Zedan Racing Stables’ Barnes was the proverbial talking horse before his narrow debut victory, and the $3.2 million yearling purchase raised the decibel level with a spectacular display in Saturday’s $200,000 San Vicente (G2) at Santa Anita.
The 14th San Vicente winner for Bob Baffert, Barnes reminds the Hall of Fame trainer of his 2015 Triple Crown champion American Pharoah. There’s a very good reason for that, since the son of perennial leading sire Into Mischief is out of an American Pharoah mare.
Barnes was the highlight of a four-win day for Baffert, who swept both graded stakes on the card along with high-profile allowance and maiden scores.
San Vicente (G2)
Barnes created such a favorable impression in his early training that he was included as an individual option in Pool 1 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager (KDFW) while still an unnamed juvenile. Listed under his year of birth and dam’s name as “(22) All American Dream,” he closed at 39-1 in that initial pool conducted in advance of the Breeders’ Cup.
Owner Amr Zedan subsequently named him in honor of Baffert’s longtime assistant, Jimmy Barnes, and the Kentucky Derby (G1) signal became even stronger when the colt was dispatched to Churchill Downs for a Nov. 27 maiden. Barnes had to work a tad harder than anticipated to prevail by a head as the 0.34-1 favorite, but that winning debut at 5 1/2 furlongs portended better things.
In the ensuing Pool 2 of the KDFW, Barnes was bet down to individual favoritism as a 13-1 chance. The reaction might have been deemed excessive, considering that he’d yet to face a proper class test.
The San Vicente, albeit a seven-furlong sprint, established his credentials to advance on the Derby trail. Barnes simply overwhelmed two graded stakes veterans – hitherto unbeaten Bob Hope (G3) hero Bullard and multiple Grade 1-placed McKinzie Street.
Sent off as the slight even-money choice from the 11-10 Bullard, Barnes proved far more authoritative in this second start. McKinzie Street flashed speed on the rail, but Barnes was draped alongside through fractions of :22.65 and :45.10. The favorite disposed of McKinzie Street on the far turn, rapidly opened up, and drew off by 5 1/2 lengths in 1:22.15.
Stablemate Romanesque churned on for second, a half-length up on Bullard, to give Baffert the exacta. Bullard, who was in full chase mode turning for home, lost ground in the stretch. Next came Smooth Cruisein and McKinzie Street.
The 2-for-2 Barnes has now bankrolled $189,000, but that pales in comparison to his value.
“He’s really good. I love him,” winning rider Juan Hernandez enthused. “He was aggressive down the backside, but he’s still learning how to run. I like him because around the quarter pole he got off the bridle and was kind of looking around a little bit. But when I corrected him, he came back to me. I was really surprised how he finished today.”
“I knew he would run well,” Baffert said. “I was watching Juan; he knows the horse well, and he said he was a little green. But everyone who has worked him says he has another gear in him. They were all a little green, and the second out is the most important for all these horses.”
The assistant Barnes was relieved that his namesake is turning out well.
“They surprised me, and I was honored,” Barnes said of Zedan’s naming the colt. “I was a little nervous, but it is working out well so far. I had a little bit of a knot in my stomach, but it will only get better after this.”
Baffert emphasized that the equine Barnes just needs to stay healthy.
“You just keep him healthy. When you get a good horse, you have to keep him healthy and then everything flows. I’m happy for Amr (Zedan), he had to really stretch to get this horse, when you have clientele like that, it is everything.
“This horse looked like that as a yearling. He looks like American Pharoah; body-wise he has a lot of American Pharoah in him, and it worked out.”
Bred by Jeff Drown and Don Rachel in Kentucky, Barnes was the second most expensive yearling sold at Fasig-Tipton Saratoga in 2023. Zedan also purchased the $4 million sale topper, a son of Hall of Famers Curlin and Beholder. That yet-unnamed colt has been working at Santa Anita, drilling a half-mile in :48.80 earlier on Saturday.
