Hughes Wins Breeders' Cup Juvenile

Only two horses in Breeders' Cup history have won the Juvenile and then returned to claim the Kentucky Derby. Street Sense did it in 2007. Nyquist did it in 2016. On Friday, a colt named Hughes took a step toward joining that exclusive list.

Hughes won the $2 million Juvenile at Keeneland by 2 1/4 lengths. The race covered 1 1/16 miles and ended in a time of 1:42.27. The victory marked the colt's fifth win in five starts. He has won three consecutive Grade 1 races. His first four victories came by a combined 24 1/2 lengths.

Trainer Bob Baffert secured his seventh win in the Juvenile. The victory was his 22nd in the Breeders' Cup, tying the all-time record previously held by Aidan O'Brien. O'Brien had broken the tie just one race earlier. Baffert had won six Kentucky Derbies before a medication issue cost him a seventh with Medina Spirit. He has won the Juvenile seven times, but none of those previous winners took the Derby.

Jockey Flavien Prat kept Hughes close to the lead through a half-mile in 46.65 seconds. The colt appeared eager on the first turn. As the horses approached the stretch, Coach Pope, trained by Kenny McPeek, moved up to challenge Hughes. Baffert leaned forward to see how the young horse would respond.

"He'd never been battle tested," Baffert said. "Today at the quarter pole, I thought, well, we're going to find out what he's made of." Hughes responded by accelerating. Coach Pope fell back. American History finished second, and Baffert's other horse, Salahudin, took third.

"When a horse came to him, he just caught another gear," Baffert said. "You like to see that." Baffert described the colt as a superior 2-year-old. He noted that people compare the horse to a cheetah because of how it moves. Baffert said the colt skips over the ground and never takes a deep breath.

Hughes is a son of Into Mischief, who sired Derby winners Authentic, Mandaloun, and Sovereignty. The horse is owned by a group led by Tom Ryan, who founded Front Row Club to find promising colts. Ryan named the horse after hockey player Jack Hughes, who scored an Olympic gold medal goal for the United States earlier this year. Ryan said he had family pressure to name the horse correctly.

Baffert is already planning for next spring. He said the 2-year-old crop is strong. He mentioned that Salahudin might suit longer distances. Todd Pletcher, the trainer of American History, said his horse could have finished closer with a cleaner trip. Kenny McPeek believes Coach Pope has more to learn. The next major test for Hughes is the Kentucky Derby in May.