Mandella forecasts springtime return for Subsanador

Saturday’s graded stakes for older horses at Gulfstream Park and Santa Anita are missing a star from the autumn in the Grade 1 winner Subsanador.

Sidelined in October by an ankle injury, Subsanador missed the $7 million Breeders' Cup Classic at Del Mar in November and is currently undergoing rehabilitation at a farm in Hemet, Calif., with the hope of a springtime return, trainer Richard Mandella said.

“He’s four months from racing,” said Mandella, who added that Subsanador is being exercised on a water treadmill.

In October, Mandella said Subasanador’s ankle injury would not need surgery.

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A 6-year-old Argentine-bred horse, Subsanador has won 9 of 17 starts racing in Argentina and California. Subsanador was a Group 1 winner at about a mile on dirt in Argentina in 2023 before being relocated to California.

Subsanador was second by a head in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap last March for trainer John Sadler before being acquired privately by Wathnan Stud and transferred to Mandella. Subsanador won the Grade 3 Philip H. Iselin Stakes at Monmouth Park in August and won the Grade 1 California Crown Stakes, a $1 million race at 1 1/8 miles, at Santa Anita on Sept. 28 before he was sidelined.

On Saturday, Gulfstream Park hosts the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup, a $3 million race at 1 1/8 miles that is the highlight of the wintertime domestic calendar for older horses on dirt. Santa Anita is running the Grade 2 San Pasqual Stakes, a $200,000 race at 1 1/8 miles that is a prep for the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap at 1 1/4 miles on March 1.

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