Santa Anita officials announced that live racing for Saturday has been
canceled due to heavy overnight and early morning rain, which was expected to
continue throughout the afternoon. The announcement was made at 9:45 a.m. (PST).
Saturday’s nine-race program was to be highlighted by the $150,000 Sham S.
(G3) for three-year-olds at 1 1/8 miles. The field for the Sham will be redrawn
and run next Saturday, March 6. The Sham is an important steppingstone to the
Santa Anita Derby (G1) on April 3.
Saturday’s cancellation marked the fifth such weather related closure of the
current winter/spring meet which began on December 26.
“This is terribly disappointing to everyone involved,” Santa Anita President
Ron Charles said. “Our main problem continues to be with the way the main track
is draining. We’ve had a very problematic area near the finish line and we were
successful in keeping the surface area there dry with the use of tarps, but we
have standing water in other areas and it therefore would not be suitable to run
on, especially with the prospect of more heavy rain through the afternoon.
“As we’ve said many times, in this very difficult situation, safety has to be
our number one priority. As disappointing as it is to our horsemen, fans and
employees, we simply cannot jeopardize the well being of our athletes, be they
human or equine.”
Charles also noted that Santa Anita will remain open Saturday for simulcast
wagering from across the country, with free admission offered throughout the day
and that officials are optimistic about conducting live racing on Sunday.
“The weather forecast for Sunday is good,” Charles said. “We are very
optimistic that we’ll have the main track in good shape for tomorrow and that
we’ll be able to run all nine races. We have four races scheduled to be run on
the grass tomorrow and we’ll make a decision on the status of the turf course in
the morning.”
First post time for Sunday’s nine-race card is at 12:30 p.m.