ARCADIA, Calif. – California’s wettest month has disrupted Santa Anita racing. It does rain in February. The latest storm caused outright cancellation of Monday’s card and is followed by an all-dirt program Friday. Two and a half inches of rain early this week has rendered the turf course unusable until the weekend. Santa Anita and Del Mar rely on turf – 48 percent of races the past year were turf races. When turf is unavailable, the result is a card like Friday – nine races with small fields. But there is one saving grace. A pick six carryover of $34,288 is up for grabs. New money is likely to exceed $150,000 on a $2 pick six that will not be too tough if Sharons Beach delivers as a popular single in race 7. Below is a look at the sequence on races 4-9. Race 4 is an $8,000 claiming race at a mile on dirt. Late-runner Austonian drops in class after a comeback prep. Sprinter Tougherthantherest stretches out as the likely pacesetter. The speed-friendly profile has tempered as only one of the last seven dirt miles has been won by the pacesetter. Mother’s Prayer figures for a cozy trip in second, but Austonian is the most likely winner. :: Santa Anita Classic Meet! Get DRF Past Performances, Clocker Reports, and more. Race 5 is a $32,000 maiden-claiming sprint for 3-year-olds. Ahrens is favored after he dueled and faded first out in a maiden special weight on turf. Others in race 5 are last-out runner-up Texas Wildcat, eight-start maiden Trail Blaze, and route-to-sprint Another Juanito. Race 6 is a $25,000 claiming sprint for nonwinners of three lifetime. Last-out N2L claiming winner Ballyhooligan and comebacker Mici’s Express are the principals. Mici’s Express has not won since the California Cup Derby in January 2024 and has not raced since May. He returns from an extended layoff while employing the “no-claim waiver.” That signals optimism. Program favorite Handsome Ticket, who won a $10,000 claiming N2L sprint last out, is expected to set the pace. Three of the last six races at 6 1/2 furlongs have been won by the pacesetter. Race 7 is a restricted maiden/optional-claiming sprint for 3-year-olds, led by Sharons Beach. He finished second last out in a fast maiden sprint and was entered in a maiden route Monday. The card was canceled, and trainer Jonathan Thomas redirected Sharons Beach to this race. “I’d like to get another race under our belt before we take on horses around two turns,” he said. “We had a chance to look at the [route] and while we thought we fit very well, this [sprint] is the most tangible spot.” Sharons Beach missed by a neck last out, earning an 89 Beyer that was validated when winner Liam Smith subsequently won a starter allowance with a 90. Thomas said Sharons Beach posted an unrecorded workout Sunday morning. He figures to win this six-furlong race at a short price. Race 8 is an allowance dirt sprint for California-bred 3-year-old fillies. Comeback maiden winner Still Unwritten is the fastest, but her maiden win was on turf. She runs Friday on dirt. “I wanted to run on turf,” trainer Ryan Hanson said, frustrated at the lack of opportunities. “The problem is, she’s already had three five-eighths works [since she raced], so do I work her another three to four times and wait and pray for another grass race?” Hanson and jockey Edwin Maldonado suspect Still Unwritten prefers turf. Still Unwritten might win anyway. “She’s super quick, if she can get away on the lead again, she’s going to be tough,” Hanson said. “But if she takes a lot of pressure, who knows? Usually you take a little more pressure on the dirt than you do on the turf.” :: Access morning workout reports straight from the tracks and get an edge with DRF Clocker Reports Others with speed include Libel Proof, Donttellmewhattodo, and My Kat. An off-the-pace upset candidate is Memetic, who had no shot as the favorite last out. Memetic was wheeling back eight days after a fast maiden-claiming win and was caught four and five wide before she sputtered to fifth. Circumstances change Friday. Memetic has had a month between starts, she drew an inside post, and gets a beneficial pace scenario for her closing style. Front-runner Still Unwritten is listed at 6-1, late-runner Memetic is listed at 8-1. Both are likely to start below their program odds. Race 9 is an allowance sprint for California-breds in which Coach Cronin can make amends after finishing fourth as the favorite in a similar race. He was blocked inside and behind runners on the turn. Coach Cronin has drawn the advantageous outside post. Nine of the 33 races this winter at six furlongs were won from the outside post, regardless of field size. One Smokin Dude and Mr. Machupicchu are contenders. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.