Classier Los Alamitos win for Smith

At age 55, jockey Mike Smith can still be referred to as “Big Money Mike.”

Make no mistake, Smith can still ride with the best of them. He proved it Sunday by guiding Classier to a nose victory over stablemate Defunded after a stirring stretch duel in the $150,000 Grade III Los Alamitos Derby.

Forget the fact Classier’s victory gave trainer Bob Baffert his fifth consecutive win in the race and sixth in the past seven years, this day belonged to Smith, who guided Classier gate to wire for the Empire Maker colt’s second victory in four starts and first since he broke his maiden by 4 lengths in his career debut on Oct. 24 at Santa Anita.

Classier, the 6-5 second betting choice, stumbled at the start of his most recent race, the Grade III Affirmed Stakes at Santa Anita on June 13, eventually finishing a well-beaten third. But Smith, riding the winner for the first time, got Classier out of the gate smoothly from the rail Sunday and he was never headed.

Setting fractions of 22.98, 47.01 and 1:11.08 in the 1 1/8mile race reserved for 3-yearolds, Classier led by 2 lengths after the first half mile and held a one-half length lead at the head of Los Alamitos’ long stretch as Defunded, the 3-5 favorite following his second-place finish behind The Chosen Vron in the Affirmed Stakes, loomed up on the outside and appeared ready to sweep on by.

But Smith and Classier had other ideas.

“I really thought, and the rider (Abel Cedillo on Defunded) thought, Defunded had him the whole way,” Baffert said. “It was pretty exciting, and I was really hoping for a dead heat because I’ve always wanted one of those in a stakes.”

Classier and Defunded battled the entire length of the stretch, finishing 14 lengths in front of thirdplace finisher Ingest, ridden by Juan Hernandez. It’s My House and Back Ring Luck completed the order of finish in the short five-horse lineup. Final time was 1:49.15.

“I waited until the eighth pole to ask him and when he saw (Defunded), he really dug in,” Smith said. “This is a big colt with a lot to him and he is going to get even better.”

Classier stepped into deep waters after his impressive career bow, running in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at Keeneland and finishing eighth, beaten 12 lengths. Baffert gave him some time off, waiting until the Affirmed

Stakes and then deciding to run Classier in Sunday’s race after he worked so well Thursday.

“I wasn’t going to run (Classier) in this race,” Baffert said. “I talked to the ownership group and told them I was going to work him and, if he worked well, I’d run him. He worked very well (a half mile in 47.20 at Santa Anita) so we decided to go.”

Baffert sees more good things in Classier’s future.

“He’s going to improve off this,” he said. “I can take my time with him now and figure out a spot because he is bred to be a superstar.”

The inaugural running of the Los Alamitos Derby, formerly the Swaps Stakes at Hollywood Park before the Inglewood track closed in December 2013, was won by the Jerry Hollendorfertrained Shared Belief in 2014.

Baffert’s first victory came with Gimme Da Lute in 2015, followed by West Coast (2017), Once On Whiskey (2018), Game Winner (2019) and Uncle Chuck (2020).

Smith is the race’s only two-time winning jockey, having also ridden Shared Belief. Accelerate, second in balloting for Horse of the Year in 2018 behind Triple Crown champion Justify, won the 2016 edition of the Los Alamitos Derby.