2012 Kentucky Derby: Baffert wants to see how Liaison trains at Churchill

ARCADIA, Calif.- Liaison, the winner of the CashCall Futurity at Hollywood Park last December but winless in three starts this year, will be sent to Churchill Downs on Monday, moving closer to a potential start in the Kentucky Derby on May 5.

“I want to take him over there and train him on the track,” trainer Bob Baffert said at his stable on the Santa Anita backstretch.

“A lot of horses move up when they get out of here.”

Owned by Arnold Zetcher, Liaison has won 3 of 7 starts and $487,560, giving him sufficient earnings in graded stakes to secure a berth in the field.

This year, Liaison has struggled in three starts at Santa Anita.

Liaison unseated jockey Rafael Bejarano in the stretch of the Grade 2 Robert Lewis Stakes in February, finished fourth in the Grade 2 San Felipe Stakes in March and was sixth in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby on April 7.

After the Santa Anita Derby, Baffert said a decision on whether Liaison will start in the Kentucky Derby would be made closer to the race. Last Wednesday, Liaison worked six furlongs in 1:13 at Hollywood Park.