Santiago Gonzalez set to return to saddle after spill

Santiago Gonzalez is booked to ride two of the nine races Thursday at Santa Anita, less than a week after he was dramatically unseated when his mount appeared to slip in a turf race.

Gonzalez was briefly hospitalized last Friday for precautionary tests and was released hours later, according to his agent, Mike Ciani.

Gonzalez was racing just behind the leaders on the turn when his mount, She’s a Joker, lost her footing. She’s a Joker unseated Gonzalez who fell heavily. The filly was walked off the track and was unhurt, trainer Peter Miller said in a text message Sunday.

On Thursday, Gonzalez rides Motet in the first race for maidens on turf and Soul Sweet in the second race, a $12,500 claimer for fillies and mares at a mile on turf.

Gonzalez, 40, rode with major success in his native Venezuela and has ridden continuously in this country since 2014.

The winner of 766 races in the United States, Gonzalez rode in California in the mid-2010s and returned to the circuit earlier this year. Santiago has four wins from 55 mounts at the current meeting. Last year, he won races in Indiana, Kentucky, New Mexico, Ohio, and West Virginia.

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