Baffert says Hoppertunity is a mile and a quarter horse
Bob Baffert, who was on the fence at best last week about running Hoppertunity in Saturday’s Grade I Gold Cup at Santa Anita, decided to enter after the five-year-old by Any Given Saturday after the horse worked six furlongs last Saturday in 1:12.20.
Hoppertunity, who has not raced since finishing third in the Dubai World Cup on March 26, drew post position six in the mile and a quarter Gold Cup, a Breeders’ Cup “Win and You’re In” race that offers $500,000 in prize money.
"He worked nicely, and I thought, ‘Well, I want to run him here and then the Cougar at Del Mar (the $100,000 Cougar II Handicap, a Grade III race at 1 ½ miles July 24),” Baffert said Thursday morning.
“He’s a mile and a quarter horse, but even if he doesn’t win, the Gold Cup should set him up for (whatever is next).”
Hoppertunity is winless in three tries at a mile and a quarter, although not disgraced by any means. He missed by a nose behind Hard Aces in last year’s Gold Cup, was a distant fourth to Beholder in the Pacific Classic, and third in the World Cup.
Owned by Mike Pegram, Karl Watson and Paul Weitman, the consistent Hoppertunity has a 5-6-4 record from 19 starts with earnings of $2,872,675.
Peter Eurton, meanwhile, is hopeful Second Summer continues on his winning ways in the Gold Cup. The Summer Bird gelding captured his first stakes win last out, winning the Grade II Californian on May 22, but Eurton feels the Gold Cup presents a far stiffer challenge.
“With Hoppertunity now in,” Eurton said, “it’s turned out to be a very formidable race.”
The field for the Gold Cup, the ninth and final race: Bal a Bali, Flavien Prat, 9-2; Second Summer, Mario Gutierrez, 4-1; Hard Aces, Santiago Gonzalez, 6-1; Lieutenant Colonel, Martin Garcia, 8-1; Win the Space, Gary Stevens, 20-1; Hoppertunity, Mike Smith, 3-1; Melatonin, Joe Talamo, 7-2; and Imperative, Rafael Bejarano, 6-1.
Source: Santa Anita Park