Baffert enters 2 in pursuit of 8th Los Alamitos Derby win
Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert will send out the duo of Wynstock and Cornell in search of his eighth consecutive win in the $100,000 Los Alamitos Derby on Saturday.
Restricted to 3-year-olds at 1 1/8 miles, the Derby, which was known as the Swaps Stakes at Hollywood Park from 1974 to 2013, will be run for the 11th time at Los Alamitos.
It will be the eighth of nine races with an approximate post time of 7:35 p.m. EDT.
The race will be the next-to-last leg of the $2 Pick 6, which will be seeded with $10,000 by the Los Alamitos Racing Association.
Wynstock returns to the scene of his 13-1 upset in the Grade 2 Los Alamitos Futurity last Dec. 16.
A son of Solomini and the Flatter mare Timberlea, Wynstock has finished in front of only two horses in three 2024 outings after his gate-to-wire score over eventual Santa Anita Derby winner Stronghold and three others in the Futurity. He’s won twice in seven outings and earned $183,740.
A son of Into Mischief and the Macho Uno mare Banree, Cornell will make his local debut after chasing stablemate Parenting in the Affirmed Stakes on June 9 in Arcadia.
Cornell wound up a distant third in the Affirmed, his first start since he broke his maiden at eight furlongs more than four months prior.
Cornell is 1-for-4 with a bankroll of $59,300.
A dominant winner of the Lazaro S. Barrera last month, Tapalo will try two trainer John Sadler, a combination who won the 2016 Los Alamitos Derby with eventual 2018 Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Accelerate.
A Tapiture ridgling out of the Empire Maker mare Agent Romanoff, Tapalo has won twice in seven starts and banked $137,020. Both of his wins were at seven furlongs and he was fifth after setting the pace in the Santa Anita Derby in his sole try at 1 1/8 miles.
Trained by Antonio Garcia, Curlin’s Kaos will switch to dirt after consecutive appearances on turf, the latest when seventh of 10 in the Snow Chief Stakes vs. fellow state-breds May 25.
A Clubhouse Ride gelding out of the Curlin mare It’s Vengeance, Curlin’s Kaos has won twice in eight races and earned $161,020. Both of his wins have come on grass. He was fourth in his most recent main track effort, checking in eight lengths behind Stronghold in the Santa Anita Derby.
A maiden winner June 1 going one mile over the Tapeta surface at the now-closed Golden Gate Fields, Kamaina Cruiser returns to Southern California for trainer O.J. Jauregui.
A Catalina Cruiser colt out of the Curlin mare Fashion Secret, Kamaina Cruiser is 1-for-3 with earnings of $15,850. He debuted at Del Mar last Sept. 4, finishing fifth of seven in an $80,000 claimer at six furlongs.