Champion Abel Tasman Has First Breeze of 2018

The first impression Abel Tasman made in her initial morning of on-site preparation for last year's Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1) was not exactly one that signaled the arrival of a would-be champion on the scene.

"I remember when we took her to Churchill Downs for the Oaks, she was acting like a green 2-year-old—just looking and weaving and looking at everything," trainer Bob Baffert recalled. "And then we galloped her with blinkers the rest of the week just to keep her focused. She just needed a little focusing ... because she brings it every time."

Abel Tasman ended up bringing it all right—from that moment forward her readjusted attention span and focus led to a campaign that saw her win three straight grade 1 contests en route to earning the 2017 Eclipse Award for champion 3-year-old filly. On Feb. 1, the daughter of Quality Road  took the first step towards building upon her foundation when she registered her first breeze of this year, going three furlongs in :36 1/5 at Santa Anita Park.

Thursday's workout was the first for Abel Tasman since her runner-up finish in the Nov. 3 Longines Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1) at Del Mar, where she finished just a half-length behind eventual champion older dirt female Forever Unbridled. The bit of freshening she received in the aftermath was well-earned as the bay filly went through a seven-race campaign in 2017, where she finished no worse than second while rattling off triumphs in the Kentucky Oaks, Acorn Stakes (G1), and Coaching Club American Oaks (G1). 

"She looked great today, that was nothing for her," Baffert said of the move. "Just trying to get back to work and maybe look for something in the spring with her."

Owned by China Horse Club and breeder Clearsky Farms, Abel Tasman was one of two Baffert-trainees to snag year-end honors as her stablemate, West Coast, book-ended the achievement when he was voted champion 3-year-old male. Where West Coast didn't stamp himself within his division until the second half of the year, Abel Tasman has spent much of her young career in the upper percentile of her class.

Previously trained by Simon Callaghan, Abel Tasman captured the 2016 Starlet Stakes (G1) to cap off her 2-year-old campaign, but was a clear second-best in her first two sophomore outings—a runner-up finish to Unique Bella in the Santa Ysabel Stakes (G3) last March and an 11 3/4-length defeat at the hands of Paradise Woods in the Santa Anita Oaks (G1).

When Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith had his post-race debrief with Baffert following the Santa Anita Oaks, he confirmed that an equipment tweak might be all his mount needed to move herself into a new stratosphere. And when the pair rallied from the back of the pack to take the Kentucky Oaks by 1 1/4 lengths, her Hall of Fame conditioner knew he had something special on his hands to work with for the months ahead.

"I think the blinkers were a big part of it because she can see a lot of things out there," Baffert said. "Paradise Woods, I don't know that anyone was going to beat her that day but ... (jockey) Martin Garcia had been working her and he said he thought she needed blinkers, and then Mike came back and was like 'Man, she was looking at everything.' 

"She actually reminds me a lot of (Triple Crown winner) American Pharoah  because she's so smart. And she tries hard every time, that's what we love about her. That's the thing with the good ones, they try hard every time."

Baffert mentioned the La Troienne Stakes (G1) at Churchill Downs in May as a possible starting point for Abel Tasman this spring. Given how well the 4-year-old filly handled shipping, making starts at six different tracks last year, a myriad of options should be on the table for 2018 once she gets her competitive feet wet.

"She runs really well on those East Coast-type tracks," Baffert said. "She likes a deeper track. She runs well here, but California is really a speed-laden type of track. But she'll run anywhere though."

While Abel Tasman is getting back to work, West Coast and their fellow grade 1-winning stablemate Collected are cooling their heels momentarily following their efforts in the Jan. 27 Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes (G1) at Gulfstream Park. Baffert said Collected, who faded to seventh after setting the early pace, is getting a few weeks off at a farm in Ocala while West Coast, who finished a game second behind Gun Runner , is "just chilling" and remains under consideration for a possible start in the Dubai World Cup Sponsored by Emirates Airline (G1) in March.

"They actually came out of it really well," Baffert said of the duo. "I think Collected ... he just went really fast early and got tired at the end. I thought he'd run better than that. But they're still going to be a great 1-2 punch in the summer."