BENOIT PHOTO
Kirkwood consigned MUCHO GUSTO brought $625,000 at the Fasig Tipton Midlantic Sale at Timonium in 2018.
An open-length victory in the grade 3 Robert B. Lewis Stakes Feb. 2 at Santa Anita Park was enough to earn Mucho Gusto a place in the top 10 in this week’s National Thoroughbred Racing Association top 3-year-old poll.
Owned by Michael Lund Petersen, Mucho Gusto became the latest sophomore from the barn of Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert to stamp himself within the division. He debuts at No. 4 in this week’s poll.
“This is the time of the year when you want to start getting excited about something (on the Triple Crown trail),” Baffert said after the race. “We’re still dreaming in Technicolor, but they have to start performing and they have to move forward from here, but it’s a fun position to be in.”
Baffert trainees make up three of the top four spots in the poll. Eclipse Award winner Game Winner remains in first with 37 first-place votes and 405 points. Improbable is second (3 first-place votes, 350 points) with War of Will, trained by Mark Casse, sitting third (1 first-place vote, 273 points).
Top 3-year-old poll
Rank horse points (first-place votes)
1. Game Winner 405 (37)
2. Improbable 350 (3)
3. War of Will 273 (1)
4. Mucho Gusto 220
5. Instagrand 163
6. Knicks Go 135
7. Hidden Scroll 118
8. Signalman 102
9. Gunmetal Gray 88
10. Tax 66