Vertical Threat earns 102 Beyer in Steel Valley Sprint; Malibu next

Vertical Threat, the California sprinter who crushed a $200,000 stakes race by more than seven lengths on Monday at Mahoning Valley Race Course, will jump up in class for his next start in the Grade 1 Malibu Stakes on Dec. 26, opening day at Santa Anita.

The improving 3-year-old would be the first to win the Malibu after prepping in Ohio, and based on his speed figure, Vertical Threat enters with a chance. He earned a 102 Beyer in the six-furlong Steel Valley Sprint, run in 1:10.07 over a sealed track labeled muddy. The 102 matches the top Beyer of likely Malibu favorite Nashville.

Vertical Threat has won three of five and is trained by Richard Baltas, who shipped the 3-year-old colt to Mahoning Valley to keep him with his own age group. “I didn’t want to run against older yet,” Baltas said. “We were looking for a spot to run before the Malibu.”

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Heriberto Figueroa rode Vertical Threat, who broke from the rail in the 12-horse field on Monday, set the pace and ran away by 7 1/2 lengths as the even-money favorite. Others aiming to the seven-furlong Malibu, in addition to Vertical Threat and undefeated Nashville, include Charlatan, Independence Hall, and Collusion Illusion.