Bob Baffert’s 2025 horse racing season has been a roller-coaster of highs and lows, marked by his return from a lengthy suspension and overshadowed by a series of disheartening incidents on the track. After serving a ban following Medina Spirit’s disqualification in 2021, Baffert re-entered the Limelight at the Kentucky Derby with Citizen Bull, even as his other Derby hopeful, Rodriguez, was scratched hours before the race due to a foot bruise.

Despite participation, Citizen Bull didn’t perform quite well and wasn’t able to cross the finish line in first. The unfortunate fate carried on for Baffert in the Preakness Stakes with Goal Oriented and in the Belmont Stakes with Rodriguez. Now, with the Triple Crown series coming to an end, it looks like the trainer is looking back at his horses who still can run in the current season.

On X, @sdhorserace shared an update on Barnes, stating, “Barnes worked 3-furlongs in :37 at the Santa Anita Park,  Sunday for trainer Bob Baffert. It’s the first work in three weeks for the one-time Derby hopeful who was given a brief respite following his runner-up finish to Journalism in the G2 San Felipe.” The colt first drew attention with a breakout win in the Grade 2 San Vicente Stakes at Santa Anita—clocking a swift time of 1:22.15 under jockey Juan Hernandez, a solid performance that put him squarely on the short list for Triple Crown preps.

A few weeks later, he tested two-turn stamina in the Grade 2 San Felipe Stakes, where he faced off against Baffert barn mates. In that race, he challenged early but ultimately faded to second behind Journalism, noted for carving out the pace before being passed in the stretch. So, Barnes, once a Kentucky Derby prospect, wasn’t able to acquire the required points to run in the first leg of the American Triple Crown.

However, with this recent workout at the Santa Anita Park, it does look like there’s still potential in the horse, and Baffert might consider running him in a future race. But there’s another horse that has already made his comeback in a recent run.

Bob Baffert’s colt ended his losing streak

Gaming was also one of those horses that missed out on capturing enough points for the Kentucky Derby. While the colt did run at Churchill Downs during the Pat Day Mile, he just placed in third position. However, his recent race was quite different. And this version of Gaming was dominant on track. The Bob Baffert-trained colt took the lead right from the start and never looked back in the $100,000 Affirmed Stakes, finishing ahead of stablemate Nevada Beach by 1 3/4 lengths.

Gaming’s jockey, Hector Berrios, shared his thoughts on the colt’s relaxed confidence, saying, “I wanted to go to the lead. I got a good position, and he went very comfortably. Then I just waited and waited. When I moved on him, he responded.” This was a dramatic comeback from Gaming, as his career has been a complete roller coaster.

After a terrific win at the Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity when he was just two, he kind of faded in the following stakes. While the colt did manage a runner-up finish in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, he had multiple missed chances in other graded stakes this season. But with this win at Santa Anita Park, Baffert might potentially look forward to more action from Gaming.