EHV-1 at Turf Paradise puts One in Vermillion on hold for San Felipe

The three-time stakes winner One in Vermillion will be a longshot in the Grade 2 San Felipe Stakes on March 4 at Santa Anita, if he is allowed on the property of the Southern California track.

One in Vermillion is part of trainer Esteban Martinez’s 15-horse stable at Turf Paradise in Phoenix. On Sunday, Santa Anita officials announced that no horses from Turf Paradise are allowed on the grounds after a pony horse at that track tested positive for equine herpesvirus.

It was not immediately clear how long the ban will be in place. If the ban is not lifted by early March, One in Vermillion cannot be shipped to California.

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“We’re not sure if we can get out,” Martinez said Tuesday. “We still have a little time to get out.”

Owned by Jonathan Kalman, One in Vermillion has won 3 of 4 starts, including his 3-year-old debut in the $100,000 Riley Allison Derby at a mile on Jan. 29 at Sunland Park. Bought for $26,000 as a yearling, One in Vermillion has earned $149,620. As a 2-year-old, One in Vermillion won two sprint stakes at Turf Paradise.

Martinez, 54, admits that a start in the $400,000 San Felipe Stakes at 1 1/16 miles is ambitious. The race is a prep for the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby at 1 1/8 miles on April 8 and will draw some of the highest-rated 3-year-olds in California.

“I know it will be tough for him, but we want to try,” Martinez said of the San Felipe. “He’s been getting better every time.”

There is a secondary plan, if the shipping ban is not lifted. Martinez said he can start One in Vermillion in the $75,000 Turf Paradise Derby at 1 1/16 miles on March 11 followed by the Grade 3 Sunland Derby at 1 1/8 miles on March 26 at Sunland Park.

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