Barnes’s dam, All American Dream, is herself a half-sister to multiple stakes-winning and Group 2-placed sprinter Wind Fire from the immediate family of Grade 3 scorer Shidabhuti. All American Dream and Wind Fire are out of the A.P. Indy mare A.P. Dream, who is a full sister to Grade 1-winning sire Majestic Warrior. Thus Barnes’s third and fourth dams, respectively, are Grade 1 stars Dream Supreme (by Seeking the Gold) and Spinning Round (by Dixieland Band).
Las Flores (G3)
In the $100,000 Las Flores (G3), Chilean champion Richi upstaged odds-on stablemate Pleasant while topping another Baffert exacta.
The 3-1 second choice in her second stateside appearance, Richi hadn’t raced since finishing runner-up in the June 2 Desert Stormer S. The Practical Joke mare took off the blinkers for this comeback, and she also responded to a sparkling Kazushi Kimura ride. Seizing an inside gap to launch her rally, Richi saved ground while Pleasant took the overland route, and that maneuver contributed to her 1 1/2-length decision.
Pleasant, a 1-5 shot after her close third in the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint (G1), gamely pursued in an isolated second. There was a seven-length chasm back to pacesetter Don’t Bring Crazy and Irish Wahine, separated by a nose in third and fourth, and Wine on Tap was a distant last. Anywho and Pushiness were scratched.
“We already knew those two horses (Pleasant and Don’t Bring Crazy) were going to go,” Kimura recapped. “I was comfortable right behind them. My horse was ready to go through the gap. When it opened up she just exploded.”
Campaigned by Hill ‘n’ Dale Equine Holdings and Stud Vendaval, Richi negotiated six furlongs in 1:09.05 to advance her resume to 11-7-3-0, $178,424. The dark bay won five in a row in her homeland, notably the about 7 1/2-furlong Premio Tanteo de Potrancas (G1) that clinched champion dirt two-year-old filly honors. Richi stayed as far as about 1 1/4 miles when routing fellow sophomore fillies in the 2023 Gran Premio Alberto Solari Magnasco (G1), but sustained her only unplaced effort versus males in the Premio St Leger (G1).
“She’s completely changed since she has been here,” Baffert said. “She was really light, and they ran her really long distances (in Chile). Maybe that was all they had there. Since coming here, I took the blinkers off and she has filled out and changed a lot since August, since Del Mar. We freshened her up. She was training really well, and I think she will settle and she should be able to go long.”
Richi was produced by the multiple Group 2-placed Rich Baby, a Scat Daddy mare who is in turn a half to Group 2 victor Rich Court and Rich Lady, both Group 1-placed in their native Chile.
Rodriguez and Mirahmadi
Earlier in the second race, Baffert sent out promising sophomore Rodriguez to break his maiden in a seven-length romp over Mage and Dornoch’s half-brother, Baeza. In the seventh race, his four-year-old Mirahmadi floored Flightline’s half-brother Eagles Flight in an allowance.
Both Rodriguez and Mirahmadi race for slightly different ownership consortiums led by SF Racing, Starlight Racing, and Madaket Stables. Hernandez was aboard both in a five-win day, including one winner apiece for Leonard Powell and Carla Gaines.
Rodriguez is from the first crop of Authentic, Baffert’s 2020 Kentucky Derby winner and Horse of the Year. Runner-up to Romanesque in his Nov. 23 premiere at Del Mar, Rodriguez relished the stretch-out and went wire-to-wire as the 1-2 favorite. His time for the mile, 1:35.91, was faster than older stablemate Mirahmadi’s 1:36.15.
Mirahmadi, yet another by Into Mischief like Barnes and Authentic, has taken forever to come around, but he at last is giving his track announcer namesake reason to cheer. The 2.40-1 second choice dictated the pace from 4-5 favorite Eagles Flight, who was making his first start since a stellar debut back in May. Eagles Flight raced in second at every call and ultimately tired to cross the wire 4 1/2 lengths adrift.
“It’s nice to have nice horses like this,” Baffert said to sum up the day. “We are blessed to have the clientele. Sometimes it just works out.
“It was a great day starting out with Rodriguez, the way he won going long, and then Barnes, watching him perform like that. And Mirahmadi, finally. And we have these two fillies (Las Flores winner Richi and runner up Pleasant). Good fillies. The Chilean filly, she just cut the corner there and won the race. But you know it is great to have days like this.”
Leave a Reply