Honor A. P. surges past Baffert’s Authentic to win Santa Anita Derby
Honor A. P. put himself square in the middle of the Kentucky Derby picture with an easy win in the Grade 1, $400,000 Santa Anita Derby on Saturday in Arcadia, Calif.
The 3-year-old ridgling, who was second in the San Felipe Stakes, swept past heavily favored Authentic with a strong move into the stretch and won by 2¾ lengths. The West Coast’s major prep for the Kentucky Derby was run without spectators or media at Santa Anita because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Trainer John Shirreffs has been high on Honor A.P. despite having won only one of his previous three starts. He proved that the added distance to 1 1/8 miles was just what the horse needed. Mike Smith, who now has three straight Santa Anita Derby victories, has been the jockey on all four of Honor A. P.’s races.
“He ran great, it was a super effort,” Shirreffs said. “… We were happy with the way Honor A. P. was training for the race. We knew that he has tactical speed and Mike can put him pretty much where he wants. On the backside, we hoped he would get comfortable and to have a nice kick in the end, and it all worked out well.”
Honor A. P. paid $6.40, $2.60 and $2.20. Authentic was second and returned $2.20 and $2.10, and Rushie was another 1 1/4 lengths back in third and paid $3.40 to show. The rest of the order of finish: Anneau d’Or, Shooters Shoot, Friar’s Road and Azul Coast.
Authentic’s loss was the latest in a difficult two weeks for trainer Bob Baffert. On Saturday, Baffert also learned that Charlatan, winner of one of the two divisions of the Arkansas Derby, was ruled out of the Sept. 5 Kentucky Derby when a filling was discovered in a front ankle. The news was first reported by the Paulick Report. The injury is not career ending and the colt might be pointed to the Preakness Stakes on Oct. 3.
Charlatan was the subject of an alleged positive test for an overage of lidocaine, a legal analgesic. A second test has been sent to a different laboratory for verification. If the results are negative, there will be no case. If the positive is confirmed, an investigation will be conducted with any likely punishment to affect only the trainer, not the horse.
Baffert also lost Nadal, who was the top ranked 3-year-old in the Kentucky Derby poll, on May 28 when he suffered a fracture in his left front leg after a workout. It was repaired the same day, and the horse was retired and will be sent to stud.
One of Baffert’s greatest horses, Arrogate, was euthanized Tuesday after an undiagnosed neurological injury. He was only 7.
As for Honor A. P., it’s too early to determine what his next race will be, although there is a Derby prep race at Del Mar on Aug. 1, the Shared Belief Stakes. Shirreffs has been known to keep his horses close to home if there are suitable races.
“It’s up to him whether we run him again before the big dance,” Shirreffs said. “We have to see how the horse comes out and how he feels, but you’d always prefer to run. Running is probably the best option rather than training up to it, but we’ll wait and see how it all happens.”
Saturday’s victory was worth 100 qualifying points for Honor A. P., which will be enough to allow him to make the 20-horse starting field of the Kentucky Derby.
▪ Heavily-favored Swiss Skydiver went to the early lead and cruised to a four-length victory in Saturday’s Grade 2, $200,000 Santa Anita Oaks. Trained by Ken McPeek and ridden by Smith, the Kentucky-bred daughter of Daredevil covered the mile and one sixteenth in 1:43.20.
“She’s good, just keeps getting better too,” McPeek said. “I was reluctant to bring her (from Churchill Downs), we thought maybe we ought to wait for the Ashland with a short field and everything. She’s easy to be around, she loves to run.”
Swiss Skydiver picked up 100 Kentucky Oaks qualifying points, assuring her of a berth in the Kentucky Oaks on Sept. 4.
▪ In the $300,000 Hollywood Gold Cup, 6-5 favorite Improbable won by 3 1/4 lengths over Higher Power.
Ridden by Drayden Van Dyke and trained by Baffert, Improbable ran 1 1/4 miles in 2:01.69 and paid $4.60, $3 and $2.40.
Higher Power returned $4 and $3. Tenfold was another 4 1/2 lengths back in third and paid $4 to show.
“I got the consolation prize,” joked Baffert, who won his fourth Gold Cup. “This horse has been training so well. Drayden had him in the perfect spot and he had plenty left for the run home. This horse is only going to get better.”
