Stevens feeling good after first win following hip surgery

ARCADIA, Calif. – First, it was a new knee, then last fall, a new hip. A whole new Gary Stevens, the ageless, bionic man, got his first win since returning from the hip surgery aboard Shehastheritestuff last Saturday.

“It always feels good,” he said. “There’s pressure because you’ve got to prove to people that you’ve still got some shelf life, and I do.”

Stevens said returning from the hip surgery was “way easier” than the full knee replacement from nearly two years ago.

“It’s a lot less invasive,” he said.

Stevens will be at Oaklawn Park on Saturday to ride Appalachian Gem in the Rebel Stakes.

◗ American Cleopatra, the 3-year-old full sister to American Pharoah, worked a half-mile in 50 seconds Thursday as she prepares for her first start since finishing eighth in the Grade 1 Chandelier Stakes last October.

◗ Nowalking, 6, who suffered catastrophic sesamoid fractures in the Triple Bend, had to be euthanized, trainer Phil D’Amato said.