ARCADIA, Calif. - Nysos lost his perfect record when he finished a game second in the Grade 1 Churchill Downs Stakes on May 3, his only loss in his first four starts.
Nysos more than rebounded in Saturday’s Grade 3 Triple Bend Stakes at seven furlongs at Santa Anita, easily beating three rivals by 5 1/2 lengths as a heavy favorite.
The victory put Nysos on schedule for a summer and fall campaign geared toward the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Del Mar on Nov. 1, trainer Bob Baffert said in the winner’s circle.
From winning jockey Juan Hernandez’s perspective, Nysos had to work only briefly to earn his third Grade 3 stakes win in the $98,000 Triple Bend Stakes.
All four runners were about a neck apart before Nysos and Dr. Venkman pulled away after a half-mile. Their brief tussle was over by early stretch.
“The horse felt really good,” Hernandez said. “He’s so classy.
“He broke so beautifuly and he was right there. He didn’t want to go back. He was very comfortable. I let him be there because he wanted to be there.
“I was waiting for the quarter-pole. I shook the reins and he took off.”
Nysos, who was timed in 1:21.28, was within a head of Spirit of Makena after a quarter-mile in 22.08 seconds, and led narrowly over Dr. Venkman after a half-mile in 44.29. Nysos paid $2.40 as a heavy favorite and earned a career-best Beyer Speed Figure of 108.
Dr. Venkman, making his first start since a fourth-place finish in the Grade 1 Pacific Classic at Del Mar last August, held second, finishing 4 1/4 lengths in front of 11-1 Smooth Cruisein. Spirit of Makena (16-1) faded to finish a well-beaten fourth in the small field.
Vlahos was scratched by trainer Doug O’Neill early on Saturday.
Dr. Venkman, second in the 2024 Triple Bend Stakes, will benefit from the start, according to jockey Antonio Fresu.
“My horse was very good,” Fresu said. “He probably needed the race after almost a year off. The winner had a race under his belt, but the winner is a freak.
“We tried. I think he’ll get better. He was a little too fresh in the post parade. Still, I don’t think I would have beaten the winner.”
Nysos, who races for Charlie and Susan Chu’s Baoma Corp., has won 4 of 5 starts and earned $418,500.
By Nyquist, Nysos was held in high regard after winning his first three starts by a combined 26 3/4 lengths in fall 2023 and early 2024. He was sidelined in the buildup to the 2024 Triple Crown, and did not race again until the neck loss to Mindframe in the $935,000 Churchill Downs Stakes earlier this month.
Baffert considered the Grade 1 Metropolitan Mile at Saratoga on June 7 before deciding to start Nysos on Saturday.
“I am so proud to have a horse like this,” Baffert said in the winner’s circle. “He is so talented. I know the Met Mile would have been a great spot, but his last race, you know he needed it. From here, we can build and pick our spots.”
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