If for nothing else, you can still bet your money’s worth on Bob Baffert and his eye for talent. While many had hoped to see the Hall of Fame trainer enter the Pennsylvania Derby with Nevada Beach, he ultimately decided otherwise. And yet, just a week later, he wasn’t afraid to take on Full Serrano at Santa Anita Park for the Grade 1 Good Wood Stakes. And as fate would have it, the 72-year-old would go on to make a sonorous statement ahead of the upcoming Breeders’ Cup showdown.

“I was going to take him to Parx, but I wasn’t happy with his breeze. But he’s come back and breezed well,” Baffert explained his chain of thought behind keeping Nevada Beach away from Parx Racing and still making him run the Goodwood Stakes. The decision came from years of experience, and it paid off in stellar style. The 3-year-old colt won more than just $300,000 at Santa Anita today: he won a straight ticket for the Breeders’ Cup Classic! So, what changed?

In a post by FanDual Racing on X from September 27, Baffert revealed how a strong training regimen helped Nevada Beach defeat last year’s Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner on Saturday. On being asked how his horse defeated an A-lister like Full Serrano in the former’s fourth lifetime race, the trainer said lucidly, “We have always been really high on this horse. I always thought he had this in him,” underscoring he knew from the moment he took the colt under his wing that Nevada Beach was meant for greatness. That talent was complemented by rigorous workouts.

The son of Omaha Beach breezed at Santa Anita last Saturday, covering six furlongs in 1:12. So what made Nevada Beach so good on the racetrack? “He was trained well,” Baffert said, explaining how keeping things simple and to the point helped his equine star go toe-to-toe with a Grade 1 winner without breaking much of a sweat. But the trainer also had some help. Mike Smith, the jockey who guided Nevada Beach to a 1 1/2 lengths victory over Full Serrano, also won the Goodwood Stakes last year (with Subsanador).

Obviously, edging out a Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner with horse riding on 8-1 odds is pretty special. You can’t blame a man for being ecstatic about it. “This one is really special,” Baffert said. “I really appreciate wins like this when you don’t expect them,” said Baffert with a beaming smile after the race. And now, he’s turned his gaze on a bigger fish to fry.

With the latest emphatic win, Baffert and Nevada Beach have qualified automatically for the Breeders’ Cup Classic, slated for November 1 at Del Mar. Quite understandably, looking at the horse’s picture-perfect run at Santa Anita today, the trainer is bracing for a similarly good show at what he calls the “All-Star game of horse racing“.

On being asked if Breeders’ Cup is on the table, Baffert said, “You got to keep it on, you know. The way he raced today. So, as long as he’s fine and healthy, we’ll be there,” with the whiff of a casualness that is in line with his elite stature and track record. So, it’s confirmed: exiting Santa Anita with his ninth Goodwood Stakes, Bob Baffert & Co. will now hope to win the elusive Breeders’ Cup, often considered the premier silverware by horse racing connoisseurs.

But who could spoil that objective?

Bob Baffert won’t be getting any hall passes at Del Mar

This year’s Breeders’ Cup Classic has some true heavyweights. Chad Brown’s Sierra Leone, last year’s Classic-winning team, will be back to defend the title. The second-place finisher of last year’s Derby winner will once again square off against Mystik Dan, Kenny McPeek’s celebrity horse, who made his way to the winner’s circle at Churchill Downs in 2024. The 4-year-old son of Goldencents, despite not having his regular rider, Brian Hernandez Jr., won the Lukas Classic Stakes (Grade 2) on Saturday, leaving fans impressed.

Along with these two, Fierceness, Mindframe, and Antiquarian, trained by Todd Pletcher, are also going to make sure the Breeders’ Cup Classic will be a closely-contested race in November. Whew! That’s a lot of top-shelf talent to take on in one race. But hardly any of these aforementioned horses would be the favorites to win the Classic!

Sovereignty (the 2025 Derby and Belmont Stakes winner) and Journalism (the 2025 Preakness Stakes winner) will renew their scintillating rivalry once again in Del Mar. Fans are divided on both sides of the line, and we are too! But then again, never discount Bob Baffert, even if his 2025 hasn’t been all that great. Furthermore, if you remember how the trainer’s Grade 1 track record leads his peers by a hefty margin, you at least can’t entirely ignore the thought that Baffert could come through even if he stands against two of the best race horses in the world right now.

What are your predictions for the Breeders’ Cup Classic, now that the field is final? We’d love to know!