Litmus Test gives Bob Baffert his 15th Los Alamitos Futurity

CYPRESS — After chasing the presumptive 2-year-old champion Ted Noffey and a $3 million colt named Brant in his earlier races, Litmus Test faced a decidedly less star-studded field in the Los Alamitos Futurity on Saturday.

But that’s not why Litmus Test won the $200,000, Grade II race, trainer Bob Baffert insisted after sending out the 1-2-3 finishers.

“He’s getting better,” Baffert said in the winner’s circle. “He ran better today than he did in the Breeders’ Cup.”

Litmus Test, fourth behind winner Ted Noffey in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at Del Mar last time out, scored a solid 1-1/4-length victory with jockey Juan Hernandez, holding off Blacksmith as Provenance finished third in the field of six.

The son of Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist paid $3.20 after covering 1-1/16 miles in 1:42.38, a faster-than-average time for the Los Al Futurity.

Baffert won the Los Al Futurity for the 15th time in 29 years, dating back to its Hollywood Park days, and Hernandez won it for the first time. It’s the sixth season in which Baffert has had both a Starlet Stakes-winning filly – Consequent on Dec. 6 – and Futurity-winning colt.

The Futurity has sent young horses on to big things. Last year’s winner was Michael McCarthy-trained Journalism, who went on to win the Santa Anita Derby and Preakness. Baffert’s first winner was Real Quiet, who went on to win the 1998 Kentucky Derby and Preakness and come within a whisker of the Triple Crown

The Hall of Fame trainer thought of Real Quiet as he talked about how soon-to-be-3-year-olds can improve in leaps and bounds.

“You’re trying to figure these horses out, their style, the way they want to run,” Baffert said. “I remember Real Quiet, I think it took him six outs before (he won a race).”

Seven, actually.

“The way he’s bred, he’s going to get better with age,” and longer races, Baffert said of Litmus Test, purchased for $875,000 as a yearling by owners SF Racing, Starlight Racing and Madaket Stables. “He’s a horse we’ve always been very high on.”

In the round of future betting held two weeks ago on the May 2, 2026 Kentucky Derby, Baffert was represented by Boyd at 22-1, Brant at 25-1, Cherokee Nation at 41-1, Provenance at 58-1, Desert Gate at 68-1 and Litmus Test at 69-1 and Buetane at 101-1 among 39 individual horses offered. Todd Pletcher’s Ted Noffey was favored at 7-1.

Litmus Test, with two victories in five starts, should move up in handicappers’ estimation after his first win at the stakes level.

“I don’t get ahead of myself,” Baffert said of Derby prospects, which will be tested locally in Santa Anita’s Jan. 10 San Vicente Stakes, Feb. 7 Robert B. Lewis Stakes, March 7 San Felipe Stakes and April 4 Santa Anita Derby.

Blacksmith remained a maiden in three starts but ran well to finish second under Kazushi Kimura. Provenance led with Kyle Frey but was passed at the top of the stretch, and lost a shoe, causing him to be vanned off the track.

Doug O’Neill-trained Acknowledgemeplz finished fourth and Ruben Gomez’s American King fifth, while John Sadler’s Captivator was eased and walked off.

“Blacksmith, he’s figuring it out. He ran a big race,” Baffert said.

Baffert and Sadler go into the final card of the short Los Al meet Sunday tied atop the trainer standings at four wins each, with Steve Knapp one behind.

Armando Ayuso leads the jockeys with six wins, one ahead of Hernandez and two up on Kimura.

In the meet-ending, $100,000 King Glorious Stakes for California-bred 2-year-olds, Ayuso rides Pavlovian, Hernandez is on John Metcalfe and Kimura has Fionello, while Hector Berrios is aboard favored Can’t Help Myself.