Cigar Mile (Grade 1)

MAXIMUM Security further strengthened his case for the top three-year-old male title in the US with yet another impressive victory in the Grade 1 Cigar Mile at Aqueduct last Saturday.

Disqualified in the Kentucky Derby, he was again sent to the lead from the break, and the odds-on favourite was pressed by fellow three-year-old and Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile victor Spun To Run. The two pulled clear of the field entering the final turn but Maximum Security had too much in reserve and moved clear to cruise home a decisive winner. Spun To Run held second over outsider True Timber with the winner clocking 1m 36.46secs.

Despite Code Of Honor’s two late summer Grade 1 wins, Maximum Security seems to have done enough to convince Eclipse Award voters that he is the best three-year-old in the US.

“We were concerned,” trainer Jason Servis said. “This track was very slow today and it was hard to go fast and sustain that. I’ve got to hold back tears. He’s special, that horse. It’s just a shame because he was the best horse in the Derby.” The Pegasus World Cup looks like it will be the colt’s next outing. Servis said: “Gary’s [owner Gary West] been talking about it and he’s undefeated at Gulfstream. It would be hard not to go.”

Rider Luis Saez said: “It’s a big deal to win the Cigar Mile here. He’s a fighting horse. I knew the other horse has a lot of speed. I knew we had to fight, so my attitude was let’s see what happens. When we hit the turn, I knew we had a lot of horse. He gave me everything.”

This time last year Maximum Security was about to make his debut in a claimer at Gulfstream. The son of New Year’s Day won that race and his next two in starter allowance races, leading into the Grade 1 Florida Derby where he led all the way for a three and a half-length success.

Despite crossing the line clear of Country House in wet conditions in Churchill Downs, he was disqualified for interference on the final bend and placed 17th. He was next seen at Monmouth Park in the Pegasus Stakes in June where he stumbled at the start and was run down late.

He returned with another good win in the Grade 1 Haskell Invitational in July. He then missed the Pennsylvania Derby due to a bout of colic, but came back with a win over his elders in Belmont’s Grade 3 Bold Ruler Handicap over seven furlongs in October. He has been first past the post in eight of his nine runs.

BOB Baffert won five consecutive races last Saturday at Los Alamitos, including the two big two-year-old races, the Grade 2 Los Alamitos Futurity with Thousand Words and the Grade 1 Starlet Stakes for fillies with Bast. It was the third year in a row he has swept the two stakes races for juveniles.

Bast was sent off as second favourite behind odds-on Donna Veloce, who finished in front of her when they ran third and second behind British Idiom in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies at Santa Anita.

This time Drayden Van Dyke pushed Bast, a daughter of Uncle Mo, to lead and held off a stretch challenge from the favourite to prevail by a half-length over the mile and half a furlong in 1m 43.36secs. K P Dreamin was 12 lengths behind runner-up Donna Veloce. Baffert said. “We knew that Donna Veloce was going to be really tough. She gutted it out to beat a really nice filly like that.”

The Starlet gave the Baoma Corp-owned Bast her third Grade 1 victory following wins in the Del Mar Debutante Stakes and Chandelier Stakes which makes her an Eclipse Award finalist but has her Breeders’ Cup conqueror British Idiom to beat in the voting.

In the Grade 2 Los Alamitos Futurity, Baffert’s Thousand Words was headed in deep stretch by Breeders’ Cup Juvenile runner-up Anneau D’Or, but dug in to put himself on the trail to Churchill Downs next May.

Thousand Words, a $1 million yearling owned by Albaugh Family Stable and Spendthrift Farm, had won his debut in October at Santa Anita.

The son of Pioneerof the Nile was ridden by Flavien Prat and was one of two Bob Baffert-trained horses in the four-horse field. Stablemate High Velocity, under Drayden Van Dyke, angled in quickly to take the lead on the rail with Thousand Words within striking range.

Thousand Words got his neck in front of High Velocity nearing the top of the stretch and the two continued to battle through midstretch as Anneau D’Or went widest of all and moved up alongside Thousand Words who dug deep to hold off Anneau D’Or in a time of 1m 43.19secs.

“Prat did a great job. He brought him out and showed him the other horse,” Baffert said. “I had a lot of blinker on today, probably too much blinker, but when he saw the other horse, he kicked back in gear. That’s pretty impressive for second time out to run that way and run that well.”