Churchill Downs
Volatile staked a claim to being one of America’s top sprinters while clocking 6 furlongs in 1:07.57 — two one-hundredths of a second off the 13-year-old track record — with an eight-length victory over Honest Mischief in the Aristides at Churchill Downs on Saturday.
Volatile, with Ricardo Santana Jr. aboard, eclipsed Kelly’s Landing’s 2005 stakes record of 1:07.59 but just missed Indian Chant’s track record of 1:07.55 set on July 8, 2007.
“This horse has incredible talent,” Santana said. “To go that fast as he did today shows he is extremely talented. He did that so easily.”
The victory put trainer Steve Asmussen one win back of Dale Romans, 737-736, for the all-time win milestone by a trainer at Churchill Downs. It was Asmussen’s record fourth Aristides win after previously landing victories with Mountain General (2003), Riley Tucker (2010) and Rothko (2012).
“He is a tremendous talent,” Asmussen said. “His family means a lot to me with his second dam Lady Tak, who we trained and won the Test. We’re hoping this horse shows the same kind of affinity toward races like that as she did. It wasn’t a graded stakes but it was still a stakes win.”
Volatile paid $3, $2.40 and $2.10 as the odds-on 3-2 favorite. Honest Mischief, ridden by Tyler Gaffalione, paid $3.60 and $2.40. Manny Wah closed to finish three-quarters of a length back of the runner-up under Corey Lanerie and paid $2.60 to show. Seven Nation Army, Heartwood and Bobby’s Wicked One completed the order of finish.
▪ Four Graces, a half-sister to multiple graded stakes winner McCraken, led every step of the way and turned back a challenge from Edgeway in the stretch to win Saturday’s Grade 3, $100,000 Dogwood by 2½ lengths at Churchill Downs.
Ridden by Julien Leparoux and trained by Ian Wilkes, Four Graces ran 7 furlongs over a fast track in 1:22.28, which was the second-fastest Dogwood in history, only behind eventual Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint winner Covfefe’s 1:20.51 last September.
Four Graces, who made her stakes debut, banked $60,140 and 20 points on the Road to the Kentucky Oaks.
Sent off as the 2-1 second betting choice, Four Graces paid $6.60, $3.20 and $2.60. Edgeway, ridden by Tyler Baze, returned $3 and $2.80. Bayerness, with Florent Geroux up, was another 5¾ lengths back of the runner-up in third and paid $4.60 to show.
Lady Glamour, Ain’t No Elmers, Clivetty, Magic Dance and Naughty Dance completed the order of finish.
Belmont Park
Grade 1 winner Newspaperofrecord made an impressive return in Saturday’s Grade 3, $100,000 Intercontinental at Belmont Park in New York. Trained by Chad Brown, the 4-year-old Lope de Vega bay arrived at the 7-furlong race for fillies and mares over the Widener turf course off an 11-month layoff. She last raced in the Grade 1 Belmont Oaks Invitational, where she was a distant ninth as the favorite.
Newspaperofrecord glided home to victory by four lengths to the better of Regal Glory. Last year’s Intercontinental winner, Significant Form, finished third, 2¾ lengths in front of Viadera, giving Brown the superfecta.
Newspaperofrecord returned $4.70 for the victory.
▪ Multiple Grade 1 winner Code of Honor, trained by Shug McGaughey, rallied from off the pace to win his seasonal debut in Saturday’s Grade 3, $100,000 Westchester at Belmont Park.
The Kentucky homebred, a 4-year-old son of Noble Mission, won four of eight starts last season, including the Grade 1 Runhappy Travers and Grade 1 Jockey Club Gold Cup when elevated to victory over Vino Rosso.
“He showed up big today,” jockey John Velazquez said of Code of Honor, the 6-5 favorite. “I didn’t want to ask too much of my horse, but he did what he needed to win today. I just wanted to hand ride him and he was good enough to get there.
“He’s stronger. He looks a lot stronger,” Velazquez added. “He grew up and so hopefully we can have a good year.”
▪ Instilled Regard overtook Somelikeithotbrown at the top of the stretch and outlasted stablemate Devamani by a neck to lead an exacta for Brown in the Grade 2, $150,000 Fort Marcy for 4-year-olds and up on Saturday at Belmont Park.
This story was originally published June 6, 2020 at 8:45 PM.