Familiar rivals face off in classy turf allowance

ARCADIA, Calif. – Before they go their separate ways, Grade 2 winners Cabo Spirit and Mi Hermano Ramon meet Friday at Santa Anita in a turf allowance that attracted a high-class field.

Five of the six entered in the 1 1/8-mile race are graded winners, led by Mi Hermano Ramon and five-time stakes winner Cabo Spirit. Mi Hermano Ramon is on his way back, making the second start of his comeback. Cabo Spirit is on his way out, as he will be freshened after Friday.

The field also includes Chilean Group 1 winner Gran Oriente, stakes winner Astronomer, and Hiding in Honduras and The Padre, who each won Grade 2 races for 3-year-olds last season.

The race 3 allowance is the first of two prominent turf races Friday. Race 9, a conditioned allowance sprint on the hill, drew a full field, led by Proof He Rides and Virat.

Mi Hermano Ramon is the race 3 favorite, dropping in class after a fifth-place comeback in the Grade 2 Frank E. Kilroe Mile. Mi Hermano Ramon, who lacks instant acceleration, did not have smooth sailing in the Kilroe and was blocked through the stretch.

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“It wasn’t the cleanest trip in the world for him,” trainer Mark Glatt said, acknowledging Mi Hermano Ramon’s history. “He’s had so many troubled trips. He’s a horse that, once his momentum gets rolling, he can’t be stopped. He has to be in the clear.”

The Kilroe was Mi Hermano Ramon’s first start in eight months, and Glatt said he “moved forward off the race.”

Meet-leading jockey Emisael Jaramillo will ride Mi Hermano Ramon for the first time. Jaramillo and Glatt teamed this winter to win 4 of 6.

Cabo Spirit pressed the pace in the Kilroe and finished sixth. He is due for a rest.

“Give him one more race, give him a little break, and get him ready for Del Mar,” said Cabo Spirit’s trainer, George Papaprodromou. “If he gets an easy lead, he gets brave, that’s what he likes.”

Cabo Spirit’s rider is Mike Smith, and his pace rival will sprint-to-route Gran Oriente.

The Padre is making his first start since he won the Grade 2 Del Mar Derby last summer. Hiding in Honduras won the Grade 2 Mathis Mile for 3-year-olds in December at Santa Anita, followed by a second-level allowance against older last out. Astronomer finished seventh in the Kilroe.

Race 9 attracted a full field of turf sprinters, none sharper than Proof He Rides. Claimed for $50,000 by trainer Jeff Mullins last fall, Proof He Rides has won twice since and is 10 for 20 overall. He was 7 years old when Mullins claimed him last year.

“I’ve always liked that horse. He just tries every time,” Mullins said.

Kyle Frey rides the pace-presser, whose main rival is the dropper Virat, who finished third last out in a $100,000 stakes on the main turf oval. Six and one-half furlongs might be a reach for Virat.

Others in race 9 include also-eligible Anmer Hall, Drop Um, Balladeer, and Charlie’s to Blame, who finished a better-than-it-looked fifth in his comeback.

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