Nysos dominates Met Mile

Nysos blew past rivals entering the stretch and drew off to a four-length victory in Saturday’s $1 million Metropolitan (G1) at Saratoga, winning impressively as the 7-5 favorite. Flavien Prat delivered a masterful ride aboard the Bob Baffert-trained five-year-old horse.

“He’s good; a great horse,” Baffert said. “That was a tough bunch. I’m just so happy for the owners. They let me take my time with this horse and get him ready. I’m just happy that he ran his race. I told Prat you’re going to have to quarter-horse him away from there - and he did; he got him away from there - but Prat, he knows the horse really well. He rode him with a lot of confidence.” 

Never worse than second in nine career outings, Nysos made amends for only his second career loss, a length second to Forever Young in February’s Saudi Cup (G1) overseas. That came after four consecutive graded stakes wins to conclude last year, including the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (G1). 

Nysos flashed speed at the break of the Met Mile, showing the way early before dropping back to stalk frontrunners on the backstretch. Prat began to angle his mount wide as he neared the completion of the far turn, and Nysos drove past Knightsbridge and Antiquarian in upper stretch, cruising home much the best.

“It was the one hole; I wanted to get running at least past the turn (out of the Wilson Chute),” Prat said. “It felt like down the backside, the pressure from the outside never really stopped. I figured I had to give him a chance, knowing he was carrying 126 (pounds) and he hasn't run for months, and it just played out good. When I tipped him out, he gave me a great run." 

Nysos finished the mile in 1:34.85, .13 seconds off the track record at Saratoga. 

His other setback, a dead-heat second in an outstanding edition of the Churchill Downs (G1), came when returning from a 15-month layoff in his 2025 comebacker, and Nysos has now bankrolled more than $2.2 million for owners Charles and Susan Chu’s Baoma Corp., Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor, and Derrick Smith. 

“We had this targeted (this year),” Baffert said. “It takes a little bit of the sting out of the Saudi Cup. What a talent. I always thought he was one of the best older horses in training, and today he showed it. Actually, I was talking to a numbers guy, and I said, ‘how can you not like my horse - this is one of the best horses I’ve ever trained,’ and he said, ‘well, he just doesn’t fit.’ Well, I think he fits now. He’s one of the smartest horses I’ve ever trained. He’s really smart, quiet and cool.”

Baffert said the $1 million Pacific Classic (G1) at Del Mar on Aug. 22 is a possible target this summer, with the $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) at Keeneland this fall the main goal.

“We are going for the (Breeders’ Cup) Classic with him,” Baffert said. “I think I might take him to maybe Del Mar. Pacific Classic, maybe. He runs well there, where the turf meets the surf, or maybe the Whitney (G1) (at Saratoga). I want to space out his races. My options are (Del Mar) or the Whitney, or to take him back to Churchill. 

Knightsbridge, a smashing winner of the Gulfstream Park Mile (G3) and Fred Hooper (G3) at Gulfstream Park earlier this year, edged late-running Journalism by three-quarters of a length for second. Antiquarian came next in fourth, followed by Saudi Crown and Rated by Merit. Vibe was pulled up during the race and vanned off the track.

By Nyquist, Nysos was bred in Kentucky by Susie Atkins and sold for $550,000 at the 2023 OBS April two-year-old sale. He’s out of the unraced Bernardini mare Zetta Z.

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