Avenue gets back to work in Santa Anita allowance

An allowance race at 1 1/8 miles on turf Thursday at Santa Anita poses a few complexities for runners such as Avenue, Carmelita’s Man, and Percolate, who are part of a field of seven.

The fifth-race allowance is the leading race on an eight-race program that begins a four-day weekend at Santa Anita that includes the Breeders’ Cup races on Friday and Saturday and Sunday’s closing day of the autumn meeting.

Avenue was third in the Grade 2 Hollywood Turf Cup at 1 1/2 miles at Del Mar last November. He has not raced since an eighth-place finish in a field of 10 in the Grade 3 San Marcos Stakes at 1 1/4 miles on turf last February.

“It’s a good place to get him back,” trainer Michael McCarthy said of Thursday’s race. “A mile and an eighth might be a tick shorter than he likes.”

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The distance should be a better fit for Percolate, also trained by McCarthy. Percolate has won 3 of 10 starts, with all the wins coming in three of his last four starts in races at a mile or 1 1/16 miles on turf. Percolate won consecutive starts at Del Mar and Santa Anita last November and January.

“He put together a couple of races that were nice,” McCarthy said.

Percolate has had two sharp works at a half-mile recently leading to his comeback. Thursday’s race lacks a confirmed front-runner, which could result in Percolate racing near the lead.

“I’m hoping he fires fresh,” McCarthy said. “In a first race back, he could be a little more keen than expected.”

McCarthy said Percolate was rested earlier this year when his enthusiasm for training waned.

“He wasn’t acting like himself in late spring,” McCarthy said.

Any sort of pace will aid Carmelita’s Man, who has a consistent closing style that has led to four wins in the last 18 months, including three stakes wins in races for California-breds.

Trained by Dean Pederson, Carmelita’s Man was a fast-closing third in an allowance race at 1 1/8 miles on turf Oct. 1 at Santa Anita.

Carmelita’s Man closed from sixth in a field of 10 to win the California Dreamin’ Stakes for statebreds at 1 1/16 miles on turf Aug. 5 at Del Mar, a day in which he chased a moderate pace.

“I think with him, sometimes he runs a little better at a mile than a mile and an eighth because of the pace,” Pederson said. “He’s just got one way of running.

“He’s been an honest horse for the last 2 1/2 years. His bad races are not horrible. Maybe one race out of 10, he doesn’t fire. When he gets beat, it’s because he’s outrun, not a lack of effort.”

The allowance race includes the capable Aligato, who won the Unusual Heat Turf Classic for statebreds at 1 1/8 miles on turf in early 2022, but has lost his last seven starts; and Cash Equity, who was third in the Grade 2 Del Mar Handicap on Sept. 2 and last of eight in the Grade 2 John Henry Turf Championship on Oct. 1 at Santa Anita.

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