Baze hits 400 wins again

Jockey Russell Baze scored his 400th victory of 2003, winning aboard Hooked on Niners on Wednesday at Golden Gate Fields.

Baze, the fourth all-time winningest jockey in history with 8,474 victories, has reached 400 victories in 11 of the past 12 years. He is currently second in the nation behind Ramon Dominguez in victories for the year but leads all riders with 200 or more victories with a win rate of 31.

Hooked on Niners ($8), making her third start after a seven-month layoff, won an $80,000 optional claimer at 1 1/16 miles on the turf, defeating pacesetting Marty's Zee by three lengths.

"It's great fun riding horses, especially nice horses like this one," Baze said. "I really love to do this. It never gets old. It's always a challenge. Every race something different happens."