Restoring Hope the 'Other Baffert' in Belmont Stakes

Months ahead of the Triple Crown series, as talented 2-year-olds begin to progress or early season 3-year-olds emerge, in Barn 5 on the Santa Anita Park backstretch there is the horse.

The spotlight on the Bob Baffert stable is so bright during the Triple Crown prep season, even an unraced colt could be the horse. By February, the leading candidate for that title was Justify, who will look to complete a Triple Crown sweep June 9 in the Belmont Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets (G1).

But in December, even after Baffert stablemate McKinzie won the Los Alamitos CashCall Futurity (G1) via disqualification, an unraced homebred owned by Gary and Mary West was starting to get some buzz. A month before Restoring Hope debuted Dec. 17 at Los Alamitos Race Course, the race book at Wynn Las Vegas was taking wagers on him to win the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1). The buzz was real.

"I always thought he would be a really nice horse," Baffert said of those early days when he was still figuring out what exactly he had from his 2018 3-year-old crop.

The dark bay by Giant's Causeway  out of the Tapit  mare Symbol of Freedom came up second in that debut sprint at Los Alamitos to eventual graded stakes-placed runner All Out Blitz, but he broke through two starts later when stretched out to two turns. He then came in third after a poor trip in the Wood Memorial Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets (G2) at Aqueduct Racetrack and misfired in the Pat Day Mile Stakes Presented by LG and E and KU (G3) over the slop at Churchill Downs. On Saturday, Restoring Hope will attempt to play spoiler to his stablemate at Belmont Park.

Gary West said there is no discomfort in trying to beat a stablemate seeking the immortality of a Triple Crown.

"One thing I can tell you unequivocally about Bob Baffert—he is an equal-opportunity trainer," West said. "If he had four other horses good enough for the race, he's a trainer that will do what he thinks is right for each individual horse.

"A lot of trainers going for the Triple Crown would make up excuses not to have horses run against their horse. He believes if his horse is good enough to win the Triple Crown, he'll win the Triple Crown."

To be fair, West doesn't think Restoring Hope will beat Justify. But as the owner of Symbol of Freedom, the value proposition of a classic-placed runner out of the mare was enough to attract him to the third leg of the Triple Crown.

"We're just taking a shot," the owner said. "If there's any such thing as a dirt horse who wants a mile and a half in North America, he is a stayer. ... I haven't really thought about (winning) because, mentally, I've conceded the race to Justify.

"But this horse deserves to run in this race. I don't have any expectations of him winning, but if Justify stubs his toe—for whatever reason—we have as good a chance as any to run well."

Although Baffert has never run a stablemate in the Belmont against his own Triple Crown hopeful in four tries, you don't have to look far to find an instance where "the other Baffert" upset the horse—and he has a photo to remind him on his phone, sent from a friend in a playful jab.

"That feeling if Restoring Hope wins the Belmont," Baffert said, giving voice to the text message accompanying a photo of himself, his wife Jill, and his son Bode watching the finish of the 2017 TVG Pacific Classic (G1) in disbelief, when Collected upset Arrogate  at Del Mar.

"What we want to see at this stage—I don't think about winning the Triple Crown," the Hall of Fame trainer said. "I just want (Justify's) name remembered as the great horse that he is, (recognizing) what he's done in such a short period of time. The most important thing is the horse has to show up.

"I don't care who wins. You want to win it, and sometimes you need your backup to win it. I've had situations where you go, 'Oh no. Who is that? Oh, that's me.' I want to run 1-2. That's what we're trying to do."

A Restoring Hope victory would be a stunning upset on the grandest stage, but it wouldn't be the most shocking result ever from a West-owned horse. That distinction would probably go to Rockamundo, who won the 1993 Arkansas Derby (G2) at odds of 108-1.

"We've been involved in more than one big horse race when we weren't supposed to win, and we did," West said. "And we've been in horse races where we were supposed to win, and we didn't. It cuts both ways.

"But when you have a 3-year-old, you only have so many chances to run in the classics. He doesn't have a big closing kick or blazing speed—he's kind of a grinder—but a lot of Belmonts are won by grinders."

"He's a good-looking horse, he's a nice-looking horse, and he worked really well the other day (six furlongs in 1:13 flat June 4 at Churchill)," Baffert added. "I think he fits in there with those horses. (West) wanted to take a shot, so we're taking a shot. We'll see what happens."