Baeza

Baeza earned his maiden win in his third career start on Feb. 14, 2025, by 4 3/4 lengths in a one-mile race at Santa Anita, scoring a decisive victory over rivals that included Mellencamp and Westwood.

Baeza stepped up in his next start in the Grade 1 $500,000 Santa Anita Derby going 1 1/8 miles at Santa Anita on April 5 and ran a very competitive second in a five-horse field, beaten three-quarters of a length by Journalism while 8 1/2 lengths clear of Westwood back in third in a field that also included Citizen Bill (finished fourth) and Barnes (finished fifth).

Baeza next pointed to the May 3 Kentucky Derby but fell slightly short based on qualifying points and began Kentucky Derby week at Churchill Downs as an also eligible for the run for the roses. Following a pair of last-minute scratches, Baeza drew-in to the Kentucky Derby field and raced as horse No. 21 and started the race from the far outside post 19. Baeza sat far off the pace much of the race in the back-half of the field but began making his move passing horses on the turn and continued a sustained rally to get up for a clear third-place finish, just a neck short of catching Journalism for second.

Following the Kentucky Derby, Baeza skipped the second jewel of the 2025 Triple Crown in the Preakness Stakes and was instead pointed directly to the Belmont Stakes on June 7 at Saratoga. Starting as the third choice on the tote board in a field of eight at odds of 7-2, Baeza sat back in the pack much of the way and launched a rally in the stretch to get up for third, beaten 6 1/2 lengths by Sovereignty.

Baeza returned to the races for his first post-Triple Crown outing on July 26 at Saratoga in the Grade 2 $500,000 Jim Dandy Stakes. His season of mainly playing second and third fiddle in many of the year's highest-profile stakes races continued in the Jim Dandy when he gave Sovereignty a run for his money but ultimately settled for second by a length while clear of the other three runners in the five-horse field at the distance of 1 1/8 miles.

After a season of distinguishing himself in a series of good performances in defeats at the highest levels of 3-year-old competition, Baeza's time to shine finally arrived in the Grade 1 $1 million Pennsylvania Derby on Sept. 20 at Parx Racing. Baeza was much the best as the 7-5 favorite atop a 10-horse field in the Pennsylvania Derby, rallying from near the rear of the pack to blow by the field on the turn before overtaking the leaders in the stretch. He draw off to a 2 1/4-length win under jockey Hector Berrios to earn his first Grade 1 victory.

Baeza finished his 3-year-old season with a sixth-place finish in the Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic. His connections announced that he would stay in training for a 4-year-old campaign in 2026, but owners C R K Stable and Grandview Equine had to transfer the colt after the unexpected death of trainer John Shirreffs in February.

The colt was shipped east to Bill Mott’s stable, and he debuted at age 4 in the May 1 Alysheba Stakes Presented by U.S. Army. Baeza started very slowly and trailed the field for most of the 1 1/16-mile race, but rallied strongly in the stretch to finish a close third.

Baeza’s claim to fame before his racing career even started was his classic-winning bloodlines. Bred by Grandview Equine, he’s by the sire McKinzie and out of the broodmare Puca, making him a half-brother to two recent classic winners, 2023 Kentucky Derby winner Mage and 2024 Belmont Stakes winner Dornoch (both sired by Good Magic).