Arrogate (Unbridled's Song) exited his authoritative win in Saturday's GI Pegasus World Cup in fine shape and began his trek west back to trainer Bob Baffert's California base Sunday morning.
“I got here around 5:30. We didn't have to nudge him or wake him up. He was already up,” Baffert assistant Jimmy Barnes said. “This is him. He recovers quickly. He's just a freak. He came out of the race in excellent shape. He cooled out quick last night. It was just an awesome race.”
Arrogate walked the shedrow at Gulfstream before boarding a Brook Ledge van at 8:45 a.m. He headed to Palm Beach International Airport for a Tex Sutton flight that will take him back to California, where they are scheduled to land at 6:30 p.m. EST.
“It's hard to tell, but I imagine he knows how good he is. He acts like he does,” Barnes said. “It was exciting, the world's largest purse. We want to be involved in that and we wanted to win that, so it was fun. It was a lot of fun. It was a great day.”
Barnes wouldn't speculate where Arrogate might start next.
“I know the GI Breeders' Cup Classic is in the plans again this year, but we just want to keep him healthy. That's the main thing,” Barnes said. “I'm pretty down to earth and just stay close to the horse, make sure he stays healthy and sound and just move on to the next race, wherever that may be.”
Also on Sunday's westward Tex Sutton flight was champion California Chrome (Lucky Pulpit), who got off in a stopover in Lexington where he will begin his stud career at Taylor Made.
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