Forbidden Kingdom handily wins the San Felipe gate-to-wire by 5 3/4 lengths under Juan Hernandez March 5, 2022 (Ernie Belmonte/Past The Wire)
Mike Willman/Santa Anita Press Box
ARCADIA, Calif.— An A-List Derby prospect a year ago, Richard Mandella’s Forbidden Kingdom, a solid second in the opening day Grade I Malibu Stakes, heads a field of six older sprinters going seven furlongs in Saturday’s Grade II San Carlos Stakes presented by FanDuel TV at Santa Anita.
Well beaten as the even money favorite four starts back in the Grade I Runhappy Santa Anita Derby April 9, Forbidden Kingdom went to the sidelines and showed good speed in his comeback, a fifth-place finish in the Grade II Santa Anita Sprint Championship on Oct. 1.
Third, beaten a half-length by Get Her Number as the 8-5 favorite in a six-furlong classified allowance at Del Mar Nov. 20, Forbidden Kingdom was most recently beaten 4 ¼ lengths by the talented Taiba in the Malibu Dec. 26.
A 4-year-old colt by 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, Forbidden Kingdom is owned by MyRacehorse and Spendthrift Farm, LLC. Winless in four starts since taking the Grade II San Felipe here on March 5 of last year, Forbidden Kingdom will be reunited with leading man Juan Hernandez. With an overall race record of 9-3-2-2, Forbidden Kingdom has earnings of $507,500.
Owned by Gary Barber and trained by Peter Miller, Get Her Number, who followed his classified allowance win over Forbidden Kingdom Nov. 20 with a huge second place performance over a sloppy track at Aqueduct in the Grade I Cigar Mile Dec. 3, returns to Santa Anita following a ninth-place finish going a mile and one eighth in the Grade I Pegasus World Cup Invitational Jan. 28 at Gulfstream Park.
A 5-year-old full horse by Dialed In, Get Her Number is based at San Luis Rey Downs and will be reunited with Flavien Prat for the first time since his classified win at Del Mar Nov. 20. With an overall mark of 16-5-2-1, Get Her Number has earnings of $725,661.
Trainer Mark Glatt will be well represented by a pair of horses, his Grade II winning Howbeit, who has been supplemented and will be ridden by Mike Smith, and Holden the Lute, who marched to an emphatic 3 ½ length score going seven panels in a second condition allowance on Feb. 19.
Although ridden to victory by Flavien Prat, Holden the Lute, a 6-year-old gelding who was claimed six starts back for $40,000, will be ridden for the first time by Frankie Dettori, as Prat has opted for Get Her Number.
Holden the Lute, who earned a career-top 98 Beyer Speed Figure on Feb. 19, is 29-6-9-2 overall and will be trying stakes competition for only the second time.
Bruce Chandler’s speedy homebred Spirit of Makena, a head shy of being unbeaten in three starts, comes off a scintillating first condition allowance score going six furlongs here on Feb. 11 and will be ridden back by Joe Bravo.
A 5-year-old full horse by Ghostzapper, Spirit of Makena is trained by George Papaprodromou and will be making his first stakes appearance on Saturday on the heels of earning a career-best 98 Beyer.
First post time for a nine-race card on Saturday is at 12:30 p.m. with admission gates opening at 10:30 a.m.
