Los Alamitos Reports Larger Average Field Size at Meet

Another record-setting performance by Sweet Azteca in the $200,500 Great Lady M. Stakes (G2), a record pool in the Players' Pick 5, increased field size for a second consecutive year and a first local riding title for jockey Kazushi Kimura highlighted the Los Angeles County Fair Thoroughbred meet at Los Alamitos Race Course. The nine-day season concluded July 6. Owned by breeder Pamela Ziebarth and trained by Richard Baltas, Sweet Azteca, the 7-2 second choice, upset heavily-favored Kopion to win the Great Lady M. for a second year in a row. In the process, she bettered by one-hundredth of a second the track record she set in the race in 2024. She ran 6 1/2 furlongs in 1:14.32 July 5 for her sixth win in eight starts. Sweet Azteca, a 5-year-old daughter of Sharp Azteca, became the second horse to win the Great Lady M. twice, joining Marley's Freedom, who went back-to-back in 2018 and 2019 for Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert and Cicero Farms. The Great Lady M. also completed an LACF stakes sweep for jockey Juan Hernandez. The all-time daytime leader with 23 stakes wins, Hernandez captured the $101,000 Bertrando Stakes with Kings River Knight June 21 a week before he teamed with Nevada Beach to take the $100,000 Los Alamitos Derby, providing Baffert with his ninth consecutive win in the race. The total Players' Pick 5 pool of $974,636 June 28 easily eclipsed the previous high of $410,783 Dec. 17, 2016, the day two-time Horse of the Year and longtime Los Alamitos resident California Chrome won the $180,000 Winter Challenge by 12 lengths. A total of $860,344 was wagered chasing a $114,292 carryover—the first in daytime thoroughbred meet history—from the day before. Field size for the all-dirt LACF meet increased over the corresponding season a year ago. The average in 2025 was over 7.6 starters per race compared to slightly less than seven in 2024. Kimura, who was riding at Los Alamitos for the first time, finished the LACF season with 10 victories, one more than Diego Herrera. Steve Knapp and Peter Miller tied for the top spot in the trainer standings with six victories apiece. Knapp also led the 2024 Winter meet while this was the eighth occasion since daytime racing returned to Los Alamitos in 2014 that Miller has either led outright or shared the title. The second daytime meet of 2025 will begin Sept. 12. The six-day September meet will continue through Sept. 21. Racing will be conducted Friday-Sunday (Sept. 13-15 and Sept. 20-22) both weeks. Post time will be 1 p.m. local time.