Santa Anita: Safety Belt, Setsuko set for Wednesday optional claimers

ARCADIA, Calif. – The Argentine import Safety Belt will not have an easy race for his American debut in an optional claimer over 1 1/16 miles at Santa Anita on Wednesday.

Safety Belt has been with trainer Ron McAnally since last summer, following an Argentine career that included two seconds and a third in Group 1 races in 2012 and 2013. A successful race Wednesday would lead to a stakes appearance at Santa Anita, possibly in the $300,000 San Antonio Stakes over 1 1/8 miles on Feb. 8.

“He’s ready, and he’s fit enough,” McAnally said. “He’ll probably like a mile or a mile and a sixteenth.”

Owned by Jose Cerillo, who races as Pozo de Luna Inc., Safety Belt has won 2 of 9 starts, with the wins coming in turf races over about seven furlongs. He has not started since finishing second in a Group 1 race over about a mile on dirt in Argentina last May.

In Wednesday’s second race, Safety Belt is part of a tough field of six. Safety Belt races against Holy Candy and Little Jerry, who won optional claimers in their last starts, and Govenor Charlie, who has not started since finishing eighth in the Preakness Stakes last May.

Trained by Bob Baffert, Govenor Charlie won the Sunland Park Derby in his stakes debut last March. Baffert said he has been encouraged by the way Govenor Charlie has worked in recent weeks in company with Shakin It Up, who won the Grade 1 Malibu Stakes last Thursday.

“He’s been working with Shakin It Up heads up, so it should be interesting,” Baffert said.

After the Preakness, Baffert said Govenor Charlie “just wasn’t right. His hind end was bugging him.”

Holy Candy won an optional claimer at Betfair Hollywood Park on Nov. 17 and could run in the San Antonio.

“We’re getting into a good flow with him, a steady pattern,” trainer John Sadler said.

The second optional claimer Wednesday, run as the fifth race, will be the second race within a month for Setsuko, who was second in the 2012 Santa Anita Handicap.

Trained by Richard Mandella, Setsuko finished last of seven in the Grade 3 Native Diver Stakes at Hollywood Park on Dec. 14, his first start in more than 21 months. Mandella was discouraged by Setsuko’s behavior before the Native Diver.

“He’d been off so long, he got nervous and ran his race before he went to the gate,” Mandella said. “He got hot, and it looked stressful for him. I think he’ll run better this time, but it’s a little quick back.”

Setsuko is part of a field of seven that includes the South American stakes winner Ever Rider and the turf stakes winner Den’s Legacy. Ever Rider was the 9-2 favorite in the Breeders’ Cup Marathon on Nov. 1 but was pulled up on the backstretch of the race over 1 3/4 miles.

American Blend breaks from the rail and is a threat from off the pace in his first start since finishing sixth in an allowance race Oct. 27. American Blend will race without blinkers.

“My hope is that the track is fair, and he can come from off of it,” trainer Carla Gaines said.

• Game On Dude, second in the Grade 1 Clark Handicap at Churchill Downs in November, worked a half-mile in 47.40 seconds Sunday. Trained by Baffert, Game On Dude is being pointed for the San Antonio Stakes, a race he won in 2012 and 2013.