ARCADIA, Calif. (AP) Midnight Hawk seized command turning for home and rolled to a 1 1/2-length victory in the $60,000 feature Friday at Santa Anita, a major drop in class for the 4-year-old colt trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert and co-owned by Chicago Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville.
Ridden by Victor Espinoza, Midnight Hawk ran one mile in 1:36.77 and paid $4.40, $3.20 and $2.80 as the 6-5 favorite.
Cool Samurai returned $7.60 and $5.20, while Airfoil was another head back in third and paid $4.80 to show.
Midnight Hawk was coming off a ninth-place finish in the Grade 1 Malibu Stakes on Dec. 26. The gray colt won for the first time since taking the Sham Stakes on Jan. 11, 2014.
Midnight Hawk was coming off a ninth-place finish in the Grade 1 Malibu Stakes on Dec. 26. The gray colt won for the first time since taking the Sham Stakes on Jan. 11, 2014. Running in an allowance feature was a far cry from the usual stakes races Midnight Hawk had been competing in.
''The extra distance helped,'' Espinoza said. ''Last time I rode him we went seven-eighths and the pace was too fast for him. Bob and I both felt it would be better to go a little longer and he could follow a slower pace and keep up with them but also finish better.''
The victory, worth $36,000, increased Midnight Hawk's career earnings to $490,700, with three wins in 10 starts.
