Nysos (Nyquist), a jaw-dropping 10 1/2-length debut winner at Santa Anita Oct. 21 and a no-brainer 'TDN Rising Star,' takes on four rivals in Sunday's GIII Bob Hope S. at Del Mar.
Purchased by Baoma Corp for $550,000 at the OBS April Sale, Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert takes the blinkers off for this seven-furlong test. He is the 4-5 morning-line favorite.
Baffert will also saddle Wine Me Up (Vino Rosso), who followed a second-place finish in the GI American Pharoah S. Oct. 7 with a well-beaten eighth in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile; and Mission Beach (Curlin), who makes his first start since tiring to fifth at second asking in the GI Hopeful S. at Saratoga Sept. 4.
The field is rounded out by a pair of last-out maiden winners. Stronghold (Ghostzapper) ships in from Kentucky after graduating for Phil D'Amato at Churchill Downs Oct. 1 and the rail-drawn Tejon Pass (Justify) looks for his second straight for Peter Miller following a Sept. 30 maiden win at Santa Anita.
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