With a perfectly timed ride by jockey Juan Hernandez, Potente scored his first graded stakes win in the $201,000 Grade 2 San Felipe Stakes presented by DK Horse March 7 at Santa Anita Park. The victory makes Potente trainer Bob Baffert's latest contender on the road to the May 2 Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve.

Potente broke sharply but was taken back to settle just off the leaders. He stalked the pace down the backstretch and began to chase his rivals on the far turn. As the field came into the stretch, Potente sat in the third position and was starting to gain ground. Under a drive on the grandstand side in the final sixteenth, he forged ahead to edge 67-1 longshot Robusta right at the wire. Robusta settled for second just a head behind the winner.

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The first- through fifth-place finishers all earned Road to the Kentucky Derby points on a scale of 50-25-15-10-5.

Mark Glatt trainee So Happy finished third. Secured Freedom took fourth, and Baffert's heavily favored Brant finished fifth in his first start since he was third in last fall's FanDuel Breeders' Cup Juvenile presented by TAA. Brant led the San Felipe in fractions of :22.88, :46.62, and 1:10.42 while pressed throughout by So Happy until flattening out at the quarter pole and weakening in the stretch.

Last year's San Felipe winner Journalism went on to finish second in the 2025 Kentucky Derby.

"I knew the pace was going to be hot. I think Brant was a work away from this race. He got tired," Baffert said. "Potente is bred to go that far. He was ready for that. (Kazushi) Kimura (who rode Potente in his debut) told me he thought the horse was a two-turn horse. I was just a little disappointed in Brant. We're moving forward with Potente. He'll have another start before the Kentucky Derby."

Still lightly raced with only two starts, Saturday's effort could be just the beginning for Potente ($18.20).

"This horse has a lot of talent. He's big, he's strong, and he showed up today," Hernandez said of the winner. "As we turned for home, I swung out a little bit, and it took me a little while to get going, because, like I said, he's very big. But man, he's a really, really nice horse. It's only his second start and he's improving. I think he's going to be even better next time."

Robusta's connections also believe their horse will keep improving in light of his second-place finish.

"He ran huge. The blinkers made the difference today," trainer Doug O'Neill said. "We're going to the Santa Anita Derby and the Kentucky Derby. Let's go."

Potente is now 2-for-2 with earnings of $162,000 after breaking his maiden Jan. 31 at Santa Anita. He is owned by Speedway Stables, who purchased the son of seven-time leading sire Into Mischief at Fasig-Tipton's 2024 The Saratoga Sale for $2.4 million. -- Lizzie Madden

British Isles Gets Grade 1 Win in Santa Anita Handicap

British Isles overtook leaders Midnight Mammoth and Getaway Car on the second turn and pulled away in the stretch for a decisive victory for trainer Richard Baltas and jockey Diego Herrera in the $300,000 Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap presented by Yaamava' Resort & Casino at San Miguel on March 7 at Santa Anita.

Vodka Vodka came on for second ahead of Getaway Car in third. Favored Just a Touch ran fourth and Midnight Mammoth tired to last in field reduced to five horses after the earlier scratches of Skippylongstocking and Westwood.

British Isles raced 1 1/4 miles on a fast main track in 2:05.17. He returned $16.40 for a $2 win wager. The "Big Cap" marked the first career Thoroughbred Grade 1 victory in the career of jockey Diego Herrera. -- Tracy Gantz