Freedom’s Not Free nails favorite Sumter on the wire to win the Grade III Daytona Stakes going about 6 ½ furlongs on the hillside turf course Saturday at Santa Anita

FREEDOM’S NOT FREE NAILS FAVORITE SUMTER ON THE WIRE TO WIN THE GRADE III DAYTONA STAKES GOING ABOUT 6 ½ FURLONGS ON THE HILLSIDE TURF COURSE SATURDAY AT SANTA ANITA

ARCADIA, CA (June 13, 2026)—Freedom’s Not Free rallied furiously under Juan Hernandez in the final furlong and nailed favorite Sumter in the final jump to win a thrilling edition of the Grade III, $100,000 Daytona Stakes going about 6 ½ furlongs on the hillside turf course at Santa Anita.

Sumter (2-1), with Mike Smith aboard, powered to the lead in mid-stretch and looked to be on his way to a second graded stakes victory for trainer Richard Mandella. But Freedom’s Not Free and jockey Juan Hernandez had other ideas. Freedom’s Not Free carved into Sumter’s lead in the late going and got his nose down on the wire to prevail in a photo finish. Trained by Mark Glatt, Freedom’s Not Free won in a time of 1:12.49 following fractions of 21.84, 43.79 and 1:06.12.

“He broke beautifully,” Hernandez said. “Mark’s assistant told me not to rush him and try to stay behind the pace. And that’s what my horse did. He broke good and then after that he took his time. I was tracking the 12 horse (Sumter), I knew he was the horse to beat. Crossing the dirt, my horse switched leads and he took off.”

First Peace (5-1), also trained by Glatt, finished 1 ½ lengths back in third and was followed by Anmer Hall (8-1).

Freedom’s Not Free was making his first start since August when he finished second in the GII Del Mar Derby going 1 1/8 miles on turf. This was the third stakes win for the 4-year-old colt by Omaha Beach. Last year, Freedom’s Not Free won the Cinema Stakes and Pasadena Stakes, both going a mile on turf at Santa Anita.

Freedom’s Not Free is owned by Blinkers On Racing Stable, Janlois Racing, Valinor Racing Stable, Tom Corbett, Andy Kwan and Jay Lester Wagner. He improved to 10: 4-2-3 with more than $340,000 in earnings.

“Mark’s been talking highly, for months now really,” said Scott Sherwood of Blinkers On Racing. “He was 3-year-old when he left and he is a bigger, stronger 4-year-old now. You can see it. He is a good-looking animal and Mark had him ready. I thought he was too far back. If you know any of his races, he has always sat just off the pace. But that was going a mile or a mile and an eighth. I thought, ‘oh, geez, he’s too far back.’ But he had clear sailing and he showed a turn of foot he has never shown.”

Freedom’s Not Free paid $12.20, $5.80 and $4.00. Sumter returned $4.60 and $3.00. First Peace, with Kazushi Kimura aboard, returned $4.00.

__GRADE III, $100,000 DAYTONA STAKES QUOTES __

JOCKEY QUOTES

JUAN HERNANDEZ, FREEDOM’S NOT FREE, WINNER: “I didn’t know if I could get there, but I was thinking in my mind I didn’t lose. All the credit goes to my horse, he was feeling really good. Mark Glatt called my agent a couple of weeks ago to work him because the horse was doing so well. I worked him a couple weeks ago and he worked great. Mark put him in this race and he proved that he’s back. He showed up again. He broke beautifully. Mark’s assistant told me not to rush him and try to stay behind the pace. And that’s what my horse did. He broke good and then after that he took his time. I was tracking the 12 horse (Sumter), I knew he was the horse to beat. Crossing the dirt, my horse switched leads and he took off.”

OWNER QUOTES

SCOTT SHERWOOD, BLINKERS ON RACING, FREEDOM’S NOT FREE, WINNER: “Mark’s been talking highly, for months now really. He was 3-year-old when he left and he is a bigger, stronger 4-year-old now. You can see it. He is a good-looking animal and Mark had him ready. I thought he was too far back, if you know any of his races, he has always sat just off the pace. But that going a mile or a mile and an eighth. I thought, ‘oh, geez, he’s too far back.’ But he had clear sailing and he showed a turn of foot he has never shown.”

NOTES: Mark Glatt was the winning trainer. The winning owner are Blinkers On Racing Stable, Janlois Racing, LLC, Valinor Racing Stable, LLC, Tom Corbett, Andy Kwan and Jay Lester Wagner