Post-time favorite National Treasure wasted no time finding
the lead Saturday in the Grade 1, $1 million Metropolitan Handicap. Breaking
alertly under jockey Flavien Prat, he never trailed on the way to a lopsided triumph
against five rivals at Saratoga.
Owned by a partnership led by SF Racing and trained by Bob
Baffert, the 4-year-old Quality Road colt drew off from Hoist the Gold turning
for home and ran away to about a five-length victory.
Click here for Saratoga entries and results.
With the Met Mile being run for the first time at Saratoga
as a 1 1/2-turn race out of the Wilson chute, National Treasure (6-5)
established fractions of 23.52, 45.75 and 1:09.34 on the way to a winning time
of 1:35.12 on the fast main track.
Post Time (5-1) finished second, Hoist the Gold (11-1)
third, Castle Chaos (29-1) fourth, White Abarrio (8-5) fifth and Blazing Sevens
(6-1) last of six. National Treasure paid $4.70, $3.10 and $2.60. Post Time returned
$4.30 and $3.10. Hoist the Gold paid $4.70.
It was the second Met Mile win for both Baffert and Prat.
Baffert won in 2017 with Mor Spirit. Prat finished first in 2022 with eventual
horse of the year Flightline.
Coming off a fourth-place finish last out in the $20 million
Saudi Cup (G1) on Feb. 24, National Treasure collected his third Grade 1 win.
He also finished first in the 2023 Preakness and the 2024 Pegasus World Cup
Invitational.
This story will be updated by Matt Shifman’s report from
Saratoga.