Although a win eluded Vessels Stallion Farm in the Champion of Champions stakes race December 13 at Los Alamitos, Little Bit of Baja still broke the track record.

The four-year-old gelding’s time of 20.974 seconds was faster than the previous record of 21.132 seconds for the 440-yard distance.

Another four-year-old gelding, Jess You and I, won the race in 20.944 seconds and finished a head in front of Little Bit of Baja.

“You always want to win, but those horses were out there by themselves. They both broke the track record,” said Scoop Vessels. “It’s just hard to complain when...