Muth cuts back, gives Baffert 13th win in San Vicente Stakes
Cutting
back in distance following a pair of Grade 1 stakes at 1 1/16 miles, Bob
Baffert-trained Muth settled nicely in the early going and displayed his ample
class through the lane as he outran talented stablemate Pilot Commander by 2 3/4
lengths to take Saturday’s Grade 2, $200,000 San Vicente Stakes at Santa Anita.
Owned by Zedan Racing Stables and ridden by Juan Hernández, Muth got seven
furlongs in 1:23.01 after early fractions of 22.88, 45.27 and 1:09.76. Baffert got
his record 13th win in the San Vicente, an important steppingstone to the Santa
Anita Derby (G1) on April 6.
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“I’m proud of both of them,” Baffert said. “(Amr Zedan), he gives us all this ammo to work with, so it makes it a lot easier on me. He is an incredible guy, and he loves the sport, he has a passion for it, and that’s the number one thing. He handles the wins and the losses the same way, and he let me name this horse after my good friend Aaron Muth, so it is fun for him.”
After the race, Circa Sports in Las Vegas shortened Muth from 40-1 to 30-1 in its futures pool for Kentucky Derby 2024.
Breaking sharply from post position 3 in a field of six, Muth settled into a
comfortable trip up the backside, cruising in third, about 1 1/2 lengths behind
pacesetter Slider and a half-length off Pilot Commander heading to the three-furlong
marker.
Three deep and on terms with Pilot Commander as Slider began to drop back a bit
at the rail turning for home, Muth lengthened his considerable stride. With a
couple reminders from Hernández, Muth waltzed to his second graded-stakes
victory while providing his rider with a third San Vicente win in a row.
“This horse has a lot of class,” Hernández said. “He’s learning a lot. I
think he finally learned to run by himself, because he broke really quick, and
he saw the other two horses in front of me, and he just relaxed really well
behind him.”
Most recently second to presumptive juvenile male champion Fierceness in the Breeders’
Cup Juvenile at Santa Anita on Nov. 3, Muth was off at 2-5 and paid $2.80,
$2.10 and $2.10.
By Good Magic out of the Uncle Mo mare Hoppa, Muth sold for $2 million at the
Ocala breeders March 2-year-olds-in-training sale. With the winner’s share Saturday
of $120,000, he increased his earnings to $716,600. A winner of the American
Pharoah (G1) two starts back Oct. 7, Muth is 5: 3-2-0.
A first-out maiden winner sprinting six furlongs Nov. 11 at Del Mar, Pilot
Commander was ridden for the first time by Flavien Prat. He kept to his task
late to deny a game Slider second money by a head. Off as the second
choice at 5-2, Pilot Commander paid $2.80 and $2.10.
“I thought Muth was going to be up there early like he was at Del Mar, but (Pilot Commander) was quicker away from there,” Baffert said. “I thought he would be stalking, but Juan, he just took back and rode Muth with a lot of confidence. He knows his horse really well. I’m just glad it worked out. Pilot Commander, he’s only had one race, and he still ran a bang-up race, and I think he is going to get better as he goes along.”
Slider, pressed the entire trip by Pilot Commander to his immediate outside, showed a lot of heart in battling back late under Joel Rosario. Off at 8-1, he returned $2.40 to show.