Princess Arabella coasts in $200K Sunland Oaks

With Bob Baffert in Dubai getting ready for next week’s World Cup, Princess Arabella gave her trainer his fourth career victory in the $200,000 Sunland Oaks on March 25. Baffert won last year’s race at the southern New Mexico track by 25 lengths with Plum Pretty, who went on to win the Kentucky Oaks (G1).

Princess Arabella may not have won by as much as Plum Pretty, but her eight length victory looked just as easy. The chestnut daughter of Any Given Saturday came out of the gate and went right to the front, setting a moderate pace of :47.24 for the half mile. Her closest pursuer, Glinda the Good, made a run on the far turn, but could get no closer than a half-length before Princess Arabella pulled away once again. She continued to widen through the stretch under a hand ride from Martin Garcia, finishing the 1 1/16 miles in 1:43.52.

Princess Arabella is now three-for-three lifetime; prior to the Oaks in two starts at Santa Anita, she broke her maiden by 3 1/2-lengths on New Year’s Eve and won an allowance by an identical margin on Feb. 12. Though she’s nominated to the Triple Crown, the $1 million Kentucky Oaks on May 5 is her next likely start, according to Baffert’s assistant Jimmy Barnes.

Owned by Peachtree Stable, as is Plum Pretty, the $120,000 payday upped Princess Arabella’s lifetime earnings to $188,400.