It's all about Nysos in San Diego Handicap
After looking like a promising dirt router, and even a Kentucky Derby contender last year, trainer Bob Baffert will stretch Nysos out in the Grade 2 San Diego Handicap Saturday at Del Mar. It will be the first try beyond one mile and his first start around two turns since last February.
A $550,000 purchase in April of 2023, Nysos won on debut in October of 2023, then rattled off wins in the Grade 3 Bob Hope at Del Mar and the Grade 3 Robert Lewis at Santa Anita the following year. With those wins, Nysos looked well on his way to being another Derby favorite for Baffert. After scratching from the San Felipe, a key Derby prep in California, Nysos went to the sideline and suffered a “minor” setback after a comeback try for last year’s Preakness.
Nysos returned to the worktab in January of this year, putting in drills that indicated he was eyeing a potential return to racing. Nysos returned in the Grade 1 Churchill Downs Stakes on the Derby undercard - a somewhat ambitious spot given the strong field - and proved ready, finishing a strong second in a dead heat with Banishing. Out of that race, winner Mindframe returned to win the Grade 1 Stephen Foster, and is widely considered the best older dirt horse. Banishing won a listed stakes at Ellis Park last weekend and Book’em Danno fifth in the Churchill Downs, returned to win the Grade 3 True North and Grade 2 Vanderbilt, both at Saratoga. Mullikin, third in the Churchill Downs, finished second to Book’em Danno in the True North and Vanderbilt.
As for Nysos, he came back to romp in the Grade 3 Triple Bend over seven furlongs at Santa Anita. Now, the question remains if Nysos can handle the stretch out to the 1 1/16-mile distance of the San Diego. If for some reason he’s not his best at this distance, he may not need his best to handle this field. Flavien Prat, aboard for his first four starts, is in town to ride and the pair will likely be sent off as the heavy favorite.
Among the six others entered to take on Nysos, Hall of Fame brings the most intriguing, switching from trainer Steve Asmussen to Michael McCarthy. Hall of Fame was on the Derby trail last year but has blossomed this year as a 4-year-old. Hall of Fame won an allowance at Fair Grounds, before taking the Grade 3 Mineshaft there. Following that, he finished second in the Grade 2 New Orleans Classic, one spot ahead of Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Sierra Leone. That solid run was followed up with a third behind Fierceness in the Grade 2 Alysheba and a fourth in the Grade 3 Blame. Kazushi Kimura will ride for the first time.
Express Train is the lone Grade 1 winner in the field, taking the Santa Anita Handicap in 2022. That however, was his last win. Mike Smith rides for trainer John Shirreffs.
Judge Miller is back in California after a try in the Hanshin at Churchill, where he finished sixth. He, along with Tarantino and Mirahmadi, have allowance wins as their highest mark. Midnight Mammoth, second last out in the Grade 2 Hollywood Gold Cup, won the Grade 3 Cougar II going 1 1/2 miles at Santa Anita last year.
The San Diego shares an 11-race card with the Grade 1 Bing Crosby and listed Daisycutter. A field of 10 is signed on for the five-furlong Daisycutter.
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An avid horse racing fan and bettor, Michael Smith has developed a career in horse racing media as an editor and writer. A regular at Saratoga Race Course, Michael mainly covers New York racing but follows various other racing across the country and world.