Arrogate Returns to Santa Anita Park

Juddmonte Farms' world champion Arrogate returned to his Santa Anita Park base the afternoon of April 1 looking amazingly fresh, considering he'd just come out of quarantine at Los Angeles International Airport following a roughly 20,000 mile round-trip trek to Dubai.

The raiding trip, which resulted in a sensational 2 1/4-length win in the March 25 $10 million Dubai World Cup Sponsored by Emirates Airline (G1), came on the heels of Arrogate's $12 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes (G1) victory at Gulfstream Park Jan. 28.

"He's a little fresh," Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert said. "We'll back off of him for about 30 days. We'll train him, but he won't breeze for 30 days. He tells us what he wants to do. We'll have to do something with him.

"He'll run in the Pacific Classic (grade 1, Aug. 19 at Del Mar) and then the Breeders' Cup Classic (grade 1, Nov. 4) down there. He might run one time before that."

Included amongst a gaggle of media and track officials at Baffert's Barn 5 was Arrogate's Hall of Fame jockey, Mike Smith.

"This is exciting, I've been praying since the race was over to get him back home. He had so much turbulence in the race, he didn't need any in the air," Smith said in reference to the rough start Arrogate was able to overcome in Dubai. 

"He's like Muhammed Ali. He the best in the world!"

The 4-year-old son of Unbridled's Song has rattled off seven consecutive wins, his last four in grade 1 stakes: a record setting 13 1/2-length win in the Aug. 27 Travers Stakes at Saratoga Race Course, the Nov. 5 Breeders' Cup Classic at Santa Anita,  the Pegasus World Cup, and the Dubai World Cup. 

Arrogate is now North America's all-time leading money earner, with a bankroll of $17,084,600.