Malibu Stakes

Spendthrift Farm's two new 'TDN Rising Star' first-season stallions Goal Oriented (Not This Time--Bizzy Caroline, by Afleet Alex) and Chancer McPatrick (McKinzie--Bernadreamy, by Bernardini) have had their first mares reported in foal, the farm reported Friday. Goal Oriented, the winner of last year's GI Malibu Stakes, has had Dream Walkin Farms' Diamond Ballroom (Gun Runner) checked in foal. A 4-year-old half-sister to current stakes winner Alpyland, Diamond Ballroom is boarded at Seclusive Farm in Lexington, Kentucky. Goal Oriented stands for $30,000 S&N for the 2026 season. Chancer McPatrick, winner of...

Goal Oriented (Not This Time--Bizzy Caroline, by Afleet Alex), most recently winner of the Dec. 28 GI Malibu Stakes, has been retired from racing and will take up stud duties at Spendthrift Farm this year. His introductory fee will be $30,000, stands and nurses. "We are very excited about Goal Oriented and his potential at stud," said Spendthrift general manager Ned Toffey. "Since the emergence of Not This Time, we have been looking for the right son to come along, and we believe strongly that Goal Oriented is that horse....

Who says it never rains in Southern California? Well, for any music trivia buffs in the audience, it was the little-known Albert Hammond who sang those lyrics, but those living in and around metropolitan Los Angeles will confirm that the precipitation came with a vengeance this Christmas week, flooding parts of Interstate 5 and causing power outages and even the (very) odd threat of tornadoes. Nearly two inches of rainfall was recorded at Los Angeles International Airport, breaking a 54-year-old mark, while nearly four inches fell upon Woodland Hills and...

Live racing returns to Santa Anita with the traditional Dec. 26 opening card of the 48-day Classic meet featuring the GI Malibu Stakes, and continues through the close of the 30-day Hollywood meet June 14. The two meets will feature 81 stakes worth $11.75 million, including the newly named GII D. Wayne Lukas Stakes Feb. 7, the GI Santa Anita Handicap Mar. 7, and the GI Santa Anita Derby Apr. 4. Overnight race purses are slated to increase from the start of last year. "The overall 5% purse increase for...

Multiple Grade I winner Raging Torrent (Maximus Mischief--Violent Wave, by Violence) has been retired from racing and will begin his stud career at Lane's End Farm, the nursery announced Thursday. "We've had a history of success with Malibu winners standing at Lane's End with the likes of City of Light, Twirling Candy, and The Factor, which played a big role in bringing Raging Torrent here," said Lane's End's Bill Farish. "His ability to stretch his front-running speed to a mile and win a prestigious race like the Met, in addition...

The momentum built by the opening-day, six graded-stakes program at Santa Anita carried on into the weekend, as bettors pushed all-sources handle to over $50.4 million over the course of the 39 races between Thursday, Dec. 26 and Sunday, Dec. 29. Aided by strong support from owners and trainers that led to an increase in field size from 2023, the stretch was led by the $21.4-million turnover on Thursday's program, topped by the GI Malibu Stakes, won by Raging Torrent (Maximus Mischief) and the GI La Brea Stakes, taken out...

Firming into 13-5 favoritism in the final few clicks of the tote, Raging Torrent (Maximus Mischief) found his best stride well off the inside entering the final eighth of a mile and staved off a late challenge from 2024 GI Santa Anita Derby winner Stronghold (Ghostzapper) to win Thursday's GI Malibu Stakes, the traditional opening-day feature at the Great Race Place. Drawn widest in a field reduced to six with the early scratchings of Senior Officer (Into Mischief) and GI Breeders' Cup Sprint runner-up Bentornato (Valiant Minister) due to a...

Racing returns to Santa Anita Park Thursday with a stakes-packed card that includes three Grade I races interspersed with three Grade II events. The Arcadia track's traditional Boxing Day feature, the GI Malibu Stakes has attracted a field of eight, with returning GI Kentucky Derby hero Mystik Dan (Goldencents) garnering most of the pre-race headlines. Off since finishing eighth in the GI Belmont Stakes in June, the bay colt is 5-2 on the morning line and breaks from post six. He is cutting back to seven furlongs and makes his...

GI Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan (Goldencents) worked three furlongs in :37.80 (20/25) Sunday at Santa Anita in preparation for his return to the races in the GI Malibu Stakes Thursday. Mystik Dan was backed up to the seven-eighths pole before breaking into a gallop. He sped things up near the quarter pole, where he found company from a pair of horses to his inside, then continued to accelerate through the lane. After winning the Derby, Mystik Dan was second in the GI Preakness Stakes and has been unraced since...

It's great to see Kenny McPeek heading to California for the GI Malibu Stakes with (GI) Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan. However, it's disappointing that he doesn't have a flight to catch. Instead, he has to travel by van from Louisiana to California. Our industry needs to improve connectivity between the East and West Coasts and the South if we want our racing to survive and thrive. We need to simplify the logistics so that trainers feel more comfortable shipping their horses nationwide. Graded stakes need to be coordinated around...

The 2024-2025 stakes schedule at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California, will feature 79 added-money events over a total of 78 race dates, topped by the GI Santa Anita Handicap and the GI Santa Anita Derby. The Big 'Cap, worth $400,000 in 2024, will offer prize money of $300,000 this year, while the purse of the Santa Anita Derby has been cut to $500,000 from $750,000. On the flipside, the purses on offer for overnight races are above what was offered last spring and autumn, with four allowance and maiden...

Santa Anita's Classic Meet will get off to its traditional fast start Dec. 26 with a trio of Grade I events each worth $300,000--the GI Malibu S., GI La Brea S., and GI American Oaks--and the track will continue racing through June 16 with a total of 90 stakes scheduled for the 78 race days. Those 90 stakes races include 53 graded events, with 10 Grade I races highlighted by the 87th running of the $400,000 GI Santa Anita H. Mar. 2 and the $750,000 GI Santa Anita Derby Apr....