Lord Nelson Qualifies (Again) for Breeders’ Cup with Santa Anita Win

Lord Nelson

Spendthrift Farms’ Lord Nelson qualified — again — for the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Sprint (GI) after earning a 2 ½-length victory in the Santa Anita Sprint Championship (GI) over four talented rivals on Saturday. The Bob Baffert trainee was ridden to victory by jockey Flavien Prat, who was also aboard when the son of Pulpit caputured another “Win and You’re In” Breeders’ Cup event — the Bing Crosby (GI) at Del Mar on July 31. Lord Nelson  finished the six furlongs in 1:08.80.

All Run set all of the early pace of :21.37, :43.80 and :56 before begrudgingly giving up his lead to the winner, who stalked the pacesetter on the outside for more than five furlongs, in deep stretch and settled for runner-up honors, while crossing the wire another 3 ¾ lengths in front of Jazzy Times. Cautious Giant and Anytime Anyplace completed the order of finish.

At odds of 1-2, Lord Nelson returned $3, $2.10 and $2.10, keying a $11.30 exacta for $1 over 23-1 chance All Run, who was good for $8.80 and $2.80. Jazzy Times returned $2.10 at 7-5. The $.50 trifecta was worth $12.60.

According to Baffert, the likely next stop for Lord Nelson will be the Breeders’ Cup, despite carrying a reservation or two about who else will be in the gate next to him.

“There’s always a lot of speed in that race. You’ve got Masochistic and you’ve got [fellow Baffert trainee] Drefong. He’s pretty fast too. To win the Sprint you have to be doing really well, be at the top of your game. Post position is so important. The Sprint is a difficult race to win, but if you have the right kind of horse you can do it and so far, Lord Nelson looks like the right kind of horse. He likes this track and he hasn’t lost this year.

In addition to the Bing Crosby and the Santa Anita Sprint, Lord Nelson also won last year’s San Vicente Stakes (GII), Speakeasy Stakes and placed in two other graded events. His career line now stands at 13-7-1-1. He has earned $958,271 in purses.

Margaret Ransom

California native and lifelong horsewoman Margaret Ransom is a graduate of the University of Arizona’s Race Track Industry Program. She got her start in racing working in the publicity departments at Calder Race Course and Hialeah Park, as well as in the racing office at Gulfstream Park in South Florida. She then spent six years in Lexington, KY, at BRISnet.com, where she helped create and develop the company’s popular newsletters: Handicapper’s Edge and Bloodstock Journal.

After returning to California, she served six years as the Southern California news correspondent for BloodHorse, assisted in the publicity department at Santa Anita Park and was a contributor to many other racing publications, including HorsePlayer Magazine and Trainer Magazine. She then spent seven years at HRTV and HRTV.com in various roles as researcher, programming assistant, producer and social media and marketing manager.

She has also walked hots and groomed runners, worked the elite sales in Kentucky for top-class consignors and volunteers for several racehorse retirement organizations, including CARMA.

In 2016, Margaret was the recipient of the prestigious Stanley Bergstein Writing Award, sponsored by Team Valor, and was an Eclipse Award honorable mention for her story, “The Shocking Untold Story of Maria Borell,” which appeared on USRacing.com. The article and subsequent stories helped save 43 abandoned and neglected Thoroughbreds in Kentucky and also helped create a new animal welfare law known as the “Borell Law.”

Margaret’s very first Breeders’ Cup was at Hollywood Park in 1984 and she has attended more than half of the Breeders’ Cups since. She counts Holy Bull and Arrogate as her favorite horses of all time. She lives in Pasadena with her longtime beau, Tony, two Australian Shepherds and one Golden Retriever.