Already with a record seven GIII Sham S. trophies, including the two prior runnings and three of the last four, trainer Bob Baffert and the ever-present ownership group nicknamed The Avengers celebrated another big score Saturday at Santa Anita with front-running Newgrange (Violence). Newgrange broke in concert with Rockefeller before taking a narrow edge into the first turn under Hall of Famer John Velazquez. He cruised along at a comfortable tempo through splits of :24.46 and :48.94, and was given his cue to quicken near the 3/8 pole. Rockefeller couldn’t keep pace, and Mackinnon tried to get going over the unfamiliar surface, but nobody was getting to Newgrange as he floated under the line an 2 3/4-length winner. Rockefeller narrowly held second.
