Once again Bob Baffert will hold the strongest hand in the Grade 1 Los Alamitos Futurity, as the veteran trainer will saddle the top two betting choices among a field of 7 December 19 at Los Alamitos in the mile and one sixteenth event for two year-olds.
Baffert, who traditionally excels with juvenile runners, won the 2014 Los Alamitos Futurity as Dortmund managed to stay unbeaten, winning a thrilling photo finish. This year, Baffert has Mor Spirit (8/5) and Toews On Ice (7/5) in what could very well come down to a match race between stablemates. Mor Spirit ran a fine second in the November 28 Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club at Churchill Downs while racing away from Santa Anita for the first time and encountering a sloppy track. The son of Eskendereya was beaten just a length and three quarters by the well-regarded, and more experienced Airoforce who finished second in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf. Mor Spirit has one victory in three starts.
Toews on Ice is the more experienced of the Baffert pair, and rides a three-race win streak into the Futurity including the Grade 3 Bob Hope November 14 at Del Mar in his last outing. With three wins in five starts the son of Archarcharch is flourishing, but will need to prove himself while racing around two turns for the first time in his career.
Frank Conversation (8/1) is an interesting item for trainer Doug O’Neill while switching from turf to dirt. The son of Quality Road is bred well from both surfaces and has shown improvement in his last two starts.
Royal Ascot is one of the greatest race meets in the world, and there is no race as historic or exciting during the meet than the Gold Cup (G1)! First run in 1807, it is one of the premier races for stayers in the world. The two-and-a-half-mile turf race offers a rich £500,000 purse, and it drew ten of the world’s best long-distance horses.
The Prince of Wales’s Stakes is one of the most important races of the Royal Ascot meeting! With a £1 million purse, the race is one of the richest of the entire week, and it also offers its winner a guaranteed berth in the Breeders’ Cup Turf.
The 2022 Belmont Stakes, which will be run on Saturday, June 11, drew an exciting field of eight to compete for $1.5 million and a place in horse racing immortality. Several familiar New York horses will line up for the race, including Wood Memorial (G2) winner Mo Donegal and Peter Pan (G3) winner We the People.
The best horses in the older dirt male division line up for the $3 million Pegasus World Cup on Saturday, January 29 at Gulfstream Park! The race is at a mile and an eighth on the main track, an intermediate distance that draws both Classic runners and milers alike. Nine horses have passed the entry box, and are ready for a thrilling renewal of the winter’s biggest race!
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