Cassidy’s Horse Could Be King

Unbeaten Mayan King, owned in part by David Cassidy, who rose to fame as Keith Partridge on “The Partridge Family” TV show in the early 1970s, will make his first start in a graded stakes when he takes on eight other 3-year-olds today in the $500,000 Lane’s End Stakes at Turfway Park in Florence, Ky.

Trained by Gary Contessa and also owned by Ed Lipton, Cassidy’s friend and neighbor in Florida, and Our Canterbury Stables, Mayan King broke his maiden at six furlongs, then stretched to a mile and won again. Both victories were over Aqueduct’s inner track. Three of the last four winners of the Lane’s End earned their most recent victories at Aqueduct, including last year’s upset winner, Sinister G.

Purchased for $210,000 at the Ocala sale a year ago, Mayan King is a son of Stephen Got Even, who won this race in 1998 when it was called the Gallery Furniture.com Stakes.

“He was a horse I had to have,” said Cassidy, who has long been involved in racing as an owner and breeder. “The day I bought him, I thought he was a [Kentucky] Derby horse.”

In the 1 1/8 -mile Lane’s End, Mayan King will be racing Andromeda’s Hero, which is trained by Nick Zito; Diamond Isle, Magna Graduate, Flower Alley, Mr Sword, Spanish Chestnut, Wild Desert and California shipper Texcess.

A gelded son of In Excess, Texcess is the richest member of the cast, thanks primarily to his win in the $1-million Delta Jackpot in December at Delta Downs in Louisiana. However, he enters the Lane’s End off a loss as the 7-10 favorite in the San Mateo Mile on Feb. 12 at Bay Meadows.

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Scipion, the upset winner of the Risen Star Stakes at the Fair Grounds in New Orleans, will be sidelined indefinitely after being injured in a workout at Santa Anita.

Scheduled to run next in the $750,000 Santa Anita Derby on April 9, the 3-year-old A.P. Indy colt was scheduled to have surgery Friday on his broken right hind leg.

Scipion, who has won two of six, is owned by breeder Virginia Kraft Payson and trained by Patrick Biancone.

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The main event at Santa Anita this weekend is Sunday’s $200,000 San Luis Rey Handicap, a Grade II at 1 1/2 miles on the turf.

Star Over The Bay, a game winner of the Sunshine Millions Turf in his first start of 2005 for trainer Mike Mitchell, is the 120-pound high weight.

Ten others entered the San Luis Rey, including defending champion Meteor Storm.

Owned by a partnership and trained by Wally Dollase, Meteor Storm will try to become the first repeat winner of the San Luis Rey since John Henry won in 1980 and ’81.