Silver Stetson Man looks to go 3-0

ARCADIA, Calif. - Silver Stetson Man is a racing rarity - a horse sired by Silver Charm that runs fast.

When Silver Stetson Man won his April 27 debut at Hollywood Park with a 100 Beyer Speed Figure, he became only the second Silver Charm-sired runner to earn a triple-digit Beyer. It is not a small sample; Silver Charm has sired more than 150 winners.

Silver Stetson Man virtually reproduced his debut victory on Sept. 1 at Del Mar, where he won a first-level allowance with a 96 Beyer that might be good enough for him to remain unbeaten Thursday in the seventh-race feature at Santa Anita.

A field of nine entered the second-level allowance at 6 1/2 furlongs, and Silver Stetson Man, 3, is the horse to beat. He is owned by Mike Pegram and trained by Bob Baffert, the same owner-trainer combination that teamed with graded stakes winner Preachinatthebar, the most successful son of Silver Charm.

Victor Espinoza rides the 2-for-2 Silver Stetson Man, whose main rival, Mi Rey, is immediately inside of him in the gate. Trained by Jeff Mullins, Mi Rey has 2 wins and 2 seconds his last 4 starts, and if the two pace-pressers avoid a head-and-head duel, they they could make it a two-horse parade.

A similar dilemma applies to raceo3 on Thursday, a 1 1/16-mile main-track route for first-level fillies and mares. The lone speed is Sari Jo, but she has not raced since April and has never run long. Stakes-placed D Pirates Marker and Silver Swallow will roll late, while Diva's Seastar could be the uspetter.

"Her last two races are not as bad as they appear," said Mark Glatt, trainer of Diva's Seastar. Diva's Seastar finished sixth and eighth in those races, but Glatt believes she benefits from a return to the main track.

"She's a free-running filly that wants to be out there winging, but it you do that on turf you're not going to stick around," he said.

Diva's Seastar previously finished second in a $100,000 turf stakes, and was second at 48-1 in a turf allowance. Corey Nakatani rides the filly, who will be pressing the pace from the outside.

The sixth race Thursday is for Cal-bred maiden 2-year-olds at a mile, and is a potential prelude to the California Cup Juvenile on Nov. 3. Raise the River stretches out off a second-place finish in the I'm Smokin Stakes at Del Mar. Harlene has changed barns since his good third-place debut, and should appreciate two turns for new trainer Doug O'Neill.