by Medina Spirit after his first-place finish in the G1 Kentucky Derby on May 1.
Medina Spirit's post-race sample from the Derby tested positive for betamethasone, a corticosteroid that Baffert claims was administered to the horse via an ointment used to treat a rash after the Protonico colt's second-place finish in the G1 Santa Anita Derby on April 3. While the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission has yet to conduct a hearing on the matter, Churchill Downs officials have notified Baffert that he is suspended from participating at any of their tracks through the end of the 2023 spring meeting. The New York Racing Association also has scheduled a hearing in an attempt to deny Baffert's participation at its tracks.
Medina Spirit, bred in Florida by Gail Rice, sold for just $1,000 as a yearling at the OBS Winter Mixed Sale, then brought $35,000 at the OBS July 2-year-old sale. The Awesome Again was his fifth career victory from nine starts (though he may be disqualified from his Kentucky Derby win), including the G3 Robert B. Lewis Stakes at Santa Anita in January and the listed Shared Belief Stakes at Del Mar on Aug. 29. He ran third behind Rombauer in the G1 Preakness.
The Awesome Again was inaugurated in 1982 as the Goodwood Handicap when the Oak Tree Racing Association conducted a fall meet at Santa Anita. It has been won by such older runners as Lord At War (twice), Ferdinand, Silver Charm, Plealsantly Perfect, Lava Man, Game On Dude (twice), Mucho Macho Man, California Chrome and Accelerate. Three-year-old winners include Shared Belief and Tiznow.
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