Nysos and Malibu Stakes headline Santa Anita opener

ARCADIA — Opening day at Santa Anita always features twice the intrigue of a normal day at the races, offering well-known horses a chance to cap a successful year and rising stars a springboard to a big new year.

For at least one horse this time, it offers both.

Nysos is the marquee name among the runners in six graded stakes on an 11-race card beginning at 11 a.m. Sunday as he starts as a 3-5 morning-line favorite in the $200,000, Grade II Laffit Pincay Jr. Stakes. The 4-year-old ridden by leading North American stakes jockey Flavien Prat for Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert will be trying to build on his Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile victory at Del Mar, push his 2025 earnings over $1 million and earn votes for the national older-males championship. He’ll also be trying to gear up for an intended next start in the Saudi Cup, the $20 million world’s richest race to be held Feb. 14 in Riyadh.

Baffert said during the week that Nysos and 3-year-old Nevada Beach, second in the Pincay Stakes odds at 2-1 with leading California jockey Juan Hernandez, could go to the Saudi Cup or the Pegasus World Cup Invitational, the $3 million race Jan. 24 at Gulfstream Park near Miami.

While Nysos’ likely dominance might make the Pincay Stakes a race to watch rather than bet, the rest of the program presents competitive fields, challenging fans to figure out which up-and-comers are ready for the Santa Anita winner’s circle.

The $300,000, Grade I Malibu Stakes, the traditional highlight of the Arcadia track’s winter-spring season opener, matches four Baffert-trained 3-year-olds – and five from other barns – looking for a first Grade I win. Barnes, the 3-1 morning-line favorite, will be scratched because of a “setback,” Baffert said Saturday in an interview with Jim Hill on KCBS. That leaves the trainer with 7-2 Cornucopian, 7-2 Midland Money, 5-1 Madaket Road and 5-1 Goal Oriented.

Multi-horse bettors must decide what to do with Modus Bestia, a 15-1 shot with improving form starting the 7-furlong race from the No. 1 post under jockey Edwin Maldonado for trainer Richard Baltas.

“Obviously Baffert holds the best hand with (four) horses. But my horse is coming along fast,” Baltas said early in the week, saying Modus Bestia has “the most potential” among his entrants in five stakes Sunday

Baltas was surprised to be told that his 3-year-old filly Atsila and jockey Tiago Pereira are favored at 5-2 on the morning line for the $300,000, Grade I American Oaks, a 1¼-mile race on turf. The Irish-bred will be making her U.S. debut after facing top-class fillies in Ireland, Britain and France and being scratched from the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf with “a little foot problem.”

The third Grade I race Sunday is the $300,000 La Brea Stakes, for 3-year-old fillies going 7 furlongs. It’s another stakes led by horses on the way up, with Mark Glatt-trained Grade III runner-up Formula Rossa and jockey Mike Smith favored at 3-1 and George Weaver’s Grade II winner Five G and national earnings leader Irad Ortiz Jr. next at 7-2.

“She ran extremely well given the lack of experience running against a horse like that,” Glatt said of Formula Rossa, who chased Sweet Azteca in the Rancho Bernardo Handicap at Del Mar in only her third career start.

The $200,000, Grade II Mathis Mile, for 3-year-olds at 1 mile on turf, is a breakthrough opportunity for 3-2 favorite Namaron, a German-bred gelding getting Prat and adding blinkers for his third try at a U.S. victory for trainer John Sadler; Michael McCarthy’s often-troubled Maaz; Baltas’ Friendly Confines, and Leonard Powell’s Tempus Volat.

“Like a lot of Not This Time progeny, he (should get) better with age,” Powell said, referring to Tempus Volat’s sire. “He finished (fourth) ahead of all of the Californians in the Hollywood Derby (at 1⅛ miles). Going back to the mile shouldn’t be an issue.”

The $100,000, Grade III San Gabriel Stakes, for 3-year-olds and up at 1⅛ miles on grass, finds 4-year-old Stay Hot a, well, lukewarm 4-1 favorite to win at the graded-stakes level for the first time in two years. In recent starts, he ran second to Gold Phoenix twice and lost all chance early in the Seabiscuit Handicap. He switches from Hernandez to Ortiz.

“He got shuffled so far back,” trainer Peter Eurton said. “He likes to be somewhat in contention, where he can have a mild turn of foot.”

Eurton also has longshot Nesso’s Lastharrah in the San Gabriel, helping see that Cabo Spirit doesn’t get an easy lead. But Cabo Spirit’s speed and affinity for Santa Anita keep him dangerous.

“He always tries,” Cabo Spirit trainer George Papaprodromou said. “Last race (the Seabiscuit), things didn’t go his way. He’s one of those horses (for whom) things have to go his way.”

Handicappers will watch the condition of the main track and turf course after the area received 5¾ inches of rain from Tuesday to Friday, prompting Santa Anita to postpone its season opener for two days from its traditional spot on the day after Christmas.

A crowd of 35,000 to 40,000 is expected, in line with recent opening-day attendance. Santa Anita has been accepting reserved-seat cancellations, and reselling those tickets, since announcing the postponement last Sunday.

Track executives said the opening-day card suffered no apparent harm from the grounding of FedEx horse-transport flights following the Nov. 4 crash of one of the company’s MD-11 cargo aircraft in Louisville, Ky. Four horses from out of state are entered.

The Santa Anita Classic Meet runs through April 5, with racing Friday, Saturday and Sunday most weeks and first post 12:30 p.m. most days; the Hollywood Meet will follow and go through June 14. The weather-related schedule changes mean racing will be held every day but Tuesday between now and next Sunday.

The $500,000, Grade I Santa Anita Derby is April 4. Top 3-year-olds who could use Santa Anita races to vie for spots in the May 2 Kentucky Derby include Baffert’s Litmus Test, Brant, Boyd, Buetane and Desert Gate, and Jeff Mullins’ Intrepido. The Daily Racing Form reported Vladimir Cerin-trained Mr. A.P. Indy’s first start of 2026 is delayed until March.

Track executives confirmed they are keeping the restriction on computer-assisted wagering that was in place at Santa Anita and Del Mar for most of 2025. CAW wagers in the win pool will be cut off two minutes before post time. The policy has headed off wild odds swings caused by huge last-minute bets.

Santa Anita general manager Nate Newby said no major new horse-safety measures are in the works.

“At this point we’re always fine-tuning,” Newby said. “Nobody does more for safety than California, in my opinion, and that leads into decisions like delaying opening day. (Safety) is going to continue to be our top priority.”