Talented Baffert juveniles clash in Los Alamitos CashCall Futurity

CYPRESS, Calif. – Solomini has lost to two of the country’s best 2-year-olds this fall. He is not far behind them.

Solomini was second to Bolt d’Oro in the Grade 1 FrontRunner Stakes on Sept. 30 at Santa Anita and second to Good Magic in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile on Nov. 4 at Del Mar.

Solomini starts in Saturday’s Grade 1 Los Alamitos CashCall Futurity with the best stakes form among the five runners. Now, he has to beat an up-and-coming stablemate in McKinzie, who won a seven-furlong maiden race by an impressive 5 1/2 lengths in his lone start Oct. 28 at Santa Anita.

McKinzie will be favored, but it is Solomini who has started twice at the race’s distance of 1 1/16 miles.

“He’s got that two-turn experience, and he has that in his favor,” trainer Bob Baffert said.

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Baffert knows how to win the Los Alamitos Futurity, with a record nine wins to his credit – six when the race was run at Hollywood Park and the three runnings at Los Alamitos from 2014 through last year.

The other three runners in Saturday’s race – For Him, Instilled Regard, and Runaway Ghost – will have their first starts in a graded stakes.

For Him won a $50,000 claiming race for maidens at Del Mar in August and was fourth in the Zuma Beach Stakes at a mile on turf Oct. 9, his latest start and only appearance in a stakes.

Instilled Regard was the sharp winner of a maiden race at 1 1/16 miles on Oct. 29 at Santa Anita for trainer Jerry Hollendorfer. This will be his stakes debut.

Runaway Ghost won the Golden Nugget Stakes at six furlongs Nov. 11 at Golden Gate Fields by 7 1/2 lengths in his stakes debut. The Los Alamitos Futurity will be Runaway Ghost’s first start around two turns. He is expected to set the pace.

The Los Alamitos Futurity is the third race on a nine-race program that includes the Grade 1 Starlet Stakes for 2-year-old fillies, the day’s fourth race. The Los Alamitos Futurity and Starlet are part of a 50-cent pick four linked with two races at Aqueduct.

KEY CONTENDERS

Solomini, by Curlin
Last 3 Beyers: 93-90-84

◗ Owned by Zayat Stables, Solomini led on the turn of the BC Juvenile and was beaten 4 1/4 lengths by Good Magic. Solomini finished a length in front of Bolt d’Oro.

◗ Solomini, who will be ridden by Flavien Prat, tends to race as a stalker, which should work well with Runaway Ghost in the field.

“He’s solid, and he’s tough,” Baffert said. “He shows up every time.”

McKinzie, by Street Sense
Beyer: 99

◗ McKinzie left Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith impressed with his maiden-race win, where he stalked the pace for the opening quarter-mile before moving into contention with a four-wide rally.

“I was very impressed with his turn of foot and how he caught those horses,” Smith said. “I wanted him to stay back longer. He put them away.

“I had an opportunity to get him in the clear, and he kind of ran with it. I could have kept him in behind. He doesn’t want to run off.”

◗ Since the maiden win, Smith has worked McKinzie once and attended his workouts. McKinzie has worked quickly, including three consecutive bullet workouts at Santa Anita. Last Sunday, McKinzie worked six furlongs in 1:12.60, the fastest of six works at the distance.

“He’s trained sensational,” Smith said.

◗ McKinzie races for Mike Pegram, Karl Watson, and Paul Weitman. Along with Baffert, the owners were close friends with Brad McKinzie, the late Los Alamitos track executive for whom the colt is named.

◗ The Los Alamitos Futurity will be a test in distance for the colt, but considering his breeding and the way McKinzie beat maidens, there is hope that a longer race will not be an issue.

“With the two turns, he still has to do it,” Smith said. “He’s not lacking in ability, that’s for sure.”

◗ What Smith has already seen has left him thinking of the spring and how McKinzie might fit in the Triple Crown buildup.

“You don’t want to get too excited too early,” he said. “It’s a long road, even though it’s not that far away.”