There Goes Harvard (#1 outside) going for the win in the Hollywood Gold Cup up against the tenacious Defended (inside). (Benoit Photo)
• Hall Of Famer McAnally Excited About A Pair Of Gi Siblings
• Mandatory Rainbow 6 Payout On Sunday
• Coast To Coast Pick 5 Returns Saturday
• Santa Anita Adds Race Card For Friday, Feb. 24
Stable Notes By Victor Ryan
ARCADIA, Calif.—After more than six months on the sidelines, Grade I winner There Goes Harvard makes his return to the races Saturday in the Grade III Thunder Road Stakes going a mile on turf.
There Goes Harvard has been off since a last-place finish in the Grade II San Diego Handicap at Del Mar on July 30. In his race prior to that, the 5-year-old horse by Will Take Charge jumped up to win the Grade I Hollywood Gold Cup going 1 ¼ miles on dirt at Santa Anita.
“He got real sick after the San Diego,” McCarthy said of the layoff. “Something didn’t seem right. He ran too bad to be true. A couple days after that, he didn’t seem like himself and was getting worse. We gave him multiple months off, and he’s come back and trained well.”
There Goes Harvard returned to the work tab Dec. 15 at Santa Anita and has drilled seven times for his comeback. He worked a quick five furlongs in 59.80 seconds on Jan. 21 and came back with another five-furlong move in 1:00 last Saturday, which was the third-fastest of 62 works at the distance that day.
“We’re looking to use this as a steppingstone to something bigger in the spring hopefully. A mile might be too sharp for him,” McCarthy said.
The versatile There Goes Harvard has won two of three starts on turf including at a mile in a second-level allowance in the race prior to his Hollywood Gold Cup score.
“I thought this was a good spot to get him started, a mile on the grass,” McCarthy said. “It’s a pretty salty group, but this fits in my plans operation wise.”
With the early scratch of long shot Beaudacious, a wide-open field of 11 is set to go postward in the Thunder Road. There Goes Harvard is the co-fifth choice at 8-1 on the morning line.
Hall Of Famer McAnally Excited About A Pair Of Grade I Siblings
Sitting trackside at Clocker’s Corner Thursday morning was legendary trainer Ron McAnally, who at the age of 90 continues to breed mares while maintaining a five-horse stable made up of exclusively homebreds at Santa Anita.
“I come out here when I can,” said McAnally, a three-time Eclipse Award winner who was inducted into the Racing Hall of Fame in 1990. “We’re having some problems over at our house in Tarzana, so I need to be there a lot. But I love to come out here because the horses we have here all belong to us.”
McAnally has had one starter at the Classic Meet, the homebred Roses and Candy, who finished seventh in a starter/optional claimer on Jan. 3. In 2022, McAnally had 12 starters with one winner.
At the forefront of McAnally’s mind on Thursday was a pair of unraced homebreds, He’s Our Maker and Charm Your World, who are full siblings to 2021 Grade I Santa Anita Derby winner Rock Your World, who McAnally also bred with his wife Deborah. Both He’s Our Maker and Charm Your World are by Candy Ride out of McAnally’s broodmare Charm The Maker.
He’s Our Maker, a 3-year-old colt, has been galloping at Santa Anita and is nearing his first work. Charm The Maker, a 2-year-old filly, is scheduled to arrive at Santa Anita from Kentucky next week.
“This business is hopes and dreams,” said McAnally, who is best known for guiding the Hall of Fame gelding John Henry to seven separate Eclipse Awards including two Horse of the Year titles in 1981 and 1984. “Horses have been my life and I’ve got to continue to be as good as I can as long as live.”
According to statistics from Equibase, McAnally has saddled 2,592 winners with more than 260 of those coming in graded stakes. In addition to John Henry, McAnally was also the trainer of Hall of Famers Bayakoa and Paseana.
Mandatory Rainbow 6 Payout On Sunday
There will be a mandatory payout of the Rainbow Pick 6 Jackpot on Sunday at Santa Anita. The Rainbow Pick 6 is a 20-cent minimum wager.
Entering Friday’s card, the Rainbow Pick 6 has a carryover of $287,716. Providing there is no single ticket winner on Friday or Saturday, track officials project Sunday’s total Rainbow 6 pool will exceed $3 million.
Entries for Sunday’s card will be available Thursday afternoon.
Saturday’s Coast To Coast Pick 5 Is An All-Stakes Affair
The 1/ST Coast to Coast Pick 5 returns Saturday with a sequence featuring all stakes races from Gulfstream Park and Santa Anita Park. It is a $1 minimum wager with a player-friendly takeout of 15 percent.
The Coast to Coast Pick 5 kicks off at 1:17 with the 10th race from Gulfstream Park, the Grade III Forward Gal for 3-year-old fillies going seven furlongs on dirt. Things then shift to Santa Anita for its fourth race, the Grade III Megahertz for fillies and mares at one mile on turf.
The third leg of the sequence is the Grade III Sweetest Chant at Gulfstream for 3-year-old fillies going long on turf. The final two races in the sequence are the Grade III Holy Bull at Gulfstream, which is an official prep for the Kentucky Derby, and the Grade III Thunder Road for older horses going one mile on turf.
Last Sunday’s Coast to Coast Pick 5 returned $4,019.10 to 39 winning tickets.
FINISH LINES
Newgrange earned a 96 Beyer Speed Figure for his win in Saturday’s Grade II San Pasqual while Havnameltdown received a 94 for his win in Sunday’s Grade III San Vicente…Santa Anita will conduct live racing on Friday, Feb. 24, which was a scheduled dark day. First post time will be at 12:30 p.m. The card has been added as a makeup for weather-related cancellations earlier in the Classic Meet…Every Friday during the Classic Meet on-track patrons will receive free admission, free parking and drink specials that include $3 beers and $5 margaritas…Legendary jockey agent Vince DeGregorywill be Tom Quigley’s featured handicapping guest Friday on the Santa Anita simulcast feed starting at 11:20 … Entering Friday’s action, favorites have won at 29.20 percent clip at the Classic meet.
