Stevens Will Be Doubly Blessed

Gary Stevens will be the envy of every jockey in America on Saturday.

Long one of the country’s premier riders and, since last summer, a member of racing’s Hall of Fame, Stevens will ride two superstars that afternoon at Santa Anita.

First, he will be aboard Gentlemen when the winner of the 1997 Pimlico Special, Hollywood Gold Cup and Pacific Classic makes his ’98 debut in the $300,000 San Antonio Handicap.

About an hour later, Stevens will ride Silver Charm, the heavy favorite to win the $500,000 Strub Stakes.

No such luxury is likely to present itself again for Stevens. After Saturday, those two horses very well could be running in the same races, beginning with the $1-million Santa Anita Handicap on March 7.

Choosing between Gentlemen and Silver Charm, who provided Stevens with victories in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness last year and nearly a Triple Crown, is not something the jockey wants to think about now.

“I just want to enjoy this weekend and not worry about the Big ‘Cap until the time comes,” he said Wednesday. “I just hope both horses run the way they can on Saturday.

“I’ll just worry about the individual races this weekend and go from there.”

Stevens, who will turn 35 next month, says he has never ridden two horses of this quality on the same day, and that includes all the Breeders’ Cups in which he has participated.

“It’s a very unique situation for me,” he said. “These are two of the best horses I’ve ever ridden, and I feel very fortunate to have gotten a chance to ride horses of this caliber at all, let alone on the same day. I’m looking forward to [Saturday] and I’m pretty excited about it.”

Gentlemen, who won four of six last year for trainer Richard Mandella and owners R.D. Hubbard, Giberto Montagna, Aldo Soprano and Juan Jose Varsi, will be be making his first start since he finished fifth as the odds-on choice in the Woodbine Mile on the turf last Sept. 20.

He has trained well as he tries to defend his San Antonio title, and Stevens was aboard for a recent 1:36 2/5 mile drill at Hollywood Park.

“It was a spectacular work,” he said. “He seems to be doing better right now than he ever has in his career. He has always run well fresh. . . . He’s really blossomed in the last month or so.

“His coat’s shiny and his eye just gets this glow about it. He looks like the Gentlemen of this time last year.”

Silver Charm is already two starts into his campaign after being given more than six months off after he finished second to Touch Gold in the Belmont Stakes last June.

Owner Bob and Beverly Lewis’ roan was beaten when troubled in the Malibu, then outran Mud Route to win the San Fernando three weeks later. He had only two other opponents that day, and another small field is in store for the Strub now that Malibu winner Lord Grillo won’t run because of a virus.

Gentleman and Silver Charm are expected to win Saturday, which means if all goes well in the ensuing weeks, Stevens will be faced with a decision come the Santa Anita Handicap.

He certainly isn’t tipping his hand, although both Mandella and Baffert would like to keep him.

“I’ll ride him if I have to,” Mandella joked. “Gary is one of the finest riders of his time and maybe of all time. Keeping him gives you a lot of confidence, but there are a lot of other good riders, and whatever happens happens.”

Baffert already has somebody in mind should Stevens leave Silver Charm for Gentlemen next month.

“Jerry Bailey said he’s there if I need him,” Baffert said. “I’d like to have Stevens, but I’m pretty easy on my riders. I want them to make the choice because if I force him to ride my horses, it could at some point in a race affect his strategy.

“[Who rides Silver Charm] is the least of our problems. We want to keep our horse healthy, and there are a lot of good riders out there.”

Besides the San Antonio and Strub, Saturday’s card will also feature the $100,000 San Vicente Stakes and it will mark the 1998 debuts of promising 3-year-olds Orville N Wilbur’s and Sea Of Secrets.

A winner of two of three starts, Orville N Wilbur’s is now owned primarily by Prince Ahmed Salman’s Thoroughbred Corporation. Salman bought an 80% interest in the colt while the remaining 20% is owned by a partnership that includes trainer Wally Dollase.

Owned by Irv and Marge Cowan and trained by Neil Drysdale, Sea Of Secrets broke his maiden on this track during the Oak Tree meeting last fall, then won an allowance race at Hollywood Park.

Also expected for the seven-furlong San Vicente are Pleasant Drive, who is trained by Baffert, Search Me and Late Edition.

Horse Racing Notes

Sharp Cat, who is scheduled to make her first start of the year and first for Wally Dollase in the $200,000 Santa Maria Handicap on Feb. 14, worked five furlongs in 1:00 3/5 Wednesday morning. Prosperous Bid, another Dollase trainee who broke his maiden by 7 1/2 lengths in his debut last month, worked six furlongs in 1:13 3/5. . . . Jockey David Flores turns 30 and trainer Cotton Tinsley turns 70 today.