Hughes crushed his opponents once again and now marches undefeated into the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile
The Bob Baffert-trained colt effortlessly handled his two-turn debut, powering away to a 6-length victory in the American Pharoah Stakes (G1) at Santa Anita Park to keep his flawless four-for-four record intact; meanwhile, Domain Expansion pulled off the huge shocker of the afternoon, storming home by 7 lengths in the Oak Leaf Stakes (G2)
ARCADIA, California (Special for Turf Diario).— Every new challenge seems to provide Hughes with an opportunity to display a different virtue. He had already demonstrated speed and crushing superiority in his first three starts. This Saturday, under oppressive heat at Santa Anita Park, he added something fundamental with an eye toward what lies ahead: he tackled two turns for the first time, accepted rating behind other horses, relaxed, and, when Juan Hernándezasked him to accelerate, crushed his rivals once again.
The result was another exhibition from the unbeaten colt conditioned by Bob Baffert, who drew away to a 6-length victory in the American Pharoah Stakes (G1-1,700 m, $300,000) and secured his place in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1), scheduled for October 30 at Keeneland.
Hughes is now 4-for-4, and his winning margins are beginning to speak for themselves. He had won on debut by 6 lengths, then captured the Best Pal Stakes (G3) by 7 3/4 lengths, and earned his first G1 victory by flattening the field by 4 3/4 lengths in the Del Mar Futurity (G1). Now he added another 6-length romp to his resume.
This time, however, the race flow required him to learn. Net Par (Pavel) set out determined to make things difficult, setting fractions of :23.37 and :46.86. Hernández did not engage in that battle. He kept Hughes third, covered up behind horses, and waited.
“He broke a step slow, but he relaxed really well behind horses. I had horse under me the entire race,” the jockey explained. “I was just waiting to reach the quarter pole to start making my move. When I asked him, he exploded toward the wire.”
Hughes attacked wide on the far turn, struck the lead entering the final 400 meters, and built another massive margin from there.
He hit the wire in 1:43.22, with 6 lengths over Net Par. The superiority of both over the rest was equally categorical: the runner-up finished 9 1/2 lengths ahead of Imperial Honor (Honor A.P.) in third.
“He’s Getting Better and Better”
For Baffert, even more important than the winning margin was the way Hughes handled his two-turn debut.
“He sat behind horses, and that was what we wanted to see,” he explained. “At first he was a little eager, but then he settled nicely, and when Juan asked him to go, he went. On top of that, he set a very respectable time.”
The trainer emphasized his colt’s ability to relax.
“It was his first time going two turns. Juan managed to get him to calm down, and he turned off. That’s what you need—a horse capable of turning off. He did it.”
And he left a statement that, looking ahead to the Breeders’ Cup, raises expectations even higher: “I think he’s getting better and better. Small steps, making progress in the right direction.”
Hughes had cost $675,000 at the 2025 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. The son of Into Mischief was bred in Kentucky by Breffni Farm and is out of K P Dreamin (Union Rags), who was third in both the Chandelier Stakes(G1) and the Starlet Stakes (G1).
His pedigree is also steeped in California references. His second dam is a daughter of champion Point Given (Thunder Gulch), while the dam line includes Go Between (Point Given), winner of the Pacific Classic (G1).
For Into Mischief, seven-time champion sire, Hughes adds to an extraordinary 2026 crop of G1 winners that also includes Sovereignty, Shred the Gnar, Eclatant, Renegade, and Commandment.
The American Pharoah also awarded 10-5-3-2-1 qualifying points toward the 2027 Kentucky Derby (G1). Hughesnaturally collected the top 10 points, though his immediate objective is much closer at hand.
Keeneland awaits him in less than a month, and Hughes will enter as one of the standout names for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. Undefeated, a winner of two G1s, and, above all, having yet to encounter a rival capable of forcing him to show where his limits lie.
Domain Expansion in the Oak Leaf
While Hughes delivered on all expectations, Domain Expansion took care of shattering them. The daughter of Speaker’s Corner entered the Oak Leaf Stakes (G2-1,700 m, $200,000) with just a single start, still a maiden, and coming off a turf debut. Yet she went on to crush her opposition by 7 lengths, securing her ticket to the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1).
Off at 14-1, the Leonard Powell trainee had finished second on debut on September 5 at Del Mar over the mile on grass. The step up was enormous: switching to dirt, jumping straight into a G2, and tackling three Baffert fillies.
None of that mattered in the end. Adrian Escobedo placed her second behind Deluge (Maximus Mischief), saving ground along the inside rail, and angled out for room entering the home stretch. Once she found daylight, Domain Expansion shifted gears and burst past to win by 7 lengths in a final time of 1:44.44.
Holmby (Corniche) finished second, 3 1/4 lengths ahead of heavy favorite Quattro Passi (Girvin), who never truly threatened. Deluge, who had set fractions of :23.05, :47.11, and 1:11.86, finished fifth.
The victory also carried special significance for Escobedo: it marked the first graded stakes victory of his career.
“It feels incredible. This filly is just getting started, and hopefully we can go very far with her,” he celebrated. Powellalso made it clear that he had held high hopes for Domain Expansion right from her early morning workouts.
“She’s very talented. Ever since we started working her at Del Mar, she showed things a typical 2-year-old doesn’t show,” he explained. “I still believe she has plenty of room to improve.”
Purchased for $130,000 as a yearling and owned by California Racing Partners, Ciaglia Racing, Allen R. Keith, and Kevin O’Donnell, Domain Expansion also collected 10 qualifying points for the Kentucky Oaks (G1).
Most importantly, in a matter of weeks, she transformed from a maiden with a single grass start under her belt into a graded stakes winner with a guaranteed spot in the Breeders’ Cup.
Santa Anita Park thus left two formidable names bound for Keeneland, albeit through completely different paths: Hughes, who does not know what it means to lose and continues to crush rivals, and Domain Expansion, who needed just two races to turn raw promise into a graded stakes victory and earn the right to measure herself against the finest fillies of her generation.
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