ARCADIA, Calif. - Proudinsky ended a three-race losing streak with a successful defense of his title in the at Santa Anita on Sunday.

Lava Man, the winner of 17 of 46 starts and $5,268,706, finished last in his first start since July 2008. Since then, he had undergone stem cell therapy to regenerate cartilage in an ankle.

ARCADIA, Calif. - Lava Man's last-place finish in Sunday's at Santa Anita after an 18-month break may result in the conclusive retirement of the 8-year-old gelding.

After the race, trainer Doug O'Neill and co-owner Jason Wood expressed disappointment in the results. Lava Man led to the final turn, and faded through the stretch to finish 6 1/4 lengths behind race winner Proudinsky, the defending champion.

"I thought he'd more fight than that," O'Neill said.

ARCADIA, Calif. - Santa Anita drew its largest ontrack crowd for an opening day in 10 years when 35,292 attended Saturday's 10-race program.

The opening day audience was a 6 percent increase from the 33,308 that attended the first day of the 2008-09 meeting, which was held on a Friday. The last time the track opened on a Saturday, in 1998, the ontrack audience was 42,535.

Stretching his New York winning streak to nine, Wishful Tomcat ($2.50) was never seriously threatened en route to a wire-to-wire victory in Sunday's 31st running of the for New York-breds.

Harlan Street capitalized on speed duel involving odds-on favorite Ravalo to capture Saturday night's $75,000 Christmas Stakes at Mountaineer Racetrack.

PHOENIX - Napili Point gained a measure of redemption and started a series of longshot winners when he captured Saturday's $50,000 Lost in the Fog Juvenile at Turf Paradise, the main event in a stakes tripleheader.

The 4-year-old Illinois-bred turf horse Princeville Condo never runs poorly, and now he is 1 for 1 in stakes competition after capturing the $60,000 by a head on Saturday at Fair Grounds.

Golden Country, with Orlando Mojica aboard, proved narrowly best in a four-horse photo when notching his first stakes victory Saturday in the $50,000 Holiday Cheer Stakes at Turfway Park in Florence, Ky.

Golden Country, a 4-year-old colt by Menifee, rallied from sixth to be up by a neck over Agastache. Accredit was just a nose back in third, with Flavor, the 2-1 favorite in a field of nine, another head back in fourth.

ARCADIA, Calif. - M One Rifle finally finished his job in a major race in Saturday's at Santa Anita.

After placing in two stakes at the Oak Tree meeting here in the fall, M One Rifle led throughout the Grade 1 Malibu Stakes, recording the biggest win of his eight-race career.

Ridden by Mike Smith, M One Rifle ($16.20) ran seven furlongs in 1:21.04, finishing 2 1/2 lengths in front of runner-up Misremembered, the 2-1 favorite.

ARCADIA, Calif. - Evita Argentina got off slowly but finished fastest of all, storming down the center of the track to rally from last to first to win the Grade 1, $300,000 for 3-year-old fillies on Saturday's opening-day card at Santa Anita.

Evita Argentina ($10.40) blew past 10 rivals to win by two lengths, with Starlarks beating Amazed by Grace by a head for second. Gabby's Golden Gal, the 5-2 favorite, finished seventh in the field of 11. Mother Ruth was scratched.