Juan Hernandez

After a delayed start last December, Santa Anita's 2025-26 meet concluded on Monday, June 15, the first time the meet has ended on a Monday in its 91-year history. The on-track crowd totaled over 540,000 fans for the season and averaged more than 7,000 per day over the 77-day season, which included both the Classic and Hollywood meets. All sources handle totaled $708,112,231, with an average daily handle of $9,196,263. It marked the sixth consecutive year daily handle has exceeded $9 million for the Winter-Spring season. "Santa Anita is one...

6th-SA, 65K, Msw, 3-5yo, f, 6f, 6:30 p.m. 2024 OBS April Sales topper MOONA LISA (Tiz the Law) makes her belated debut Sunday over two years after bringing $1.9 million from Michael Lund Peterson and trainer Bob Baffert. The now 4-year-old, one of two Baffert starters in the field, gets Juan Hernandez aboard and enters off a steady work tab including a two-back bullet from the gate May 17 (five furlongs in :59 1/5 {1/51}). TJCIS PPS

Jockey Juan Hernandez reached a notable milestone on Sunday when earning career win No. 3,000 at Santa Anita Park. Hernandez accomplished the feat in Sunday's ninth and final race when guiding Syntax ($8.80) to victory in a starter allowance going one mile on turf. Hernandez and the Librado Barocio-trained filly won by a half-length. "I was thinking about if before the race, that it would be nice to do it here," Hernandez said. "Then I just rode my race. After the wire when I heard Frank Mirahmadi say that is...

Ruiva, a debuting homebred for Three Chimneys Farm, picked up a never-in-doubt win over a sloppy Churchill Downs track Wednesday. Catching a flyer from the outside of the gate, the 2-1 second choice had a clear advantage by the time most of the field was just getting into stride. Only Barometric (Frosted) made an attempt to run with her and that pair quickly opened up several lengths by the time Ruiva hit the far turn. Barometric made one last run at her nearing the furlong pole but this Wesley Ward-trainee...

Meaning (f, 3, Gun Runner--Figure of Speech, by Into Mischief), a Bridlewood Farm and Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners colorbearer, proved her win over Eclipse champion 2-year-old filly Super Corredora (Gun Runner) in the Las Virgenes Stakes Feb. 8 was no fluke and asserted herself as California's division leader with a resounding victory in the GII Santa Anita Oaks Saturday. The Santa Anita Oaks awards 100-50-25-15-10 qualifying points toward the May 1 GI Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs. The complexion of Saturday's race changed shortly out of the gate when GIII Santa...

The long run of preps for the GI Kentucky Oaks will come to a close this weekend as the last of the 3-year-old filly preps will be run. All eyes will be on Keeneland Friday as the track will host the only Grade I prep for the Oaks, the GI Ashland Stakes. The favorite will be Zany (American Pharoah), who hasn't been out since the Feb. 7 Suncoast Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs. Should she win, she will most likely be the favorite come May 1 at Churchill Downs. So,...

She rolled into the lane with all the momentum and Forced Entry (Charlatan) carried it right to her first black-type win in the GIII Santa Ysabel Stakes. Debuted Jan. 11 at this venue in a six-furlong turf maiden, she faded to last after having to fight every step of the way, but it was a much different result when she resurfaced Feb. 1 on this main track. Out to set the pace again, they were never able to reel her back in, and Forced Entry cantered home to win easily...

Trainer Bob Baffert had a two-strong chance to earn a record-extending 10th win in Saturday's GII San Felipe Stakes. His best shot looked to be with the 4-5 favorite and 'TDN Rising Star' Brant (Gun Runner) who was making his first start back since running third to Ted Noffey (Into Mischief) in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Del Mar last November. But it was his other runner, 8-1 shot and $2.4-million Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale graduate Potente (Into Mischief) who secured the win and 50 Kentucky Derby points for the...

Last year's GI Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint winner Splendora (Audible) picked up her second Grade I Saturday, easily taking down the GI B. Wayne Hughes Beholder Mile at Santa Anita for Bob Baffert. Saturday's win, the mare's fifth straight in a streak that began back at Del Mar last summer, was her second of her year after she returned victorious in the emotionally-poignant seven-furlong GII D. Wayne Lukas Stakes Feb. 7. Having shown the ability to be versatile in her wins, the 1-9 favorite needed no help in...

Greenwich Village (c, 3, Quality Road--Houtzen {Aus}, by I Am Invincible {Aus}) not only got his blinkers off and switched surfaces, but also completely changed tactics Sunday in Santa Anita's Baffle Stakes, eschewing his pace-setting and pace-pressing past while opting instead to drop back to last down the hillside turf course. While he caboosed the field, 25-1 Track Tiger (Sharp Azteca) and 5-2 Later Than Planned (Ire) (Cotai Glory {GB}) battled up front through :22.41 and :44.25 fractions. The first half-dozen runners stayed tightly packed as Greenwich Village continued to...

'TDN Rising Star' presented by Hagyard' Explora (Blame), last seen running second as the favorite in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies, returned to the track Saturday for her 3-year-old debut in the listed Santa Ynez Stakes at Santa Anita. Favored in each of her previous four starts and a winner in two of them, the daughter of Blame has been denied in each of her Grade I tries, suffering a loss earlier in the season to stablemate Bottle of Rogue (Vino Rosso) in the GI Del Mar Debutante. With...

For the sixth time since December Thoroughbred racing on the Southern California circuit has been staged at Los Alamitos Race Course in Orange County, juveniles trained by Bob Baffert swept the winter meet's featured events--the GII Starlet Stakes and GII Los Alamitos Futurity Stakes. One week after Juddmonte homebred Consequent (Into Mischief) took out the fillies' event, earning 10 points on the Road to the Kentucky Oaks, favored Litmus Test (Nyquist) followed suit in the Dec. 14 Futurity and picked up 10 points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby....