Headlines

Sunday, March 10, 2024
Kinza rolled to a five-length victory in Saturday’s $100,000 Santa Ysabel S. (G3) to improve her record to a perfect three-for-three...
Monday, March 4, 2024
Newgate became the sixth Santa Anita H. (G1) winner for Bob Baffert with his dramatic victory in the 1 ¼-mile showcase on March 3...
Monday, March 4, 2024
Du Jour became racing’s newest millionaire and gave Bob Baffert his second of three Graded stakes wins on Sunday with his victory in the $300,000 Frank Kilroe Mile (G1)...
 
Bayern sets track record in $1M Pennsylvania Derby (G2)
Saturday, September 20, 2014
Kaleem Shah’s Bayern rolled to a front-running, 5 ¾-length victory in the $1 million Pennsylvania Derby (G2), defeating dual Classic winner California Chrome and giving Bob Baffert his first Penn Derby win.

Bayern, who won the $1 million Haskell (G1) in July using his early speed, came out of the gate running Saturday’s contest as well. When California Chrome got pinned inside a few lengths back, Bayern was left to his own devices. Longshot C J’s Awesome made a run at the leader on the backstretch, but Bayern pulled away and was never really seriously threatened in the last half-mile.

The final time of 1:46.96 set a new track record for the 1 1/8-miles.

"When California Chrome was pinned in there, I knew it was going be tough for California Chrome," Baffert said. "He was the target; we weren't the target. When Bayern runs like that, nobody's going to beat him. Like in the Haskell." 

Bred in Kentucky by Helen Alexander, Bayern has won five of nine starts and has earned $1,639,680. He also won the Woody Stephens S. (G2).

Bayern was a $320,000 purchase at the 2013 Fasig-Tipton Mid-Atlantic 2-year-olds in training sale from the Eddie Woods consignment.
According to Baffert, Bayern could start in either the Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) or Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (G1), but would wait a few weeks before making a final decision.

Baffert 2013