Comebacking Mucho Gusto using San Antonio as a bridge to Saudi Cup

ARCADIA, Calif. – Prior to this year’s inaugural Saudi Cup, Mucho Gusto was purchased by Saudi Arabian interests. He finished fourth in the race back in February, and though he returned to the United States after that, instructions were to point anew for the second Saudi Cup in 2021. When there’s a $20 million purse in the owner’s backyard, that tends to drive priorities.

That is the reason Mucho Gusto has been off for so long, but the wait is over. Mucho Gusto returns on Saturday at Santa Anita in the Grade 2, $200,000 San Antonio Stakes, a 1 1/16-mile race for 3-year-olds and up that will be his lone prep before he returns to Saudi Arabia next February. The San Antonio goes as race 7 on the 11-race card.

Trainer Bob Baffert wanted to give Mucho Gusto one start before going to Riyadh. Even though Mucho Gusto scored the biggest win of his career earlier this year in the Pegasus World Cup, Baffert wanted more spacing between the return race and the main goal. The Pegasus is scheduled for Jan. 23 and the Saudi Cup for Feb. 20. That’s why Mucho Gusto is running in the San Antonio as opposed to awaiting the Pegasus, or running in both.

“He’s getting ready. He’s breezed nice for this,” Baffert said. “It was either this or the Pegasus, and I thought the Pegasus was close with the Saudi Cup, plus you’ve got to ship.”

John Velazquez, in town for the day, rides Mucho Gusto for the first time. They start from the outside post in a field of eight.

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Mucho Gusto clearly likes running well fresh. He got a career-best Beyer Speed Figure of 107 in the Pegasus when returning from a layoff of nearly four months. The San Antonio, though, is a means to an end, and there are several hard-hitting veteran foes he’ll have to get past Saturday, plus an exciting lightly raced prospect.

His chief rivals include Sharp Samurai, who was third most recently in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile, and Extra Hope, who outran San Antonio rivals Midcourt and Combatant in the Grade 3 Native Diver at Del Mar last month.

Sharp Samurai, a 6-year-old gelding, has banged out a series of strong performances against top-class company like Knicks Go, Mo Forza, and Maximum Security in recent starts, earning Beyer Figures of 102 or better three straight times. But he’s winless in his last nine starts. He’s raced 23 times, but never before with Flavien Prat, who will be aboard on Saturday.

“He deserves to win a race,” said his trainer, Mark Glatt, who has kept Sharp Samurai in outstanding form for four straight seasons now. “Hopefully his time is coming on Saturday.

“He’s doing well. We gave him a little bit of a break right after the Breeders’ Cup, a working vacation.”

In his final work last Saturday, Sharp Samurai sped five furlongs in 59 seconds, equaling the fastest of 83 at the distance.

Extra Hope heads into the San Antonio in sharp form, with consecutive victories and an effortless half mile in 47.80 seconds Monday that tied for the fastest of 78 at the distance. He is 2 for 3 since returning from a nine-month layoff, with his lone loss in his comeback Aug. 22 at Del Mar.

“My trainer’s test gave me a D-minus for that race,” said his trainer, Richard Mandella. “Not an F, but a D-minus.”

Extra Hope lost that day to Take the One O One, a Brian Koriner-trained front-runner who, like Extra Hope, is owned by Samantha Siegel. Take the One O One drew the rail for this race and figures to try and lead from start to finish under regular rider Jose Valdivia Jr. He should have Extra Hope and Mucho Gusto stalking him early.

The lightly raced Idol is making his stakes debut, and is a 3-year-old facing elders, but he owns two wins in three starts, including a romping first-level allowance victory last time going 1 3/16 miles at Churchill Downs, where he’s made all his starts. He earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 98 last time out. Both his wins were with Gabe Saez aboard, so trainer Richard Baltas is bringing him in for this. This is a big test, but the son of Curlin looks like he has plenty of upside.

Kiss Today Goodbye, the other 3-year-old in the field, won a first-level allowance last month at Del Mar, but is best known for his close third-place finish against Thousand Words and Honor A. P. in the Shared Belief during the summer meet at Del Mar.