Baffert out officially

[JustRalph]

https://www.espn.com/horse-racing/st...ge-upholds-ban

Judge says no

[Inner Dirt]

Baffert one must admit is exceptionally smart and talented, he was given horses to train at a very young age, and has always been successful. You just wonder when pushing the boundaries and then the full on cheating started. Wouldn't it be interesting to know what actually goes on behind barn doors?


I thought it was funny, a small time assistant female trainer whose name I long since forgot who my best friend's wife knew casually got us a stable tour at Santa Anita. Baffert made some crack asking our tour guide how many family members did she have? My friend and I had already booked a trip to the Kentucky Derby in 1999, and this was just after General Challenge had won the Santa Anita Derby. I managed to slip away and find him.



The shed row he was on was void of people, he was a friendly little guy and came to me when I stood by his stall. I thought here I am scratching the probable Kentucky Derby favorite behind the ears and no one is around.
He was in a typical barn stall that obviously someone was living behind, in a cluttered mess the size of a prison cell. I figured he would be in some fancy digs with a body guard, he was living like a $10k claimer.


To my and my wallet's disappointment he never picked up his feet and finished mid pack at 9-2, in the 1999 Derby.

[PalaceOfFortLarned]

He has an absolutely stacked deck this year in Derby contenders.

Will be interesting where they all end up.

[Spalding No!]

Originally Posted by PalaceOfFortLarned

He has an absolutely stacked deck this year in Derby contenders.

Will be interesting where they all end up.

At this point, the only horses from the Baffert barn that are looking like possible Derby contenders are Arabian Knight and maybe the gray Curlin colt that was 2nd in the San Vicente (but he hasn't even raced 2 turns yet). Reincarnate could progress and is working strongly, but perhaps Baffert tipped his hand on what he thinks of the horse when his first 2 career starts were on the turf.

Harlocap has already changed trainers and his other in form colts, Havnameltdown & Speed Boat Beach are pointing for the one turn mile Saudi Derby which suggests they are likely to be kept sprinting in the long run.

Cave Rock is behind the eight ball in training and a barn switch might upset whatever window of opportunity he has to make the Derby. Baffert may want to try to hang on to that one and target the Preakness in his own name (and derail any hope of a Triple Crown winner if he is spiteful).

[Spalding No!]

Originally Posted by Spalding No!

At this point, the only horses from the Baffert barn that are looking like possible Derby contenders are Arabian Knight and maybe the gray Curlin colt that was 2nd in the San Vicente (but he hasn't even raced 2 turns yet). Reincarnate could progress and is working strongly, but perhaps Baffert tipped his hand on what he thinks of the horse when his first 2 career starts were on the turf.

Arabian Knight and Reincarnate are now trained by Tim Yakteen, among others. Reincarnate is entered in the Rebel at Oaklawn this Saturday.

Faustin, the gray horse I mentioned, was not listed among the transferred horses. Not sure if that's an oversight or a sign that he is not on the Derby trail.

Cave Rock was also not mentioned as switching trainers. He worked for the second time today, but it was a very slow work relatively speaking (:49+ for a half mile).

[Michael]

As Per HRN: https://www.horseracingnation.com/ne...ebel_field_123

"Yakteen has picked up three other Baffert 3-year-olds, all of whom he nominated for the Gotham (G2) on March 4: Hejazi, a well-regarded maiden winner; Arabian Lion, fourth in the Robert B. Lewis (G3); and Carmel Road, second in the Los Alamitos Futurity (G2)."

Which leads me to wonder what happened to Fort Bragg. (3rd place in the Los Al futurity - and has rattled off three 6 furlong works in the past 3 weeks)

On a personal level, I just finished catching up on my racing data and the Los Al Futurity could end up being an interesting race. Is it possible "Practical Move" Yakteen's horse that won could be very good? Tall Boy the 4th place runner went to Dubai and won the UAE two thousand guineas at a mile (g3).

Which brings me back to the Rebel... No way i bet into that race. I think Reincarnate is likely head and shoulders over Cox's horse on the rail. Ha, or I can be wrong.

[Spalding No!]

Originally Posted by Spalding No!

Faustin, the gray horse I mentioned, was not listed among the transferred horses. Not sure if that's an oversight or a sign that he is not on the Derby trail.

Cave Rock was also not mentioned as switching trainers. He worked for the second time today, but it was a very slow work relatively speaking (:49+ for a half mile).

Faustin and Cave Rock both officially out of the KY Derby.

Also, a Mott horse called Arthur's Pride. Probably won't race again this year per the blurb.

