New Kentucky Derby favorite Barnes rolls in San Vicente
Highly regarded 3-year-old Barnes, who was making just his second start and his first in a stakes race, lived up to the hype Saturday when he rolled to a dominant victory for trainer Bob Baffert in Saturday’s Grade 2, $200,000 San Vicente Stakes going seven furlongs at Santa Anita.
The victory led Caesars Sportsbook in Nevada to make Barnes its new 15-1 futures favorite for Kentucky Derby 2025.
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The Into Mischief colt gave Baffert a third consecutive win and 14th overall in the San Vicente, which dates to Santa Anita’s first season 90 years ago.
With Juan Hernández aboard, Barnes dueled on the lead with McKinzie Street (12-1) through fractions of 22.65 and 45.10 seconds for the opening half-mile. Barnes spurted away from McKinzie Street midway through the second turn and continued to race strongly through the stretch to win easily by 5 1/2 lengths.
“He’s really good. I love him,” said Hernández, who rode Barnes for the first time in a race. “He was aggressive down the backside, but he’s still learning how to run. I like him, because around the quarter pole, he got off the bridle and was kind of looking around a little bit. But when I corrected him, he came back to me. I was really surprised how he finished today.”
Romanesque (7-1), also trained by Baffert, got up with jockey Mike Smith to place second by a half-length over Bullard (1-1). Smooth Cruisein (33-1) and McKinzie Street completed the order of finish.
Barnes went off as the slight even-money favorite. He had $307 more of the $308,404 in the win pool than Bullard, who was the morning-line favorite. Barnes, a strapping son of Into Mischief, won with a time of 1:22.15.
“I knew he would run well,” Baffert said. “I was watching Juan. He knows the horse well, and he said he was a little green. But everyone who has worked him says he has another gear. They are all a little green. The second out is the most important for all these horses.”
In his debut going 5 1/2 furlongs at Churchill Downs on Nov. 27, Barnes got up to win by a head. As a yearling he was bought at auction for $3.2 million by owner Amr Zedan.
“I’m happy for Amr. He had to really stretch to get this horse,” Baffert said. “When you have clientele like that, it is everything.”
Baffert said Barnes reminded him of 2015 Triple Crown champion American Pharoah, who he also trained.
“Body-wise he has a lot of American Pharoah in him,” Baffert said.
Barnes is named after Baffert’s longtime assistant Jimmy Barnes.
“They surprised me, and I was honored,” Barnes said of having an equine namesake. “I was a little nervous, but it is working out well so far. I had a little bit of a knot in my stomach, but it will only get better after this.”
Barnes paid $4.00, $2.80 and $2.10. Romanesque returned $5.20 and $2.40. Bullard, ridden by Umberto Rispoli for trainer Michael McCarthy, paid $2.10.