Trainer Bob Baffert's favored Liaison won the $100,000 Real Quiet Stakes for 2-year-olds at Hollywood Park in his stakes debut.
Ridden by Rafael Bejarano and running less than a month after his maiden victory, Liaison was fourth in the field of six juveniles in the early going. He then took a narrow lead coming out of the second turn and held on to beat a rallying Rousing Sermon by a half-length, covering 1-1/16 miles in 1 minute, 44.72 seconds.
''Liaison is just getting better and better,'' Baffert said.
The colt, a son of Baffert's Kentucky Derby starter Indian Charlie, is one of several candidates the trainer has for the $750,000 CashCall Futurity at Hollywood Park, a race that usually helps set the stage for the following year's Derby and one that Baffert has won five times.
The winner paid $3.8 for a win bet. Senor Rain was a distant third.
The victory was the second in three career starts for Liaison, who is owned by Arnold Zetcher LLC and has won a total of $94,560.
