CYPRESS, Calif. – For a horse who had just run flat out for the first six furlongs of a 1 1/8-mile race and earned one of the fastest Beyer Speed Figures of his career, California Chrome on Sunday morning at Los Alamitos sure wasn’t acting like his performance the previous afternoon in the Awesome Again at Santa Anita had taken much out of him.

 California Chrome was at the front of his double-wide stall at trainer Art Sherman’s barn, looking for the cookies he adores, and which Sherman had in ample supply.

Limato won his second Group 1 sprint of the European season in Sunday’s $336,930 Prix de la Foret at seven furlongs at Chantilly Racecourse in France, and is expected to race at Santa Anita on the Breeders’ Cup program on Nov. 5.

Limato is the future-book favorite with British bookmakers for the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint at about 6 1/2 furlongs on the hillside turf course, but could also be considered for the BC Mile, trainer Henry Candy said after the Prix de la Foret.

ARCADIA, Calif. – Melatonin would enter the Breeders’ Cup Classic as the only starter with two Grade 1 wins this year at Santa Anita. He also would enter the Nov. 5 race following the longest layoff of any in the prospective field – 133 days.

Winner of the Santa Anita Handicap and Gold Cup at Santa Anita his most recent start on June 25, Melatonin has been out of sight and out of mind. But on Sunday at Santa Anita, Melatonin a posted a flashy work that showed his summer setback is history.

The Breeders’ Cup Turf winner Found, runner-up in five straight Group 1 races this year, broke through in tremendous fashion Sunday at Chantilly, leading an amazing sweep of the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe’s top three placings by trainer Aidan O’Brien.

Found beat Highland Reel by 1 3/4 lengths with Order of St George another 1 1/2 lengths back in third. For all the remarkable accomplishments in O’Brien’s epic career, this might have been the best.

“It’s unbelievable,” O’Brien said. “I’m absolutely delighted.”

ARCADIA, Calif. – For most of her career, Beholder was automatic.

 She won 17 of her first 22 races, including Grade 1 stakes for five straight years. She won three championships and was practically unbeatable at Santa Anita, where she won 13 of her first 14 starts.

 “There haven’t been many as good, for as long, as her,” Beholder’s trainer Richard Mandella said early Sunday morning. “I’m not going to complain.”

In the wake of California Chrome’s devastatingly easy score in Saturday’s Awesome Again Stakes, more than a few people wondered why anyone would want to face the world’s best racehorse in next month’s Breeders’ Cup Classic.

ARCADIA, Calif. – Peyton Manning was the best at calling audibles. Trainer Bob Baffert is right up there with him.

Baffert initially had planned on sending Noted and Quoted to next week’s Alcibiades Stakes at Keeneland, but after a sharp workout on Tuesday morning at Santa Anita, he got to realizing he was overthinking things, and kept her at home for the Grade 1, $302,070 Chandelier Stakes on Saturday at Santa Anita.

ARCADIA, Calif. – The first murmurs began as the field neared the far turn in the Awesome Again Stakes on Saturday at Santa Anita, the cheers grew ever louder as California Chrome began to pull away from Dortmund on the turn, and by the time California Chrome reached the eighth pole, the cheers turned into a roar of appreciation, hands clapping, arms waving, all in joyous celebration of what the fans were watching, as California Chrome cantered to the wire, best again.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Florida – Jose Pinchin tried to play it cool. He called Three Rules a good horse. Praised his mind. Said he was easy to work with, did everything right, but finally, in the winner’s circle after the $500,000 In Reality division of the Florida Sire Stakes, Pinchin let the façade fall for a moment and said what he really felt: “This horse, he’s a freak.”

ELMONT, N.Y. - Trainer Dallas Stewart fretted for days about the weather and whether he should run Forever Unbridled in Saturday’s Grade 1, $400,000 Beldame Stakes over a wet Belmont Park main track.

Stewart arrived in New York from Kentucky on Saturday morning and still wasn’t sure what he was going to do.

“I almost had her on a van out of here,” Stewart said.

Fortunately, Stewart left the van empty as Forever Unbridled relished the off-going and galloped to a convincing 2 1/4-length victory in the Beldame as the 2-5 favorite.