Euroears upsets Palos Verdes in first start for Baffert

Euroears ran away with the Palos Verdes (Benoit Photos) James & Marilyn Helzer’s EUROEARS (Langfuhr) sprinted to the fore when the gates opened in Saturday’s $150,000 Palos Verdes S. (G2) and after ripping off opening spits in :21 2/5 and :43 2/5, the seven-year-old horse carried his momentum through the stretch to an easy victory, scoring by 2 1/4 lengths in his first start for Bob Baffert. Unraced since a 13th-placed finish in the grassy Firecracker H. (G2) last July, the chestnut recorded his first graded stakes win when stopping the teletimer over the fast Santa Anita track in 1:07 1/5 with Mike Smith. He paid $20, $9.80 and $4.20 as the 9-1 third choice among six rivals. Baffert is enjoying a fantastic meet on the new dirt track at Santa Anita, capturing 18-of-41 starts (44 percent win) entering Saturday’s program, and the Hall of Fame conditioner garnered his fifth stakes tally in the 19th-day of the winter/spring session with Euroears, who was ready for a career-best following a lengthy layoff.

“I have to give Bob (Baffert) a lot of the credit,” Smith said. “He told me
to take it to them and put him on the lead. Fortunately I broke well, but I had
to kind of put him there. Once I got him going he was just cruising. He’s a
great, great, classy horse. I knew what this horse was capable of because he has
so much back class. I knew if I could get a clear lead, and at some point give
him a breather, then go again, he would run well, and it worked.”

“I wanted to be on the lead, so I just told Mike (Smith) to put him on the
lead because he likes to run that way,” Baffert explained. “I remember way back
when, he was always a really fast horse. He went nine and change from the gate
here one morning (January 12). Mike did a good job, got him away from there, and
got the lead.”

Multiple Grade 1 winner Smiling Tiger (Hold That Tiger), the 2-5 favorite off
his nose second in the December 26 Malibu S. (G1), could not keep up with the
pacesetter down the backstretch and lacked a rally after turning for home, but
he managed to save show by a nose. Captain Cherokee (Sir Cherokee) chased the
winner in second throughout and wound up 2 1/2 lengths clear of the heavy
favorite on the finish line, returning $16.40 and $6.40 as the 28-1 longest
shot. Smiling Tiger gave back $2.10 after edging fourth-placer Ventana (Toccet).
Hunch (Lion Heart) and Gato Go Win (City Place) came next under the wire, and
Don Tito (Trippi) was scratched.

The $1 exotics totaled $115.20 (exacta), $281.80 (trifecta) and $844.20
(2-4-1-3 superfecta).

Formerly based in the Midwest, Euroears compiled three stakes wins in 2008 —
the Duncan F. Kenner S., Colonel Power and F.W. Gaudin Memorial — and added the
Thanksgiving H. to his ledger in 2009. He was winless in five starts last year,
but placed in the Texas Mile (G3) and Lone Star Park H. (G3) as well as the
Duncan Kenner. With Saturday’s $90,000 paycheck, he’s now earned $491,563 from a
17-9-1-2 line.

Bred in Kentucky by Gary and Bonnie Peterson, Euroears is out of the Grade
3-winning Heff mare Unky and Ally and is a full sibling to the juvenile filly
Hall Mighty Ruler and a half to a yearling colt by Will He Shine. He RNA’ed for
$22,000 at the 2004 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky November sale.