Finite to Face Baffert Quartet in La Brea

Trainer Steve Asmussen has shipped multiple graded stakes winner Finite to Santa Anita Park, where she'll take on four Bob Baffert-conditioned fillies plus six others in the $300,000 La Brea Stakes (G1), a seven-furlong sprint for 3-year-old fillies Dec. 26.

"Finite's an extremely accomplished 3-year-old filly with multiple grade 2 and grade 3 victories and $700,000 in earnings," Asmussen said of the filly out of a stakes-winning full sister to graded stakes-producing second-crop sire Tapiture . "With her looks and remarkable pedigree, a grade 1 would raise her to a new status."

Winchell Thoroughbreds, Thomas Reiman, William Dickson, and Debbie Easter's Finite enters off a victory over older fillies and mares in the one-mile Chilukki Stakes (G3) Nov. 21 at Churchill Downs. That effort came on the heels of a neck loss in the seven-furlong Lexus Raven Run Stakes (G2) Oct. 17 at Keeneland. The Munnings  filly rallied in both of those races after sitting closer to the pace for victories in the Silverbulletday and Rachel Alexandra (G2) stakes early this year at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots.

"I think her accomplishments speak for themselves. She's run some very good races and the La Brea gives us a grade 1 opportunity with her," Asmussen said. "It's 11 runners at Santa Anita. Just hoping for a good trip and for her to be able to add that to her résumé."

Video: Chilukki S. (G3)

Topping Baffert's quartet is Prince Sultan Bin Mishal Al Saud's Merneith, who last out was bumped at the start but rallied to win the six-furlong Qatar Fort Springs Stakes Nov. 7 at Keeneland. A start earlier, the American Pharoah  filly defeated stablemate and fellow La Brea entrant Golden Principal in a six-furlong allowance optional claiming race at Santa Anita Oct. 11.

Those two Baffert trainees raced first and second throughout in their Oct. 11 race, and Golden Principal returned Nov. 27 at Del Mar to win a one-mile optional claimer after taking over at the half-mile.

Baffert will also send out Himiko, an American Pharoah half sister to Bodemeister  that won by 6 1/2 lengths sprinting 6 1/2 furlongs in a Nov. 8 Del Mar optional claimer, and Provocation, who was third in that same race and has since trained swiftly.

Baffert has won the La Brea seven times, the last of which came in 2012 with Book Review.

Also entered are maiden winner Princess Mo; Torrey Pines (G3) runner-up Secret Keeper, who stumbled at the start of the Raven Run and finished eighth; Senator Ken Maddy (G3T) winner Biddy Duke, who switches back to dirt; Fort Springs second Motivated Seller, edged by a neck by Merneith; Fort Springs fourth Fair Maiden; and Bayakoa (G3) third Stellar Sound, who is now with Michael McCarthy but was third in the Las Virgenes (G2) early this year when trained by Baffert.

Additional reporting from Byron King

Entries: La Brea S. (G1)

Santa Anita Park, Saturday, December 26, 2020, Race 8

• Grade I
• 7f
• Dirt
• $300,000
• 3 yo Fillies
• 2:43 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Princess Mo (KY)	Geovanni Franco	120	Ruben Gomez	50/1
2	2Merneith (KY)	John R. Velazquez	120	Bob Baffert	4/1
3	3Himiko (KY)	Flavien Prat	120	Bob Baffert	8/1
4	4Secret Keeper (KY)	Abel Cedillo	120	Clifford W. Sise, Jr.	6/1
5	5Finite (KY)	Ricardo Santana, Jr.	122	Steven M. Asmussen	7/2
6	6Biddy Duke (KY)	Juan J. Hernandez	122	Doug F. O'Neill	12/1
7	7Provocation (KY)	Joel Rosario	120	Bob Baffert	12/1
8	8Motivated Seller (KY)	UMBERTO RISPOLI	120	Chad C. Brown	5/1
9	9Fair Maiden (KY)	Ricardo Gonzalez	120	Eoin G. Harty	12/1
10	10Golden Principal (FL)	Mike E. Smith	120	Bob Baffert	12/1
11	11Stellar Sound (KY)	Victor Espinoza	120	Michael W. McCarthy	5/1