Litmus Test Gives Baffert 15th Futurity Victory

As the only horse in the Dec. 13 Los Alamitos Futurity (G2) field with graded stakes experience, Litmus Test performed exactly as expected. His 1 1/4-length victory was also not surprising, given that his trainer, Bob Baffert, had already won the Futurity 14 times—six of them at the race's original home at Hollywood Park. Litmus Test, Blacksmith, and Provenance gave Baffert a 1-2-3 finish in this year's edition of the Los Alamitos Race Course event. Bettors backed the three Baffert runners over the other three in the field, sending Litmus Test off as the 3-5 favorite. Blacksmith, a maiden after two outings, went off as the 4-1 second choice, while Provenance, who broke his maiden in his second start, was 6-1. Provenance took the early lead in the 1 1/16-mile Futurity, clicking off fractions of :23.26, :46.67, and 1:10.43. Acknowledgemeplz bore out on the first turn, floating out Blacksmith and longshot American King. Jockey Juan Hernandez put Litmus Test into second behind Provenance, the favorite ready to pounce whenever Hernandez asked him to do so. "He broke a step slow," Hernandez said. "But he relaxed nicely and we were able to save ground into the first turn." Hernandez asked Litmus Test in the second turn. The colt willingly moved up alongside of Provenance and battled his stablemate for a few strides before passing him. Litmus Test was also able to stay ahead of the closing Blacksmith, who finished second by 3 1/2 lengths over Provenance. Litmus Test completed the distance in 1:42.38. "He was looking around a little bit in the stretch," Hernandez said of the winner. "But once he switched leads, he finished strongly." Baffert trains Litmus Test for the partnership of SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Stonestreet Stables, Dianne Bashor, Determined Stables, Golconda Stable, Waves Edge Capital, and Catherine Donovan. SF Racing, Starlight, and Madaket purchased Litmus Test for $875,000 at Fasig-Tipton's The Saratoga Sale in 2024. Not only had none of Litmus Test's rivals ever tried stakes competition before, Litmus Test was coming out of the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1), in which he finished fourth behind winner Ted Noffey. Prior to that, Litmus Test broke his maiden in his debut before finishing fourth in the Del Mar Futurity (G1) and third in the Breeders' Futurity (G1) at Keeneland. Baffert liked what he saw from Litmus Test, saying, "He was in a good spot—he looked like he was relaxed. You could tell down the backside he had control of the race. He's still a little green, but Juan was just telling me that the further the better for him. He loved this track—he got over it really well and just kept on going." The Futurity is part of the Road to the Kentucky Derby. Litmus Test earned 10 qualifying points with the win to have a total of 19; he sits second on the leaderboard behind Ted Noffey. The second- through fifth-place finishers of the Futurity earned points on a 5-3-2-1 scale toward the 2026 Kentucky Derby (G1). Machmer Hall bred Litmus Test in Kentucky and consigned him to the Saratoga sale. The colt is out of the Malibu Moon mare Study Hard, who cost Machmer Hall $100,000 at the 2016 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. Study Hard made only three starts for Carrie Brogden of Machmer Hall, but the mare is a full sister to multiple graded winner Sweet August Moon. A yearling filly out of Study Hard by Twirling Candy sold for $300,000 at this year's Fasig-Tipton Kentucky October Yearling Sale. Litmus Test is by Nyquist, whose 10 other 2025 graded stakes winners include Baffert-trained Nysos (winner of the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile, G1), Cavalieri, and Tenma. Nyquist, the champion 2-year-old male of 2015, is scheduled to stand for a 2026 stud fee of $175,000 at Darley near Lexington.