Getaway Car wins head bob in thrilling Sunland Park Derby

Getaway Car prevailed by a nose after a stretch-long duel in Sunday’s $400,000 Sunland Park Derby, earning the Bob Baffert colt an additional 20 qualifying points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby, which brings his overall total to 36.

Winner of the Best Pal S. (G3) last August, the 3-year-old colt was making his 2025 debut in Sunday’s 1 1/16-mile race. He went to the front right away, holding a one-length lead over Smash It for the first five furlongs. Caldera moved into second midway on the final turn and took the lead from Getaway Car in upper stretch. Getaway Car rallied back and the were noses apart in the final furlong, with Getaway Car hitting the wire first in a head-bobbing finish.

“That was the race we expected him to run,” Baffert’s assistant Jimmy Barnes said. “Our horses like to set the pace. Juan did an excellent job of warming him up and getting him on the lead and finding more when he needed it.”

Bred in Kentucky by Blue Heaven Farm and Curlin Syndicate, Getaway Car has earned $585,800 through seven starts for the partnership of SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Stonestreet Stables, Dianne Bashor, Determined Stables, Robert Masterson, Tom Ryan, Waves Edge Capital and Catherine Donovan. In addition to winning the Best Pal S., he finished second in both the American Pharoah S. (G1) and Los Alamitos Futurity (G2) during his 2024 campaign.