McKinzie Returns vs. Flagstaff in Triple Bend Stakes

With an eye toward the rescheduled Runhappy Metropolitan Handicap (G1), McKinzie is entered to make his first start in more than three months in the $200,000 Triple Bend Stakes (G2) June 7 at Santa Anita Park.

The seven-furlong test will mark the first race for Karl Watson, Mike Pegram, and Paul Weitman's McKinzie since an uncharacteristic distant loss in the Saudi Cup Feb. 29. All horses in the Saudi Cup raced without Lasix.

The 11th-place finish marked just the second time in 15 starts that the 5-year-old son of Street Sense  failed to finish either first or second. One of those runner-up finishes was in last year's Met Mile at Belmont Park, where McKinzie rallied from eighth. Traffic and a couple of checks in a troubled trip had his connections wondering what could have been as he finished three-quarters of a length behind Mitole , who was named champion sprinter. 

Trainer Bob Baffert said the next big goal for McKinzie is this year's Met Mile, which will be contested July 4.

"I'd like to win that one with him because that would great," Baffert said. "He should have won it last year."

Video: Runhappy Metropolitan H. (G1)

The 2019 Met Mile marked the first loss in a one-turn race for McKinzie, who will look to secure his third win in as many starts at seven furlongs. McKinzie cruised to a 5 1/4-length victory in his debut in 2017 at seven furlongs and won the 2018 Malibu Stakes (G1) to close his 3-year-old season.

Baffert said McKinzie, who won at least one grade 1 race in each of his first three seasons of racing, has benefited from time off and has bounced back from his Saudi Cup effort.

"He really looks fantastic. He looks better than ever," Baffert said. "He shipped over there (to Saudi Arabia) and he got away bad and never got interested. He lost a lot of weight on the trip, so I gave him a month off and he looks terrific now. I'm expecting a big effort from him."

Baffert also will send out the speedy Ax Man in the expected field of five. Patti and Hal Earnhardt's 5-year-old son of Misremembered  will cut back to one turn after a hard-fought allowance-level win going a two-turn mile May 16 at Santa Anita. 

Flagstaff has won or finished second in three graded sprints this year. The 6-year-old son of Speightstown  won the San Carlos Stakes (G2) going seven furlongs March 7 at Santa Anita and then overcame a slow start and wide run to finish second to Whitmore in the Count Fleet Sprint Handicap (G3) April 18 at Oaklawn Park.

Video: Count Fleet Sprint H. (G3)

Fashionably Fast will get his chance at the graded stakes level after rolling to four consecutive wins in Cal-bred stakes. The 5-year-old son of Lucky Pulpit enters off six straight wins.

Rounding out the field will be Dark Vader, who will make his first start since finishing a close second in the Cornhusker Handicap (G3) July 5 at Prairie Meadows.

Bob Ehalt contributed to this story.

Entries: Triple Bend S. (G2)

Santa Anita Park, Sunday, June 07, 2020, Race 8

• Grade II
• 7f
• Dirt
• $200,000
• 3 yo's & up
• 4:18 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Flagstaff (KY)	Victor Espinoza	126	John W. Sadler	5/2
2	2Ax Man (KY)	Abel Cedillo	122	Bob Baffert	8/1
3	3Dark Vader (OH)	Flavien Prat	122	Peter Eurton	8/1
4	4Fashionably Fast (CA)	Tiago Josue Pereira	122	Dean Pederson	6/1
5	5McKinzie (KY)	Mike E. Smith	124	Bob Baffert	3/5