With heavy rain in forecast, Santa Anita cancels Friday card

ARCADIA, Calif. – With a forecast for significant rain from Thursday to Saturday, Santa Anita has canceled racing on Friday, the track announced Monday. An assessment on Saturday’s program will be made Wednesday.

“I think we can make a better decision then,” said Jason Egan, the track’s director of racing.

The Los Angeles area could receive three inches of rain later this week, with the prospect for considerably more, according to a private weather forecast used by the track.

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There are two stakes scheduled for this weekend, both for 3-year-olds – Saturday’s Grade 3 Santa Ysabel Stakes for fillies at 1 1/16 miles, and Sunday’s $100,000 Baffle Stakes at about 6 1/2 furlongs on the hillside turf course.

Egan said that if Saturday’s program is canceled the $100,000 Santa Ysabel could be postponed to Sunday, or to March 4. If the race is delayed a week, the Grade 2 Santa Anita Oaks scheduled for April 1 could be postponed to April 8 to provide five weeks between races.

Egan emphasized that those ideas were only at the discussion stage.

Egan said races are likely to be added to future programs as a makeup for the loss of racing on Friday.

Friday’s program is the fourth weather-related cancellation of the winter-spring meeting, which began Dec. 26. The track canceled racing on Jan. 1, 14, and 16 because of rain. A makeup day was added on Jan. 20. Friday’s program was scheduled to be a makeup day.

California tracks are discouraged from racing in severe weather, following policies enacted by the California Horse Racing Board in late 2020.

Santa Anita may add racing on Friday, April 21, depending on the availability of race-ready horses in the spring, track officials said earlier this month.

Currently, the track is scheduled to have a break in April. Racing will be held through April 9 and is scheduled to resume on Saturday, April 22. The break is designed as a springtime rest for horses and participants. The season concludes June 18.

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