It has been a long 30 months since a sprint race was run on the hillside turf course at Santa Anita. That changes on Friday. The Grade 2 Eddie D Stakes will be run on the hillside turf course as one of four stakes on the opening day of a 16-day autumn meeting that continues through Oct. 31. The Eddie D is likely to produce starters for the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint at Del Mar on Nov. 6. Santa Anita ceased running sprints at about 6 1/2 furlongs on the unique course after a two-horse spill marred the Grade 3 San Simeon Stakes on the final weekend of March 2019. Over the next 18 months, turf sprints at Santa Anita were initially limited to five furlongs before the course was altered slightly to allow races at 5 1/2 furlongs. Last fall, the track completed construction of a chute allowing turf sprints at six and 6 1/2 furlongs, distances used frequently at the track’s six-month 2020-2021 meeting, which ended in June. :: Win big at Santa Anita: Get DRF Past Performances, Picks, Clocker Reports and Betting Strategies.  Through all that time, the hillside turf course was used only for the starts of turf races at 1 1/4 miles or farther. Much has changed in California racing since the 2019 San Simeon. California tracks have instituted a panel of racing officials and veterinarians to review race and veterinary records of horses entered in an effort to improve safety. The panel and tougher medication rules were implemented following pressure from state government to reduce accidents following a series of equine fatalities at Santa Anita in early 2019 that drew international attention. For this autumn meeting, additional protocols have been introduced by track officials for hillside sprints. The course will be used sparingly, with fewer than 10 races expected through the month. Fields will be limited to 10 runners in allowance races and 12 in stakes. Apprentice jockey will not be allowed to ride in the hillside sprints. Horses entered for hillside races must undergo one schooling session on the course within five days of a race to familiarize the runner with the course and the crossover from the hillside portion of the course to the main oval. “The main thing we’re looking for is to give the horses a chance to see it again,” racing secretary Chris Merz said of the schooling sessions. “We believe in the protocols that we have in place.” This week, the Eddie D, the $75,000 Unzip Me Stakes, and an allowance race on Saturday are scheduled for the hillside course. On Friday’s nine-race program, there are three other turf sprints – two at five furlongs and one at six furlongs. They start on the backstretch of the turf oval or from the chute built in late 2020. Racing is held Fridays-Sundays during the autumn meeting as well as on Columbus Day, Monday, Oct. 11. As usual, the first week is loaded with preps for Breeders’ Cup races, which will be run at Del Mar on Nov. 5-6. There are 13 six-figure stakes from Friday through Sunday with ramifications for the Breeders’ Cup. Overall, there are 21 stakes during the meet. Overnight purses have been increased approximately 10 percent compared to the corresponding meeting in 2020, continuing a trend at Southern California tracks since the start of the year. For example, a maiden special weight race on Friday is worth $61,000 compared to $50,000 in 2019 and $55,000 last fall. The $200,000 Eddie D Stakes, named for retired Hall of Fame jockey Eddie Delahoussaye, is the seventh of nine races Friday on a program that begins at 1 p.m. Pacific. The track is offering free general admission and parking on Friday. The Eddie D drew a field of nine, including Law Abidin Citizen, who won the 2019 San Simeon Stakes. Trained by Mark Glatt, Law Abidin Citizen has won 4 of 7 starts at about 6 1/2 furlongs on the hillside turf course. Since the 2019 San Simeon, Law Abidin Citizen has won 2 of 12 starts, including the Grade 3 Longacres Mile at Emerald Downs in 2019. :: DRF Bets players get free Daily Racing Form Past Performances and up to 5% weekly cashback. Click to learn more. In his last start, Law Abidin Citizen was fourth, beaten three-quarters of a length, by Dr. Schivel in the Grade 1 Bing Crosby Stakes at six furlongs on dirt at Del Mar on July 31. “It’d be nice to win the first race back,” Glatt said, speaking of racing on the hillside course. “We know he likes the racing surface. “Is it an advantage? I don’t know. I guess one could say that. He’s a good older horse and we have trouble finding the right spots for him. He tries so hard.” Two other runners in the Eddie D have experience in sprints on the hillside – Mesut, a winner of 2 of 7 starts on the course who was third in the 2019 San Simeon, and Caribou Club, a winner of 2 of 3 starts on the course who won the Grade 3 Joe Hernandez Stakes in January 2019. The field includes the 2021 stakes winners Charmaine’s Mia, Gregorian Chant, Lieutenant Dan, Snapper Sinclair, and Whisper Not as well as Chaos Theory.