Santa Anita notes: Suggestive Boy pointing to Arcadia

The Ron McAnally-trained Suggestive Boy, unraced since last March, is on schedule for a comeback in the $200,000 Arcadia Stakes at a mile on turf on Feb. 1.

Suggestive Boy on Thursday worked seven furlongs on turf in 1:27.60 under jockey Joe Talamo, who has the mount in the Grade 2 Arcadia. The workout impressed McAnally since Suggestive Boy was racing closer to the outside rail than the inside rail.

The Arcadia field is expected to include No Jet Lag, the winner of the Grade 2 City of Hope Mile in October, but will not include Silentio, who was third in the Breeders’ Cup Mile here in November. Trainer Gary Mandella said on Friday that Silentio is being pointed for the $350,000 Frank Kilroe Mile at a mile on turf on March 8, a race Suggestive Boy won last year.

There are two other major stakes at Santa Anita next weekend – the $300,000 Las Virgenes Stakes for 3-year-old fillies at a mile next Saturday and the $200,000 Palos Verdes Stakes for older horses at six furlongs on Feb. 2.

The Grade 1 Las Virgenes field is expected to include Streaming and Taste Like Candy, the first two finishers in the Grade 1 Hollywood Starlet Stakes on Dec. 7, and recent maiden race winners Artemis and Fashion Plate.

Friday, Taste Like Candy, trained by Jerry Hollendorfer, worked six furlongs in 1:12, which equaled the second-fastest of 14 recorded works at the distance.

“We have confidence in her,” Hollendorfer said. “I thought she ran well last time.”

The Grade 2 Palos Verdes field is expected to include Breeders’ Cup Sprint winner Secret Circle and Sahara Sky, unraced since winning the Metropolitan Handicap at Belmont Park in May. They were finalists for the Eclipse Award as the nation’s outstanding sprinter of 2013, an award that went to deceased Points Offthebench.

◗ San Onofre, the winner of three consecutive races including an allowance race last Monday, will be pointed for the $250,000 San Carlos Stakes at seven furlongs on March 8, trainer Karen Headley said. San Onofre was second in his debut in December 2012 and has not lost since. He won his comeback in a maiden race at Hollywood Park on Nov. 15 and has won twice at the current meeting.