[CheckMark]

Originally Posted by Michael

As Per HRN: https://www.horseracingnation.com/ne...ebel_field_123

"Yakteen has picked up three other Baffert 3-year-olds, all of whom he nominated for the Gotham (G2) on March 4: Hejazi, a well-regarded maiden winner; Arabian Lion, fourth in the Robert B. Lewis (G3); and Carmel Road, second in the Los Alamitos Futurity (G2)."

Which leads me to wonder what happened to Fort Bragg. (3rd place in the Los Al futurity - and has rattled off three 6 furlong works in the past 3 weeks)

On a personal level, I just finished catching up on my racing data and the Los Al Futurity could end up being an interesting race. Is it possible "Practical Move" Yakteen's horse that won could be very good? Tall Boy the 4th place runner went to Dubai and won the UAE two thousand guineas at a mile (g3).

Which brings me back to the Rebel... No way i bet into that race. I think Reincarnate is likely head and shoulders over Cox's horse on the rail. Ha, or I can be wrong.

Arabian Knight, National Treasure, Fort Bragg and Mr Fisk were moved as well

[classhandicapper]

Now that Baffert's CD suspension is over the all time ultimate horse racing troll would be Baffert not entering horses at CD because he publicly says "I don't think the surface is safe at this time".

It looks like there's some kind of problem there.

[Spalding No!]

Originally Posted by classhandicapper

Now that Baffert's CD suspension is over the all time ultimate horse racing troll would be Baffert not entering horses at CD because he publicly says "I don't think the surface is safe at this time".

It looks like there's some kind of problem there.

He's suspended through the entire 2023 Spring meet. Not sure if CDI is looking for a pretext to extend the suspension given all the court battles. There's still the Justify SA Derby matter lingering in the courts.

Nevertheless it would be an effective--if ill-advised given his own safety record--blow to CDI if he did something like that.

[classhandicapper]

CD just extended the ban for another year.

[burnsy]

The thing is Kentucky will hold a grudge for a long time over this . Possibly for ever. The state is the capital of American Horse World and the Derby is the crown jewel. And they’re not really worried about us, the people on here that are most likely regular customers and love the game . We’ve seen it all and don’t walk away . They know that . It’s the sponsorship and the millions of people that pay attention for that one day . If you tarnish that , I sort of felt they are going to come hard for him and it’s come to fruition. There is way too much on the line that day to tolerate the distraction and hullabaloo that even a minor infraction will cause . These days the media and horse racings critics will take something like that and beat it to death . That’s Public Relations world we live in . Slinging mud and digging dirt is a best seller in this society and with social media it spreads and endures like a Canadian wild fire . This has been going on for years now and look it still gets a lot of attention. The same thing happened to Dutrow when he honestly and kind of smart Alec said what really goes on . It goes beyond punishing you for the deed. You made a very lucrative event look rigged at a National scale. Even if that’s not the whole truth . You done pissed off some very powerful and influential people . The kind of people that will run you down and make you regret the day you were born . I don’t know how much money is attached to the Derby but I understand the importance it is to racing . And these folks are not happy and they have friends in Kentucky all the way to the top . Good luck to him fighting this in court , in that state. Look how every decision goes for him there . He’s toast In Kentucky.

[castaway01]

Originally Posted by burnsy

The thing is Kentucky will hold a grudge for a long time over this . Possibly for ever. The state is the capital of American Horse World and the Derby is the crown jewel. And they’re not really worried about us, the people on here that are most likely regular customers and love the game . We’ve seen it all and don’t walk away . They know that . It’s the sponsorship and the millions of people that pay attention for that one day . If you tarnish that , I sort of felt they are going to come hard for him and it’s come to fruition. There is way too much on the line that day to tolerate the distraction and hullabaloo that even a minor infraction will cause . These days the media and horse racings critics will take something like that and beat it to death . That’s Public Relations world we live in . Slinging mud and digging dirt is a best seller in this society and with social media it spreads and endures like a Canadian wild fire . This has been going on for years now and look it still gets a lot of attention. The same thing happened to Dutrow when he honestly and kind of smart Alec said what really goes on . It goes beyond punishing you for the deed. You made a very lucrative event look rigged at a National scale. Even if that’s not the whole truth . You done pissed off some very powerful and influential people . The kind of people that will run you down and make you regret the day you were born . I don’t know how much money is attached to the Derby but I understand the importance it is to racing . And these folks are not happy and they have friends in Kentucky all the way to the top . Good luck to him fighting this in court , in that state. Look how every decision goes for him there . He’s toast In Kentucky.

Why waste so many words portraying Baffert as a victim? Is there nothing he's ever done that doesn't make him a persecuted vicitm of "mudslinging" in your eyes? Or is it just part of the victimhood culture perpetuated by people like you where no one is ever actually guilty of anything and should never be held accountable?

[f2tornado]

https://youtu.be/EoBob9hiM2s