Bob Baffert’s Fighting Mad wins easily in Santa Maria Stakes at Santa Anita
ARCADIA — Fighting Mad, a 10-1 longshot, and jockey Abel Cedillo played catch us if you can Sunday at Santa Anita, and the other four horses were no match for the 4-year-old New Year’s Day filly in the $200,000 Grade II Santa Maria Stakes. It’s not often, at least locally, that bettors get a Bob Baffert trainee at double-digit odds, but two of the better fillies on the grounds, Ce Ce and Hard Not to Love, were among the five-horse lineup and, on paper, appeared to be standouts. Fighting Mad sped out of the gate in the 1 1/16-mile test, carving out splits of 23.25, 46.49 and 1:10.09 en route to a 3 1/4-length victory. She was never threatened in the stretch by Hard Not to Live, the 5-2 second wagering choice, or 3-5 favorite Ce Ce. The final time was a rapid 1:42.12 as Fighting Mad won for the fourth time in seven starts, increasing her career bankroll to $294,008 with the $120,000 winner’s share of the purse. Cedillo, who’s been extremely hot lately, said he had a lot of horse unde...