Baffert Will Saddle Three in Santa Ynez Stakes

Four-time winner of the prestigious sprint, trainer Bob Baffert has once again set his sights on Saturday’s Grade II, $200,000 Santa Ynez Stakes at 6 ½ furlongs on the main track as he trains three of the eight 3-year-old fillies entered. Graded stakes winner Pretty N Cool, as well as Treasuring and One Last Shot will contest the 65th running for the Hall of Fame conditioner.

Sensational when breaking her maiden by four and a half lengths in her first outing over a sloppy track at Del Mar July 19, Pretty N cool went on to finish second in the Grade I Del Mar Debutante to Breeders’ Cup Juvenile filly winner Songbird on Sept. 5. Though fourth in her last outing in her first attempt at a route of ground in the Grade I Starlet at Los Alamitos on Dec. 12, Pretty N Cool will return to a shorter distance Saturday as she seeks her first Grade I win.

Pretty N Cool is owned by Karl Watson, Mike Pegram and Paul Weitman and is 6-3-1-0 overall with earnings of $362,000.

After breaking her maiden by 7 ¼ lengths at Los Alamitos on Sept. 19, Smart Strike’s Treasuring went on to run second in the Desi Arnaz stakes by only half a length at Del Mar on Nov. 15 and most recently, ran fifth in the Grade I Starlet.

Treasuring is owned by Hill ‘n’ Dale Equine Holdings Inc. and Edward McGhee and is 5-1-1-2 overall with earnings of $72,800.

With five starts to her name, One Last Shot has run a mile on turf in three stakes, including the Grade III Jimmy Durante at Del Mar on Nov. 28 in which she ran 11th after having to steady at the quarter pole. The filly by Any Given Saturday who was purchased for $230,000 at the OBS 2-year-old in training sale in April will visit the main track at Santa Anita for the first time and will gain veteran Mike Smith in the saddle.

The complete field for the Santa Ynez, to be run as the 3rd race on a nine-race card Saturday, with jockeys and weights in post position order: My Dynamo, Fernando Perez, 119; Rockantharos, Edwin Maldonado, 119; Decked Out, Kent Desormeaux, 119; Treasuring, Victor Espinoza, 119; One Last Shot, Mike Smith, 119; Code Warrior, Anne Sanguinetti, 119; Pretty N Cool, Martin Garcia, 123; Forever Darling, Rafael Bejarano, 119.

Source: Santa Anita Park