Baffert lists Defunded and Hopper on the Big ‘Cap – Orange County Register

SANTA ANITA LEADER

(until Thursday)

JOCKEYS / VICTORIES

Juan Hernandez / 35

Frankie Dettori / 14

Edwin Maldonado / 13

Thiago Pereira / 11

Three draws / 10

TRAINERS / VICTORIES

Bob Baffert / 17

Doug O’Neill / 14

Philip D’Amato / 12

Steve Knapp / 11

George Papaprodromoou / 10

WEEKEND OPERATIONS IN SANTA ANITA

Saturday

• $100,000 Wishing Well Stakes, fillies and mares, 4 years and older, 6½ furlongs downhill on grass

Sunday

• $100,000 Spring Fever Stakes, Mares and Mares, 4 years and older, bred in CA, 6 stadia

Monday

• $100,000 Tiznow Stakes, 4 years and older, raised in CA, 1 mile

DOWN THE TRACK

• Coach Bob Baffert expects to run Defunded behind Art Collector at last month’s Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream Park and Hopper at the $500,000 Grade I Santa Anita Handicap on March 4th. Hopper started second in the San Pasqual Stakes in his last tournament. “He showed up,” Baffert told Victor Ryan of Santa Anita Publicity about Defunded’s Pegasus efforts. “It was a tough ship. It’s really hard to get there now. They took about 20 hours. But he did well. In the end it looked like we were in good shape but he just got beaten.”

• Santa Anita will have two new state of the art video scoreboards in the paddock area in time for the 40th Breeders’ Cup on November 3rd & 4th. The historic Arcadia Circuit will host the Breeders’ Cup for the 11th time. The boards, which are 9ft high and 16ft wide, are added to enhance the on-track experience by giving a brighter and sharper image to the walking ring and paddock gardens. Built by Daktronics, one of the world’s leading suppliers of LED video displays, the boards support 1080p video and are expected to be available this summer.

• Jockey Tiago Pereira fulfilled his 6-year-old daughter’s wishes before Santa Anita’s Classic Meet began and he’s glad he did. Pereira, 46, was ready to head to Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas, this winter like last year, but his daughter Valentina was upset that he was leaving. “She cried and said to me, ‘Dad, don’t go to Oaklawn,'” Pereira told Santa Anita. “My daughter is the most important thing in my life. So I said, ‘Okay, I’m not going for you.’ I’m glad she spoke up.” Pereira started fourth in the Drivers’ Championship on Sunday and won by a healthy 31% (11/35).

– ArtWilson