No decision yet on Santa Anita track

After another day of racing, Santa Anita heads into a busy weekend with no decision regarding what to do about the troubled synthetic track.

“We’re looking for 20,000 tons of high-quality sandy loam dirt in case we decide to replace the synthetic surface,” Santa Anita President Ron Charles said Friday. “And we’re still conducting lab tests to see if we can fix what we have now.”

Santa Anita will have 11-race cards today and Sunday to make up for some of the lost racing because of the three days of cancellations last Saturday through Monday.

Another problem with the synthetic Cushion Track that was installed last summer has surfaced -- literally.

Jockeys are complaining about rocks in the synthetic surface.

“They’re the size of a golf ball,” Garrett Gomez said.

“They’re as big as your fist,” Tyler Baze said, who added that he feared they could cause an injury to a horse or rider.

Mike Smith said they’re coming from the asphalt base below the synthetic surface.

Charles, downplaying the situation, said some asphalt broke into pieces during the recent renovation project that was supposed to solve the ongoing drainage problem that has plagued the Cushion Track.

High-pressure water guns used to clean the base, plus all the heavy equipment involved, may have caused some of the asphalt to break.

“We’ve been picking up pieces of it, and I think we’ve got most of them,” Charles said. “Everybody has been helping out.”

Even the jockeys. Alex Solis, David Flores and Corey Nakatani are among those who jog on the track in the morning, and the past few days they and other joggers have been picking up pieces of asphalt as they run.

Two horses were injured Friday, one fatally, but track officials said neither injury was related to the loose asphalt or the condition of the track.

Can This Be True suffered a dislocated right front ankle in the third race and was euthanized. Turner Do was vanned off because of a minor tendon injury in the second.

Joe Talamo, who turns 18 today, won Friday’s feature race aboard American Imperium. Talamo, who had ridden 30 races without a win since the start of the meet Dec. 26, broke out of his slump with three wins Thursday.

Since 1990, the winner of the San Rafael Stakes, which will be run for the 28th time today at Santa Anita, has gone on to victory five times in the Santa Anita Derby.

Came Home was the last to complete the parlay in 2002, following Larry The Legend (1995), A.P. Indy (1992), Dinard (1991) and Mister Frisky (1990).

Seven 3-year-olds hoping to do the same will get together in the San Rafael, a Grade III at one mile and the first significant step toward the local Derby on April 5.

One of the main contenders in the San Rafael is El Gato Malo. A gelded son of El Corredor owned by West Point Thoroughbreds, Inc. and trained by Craig Dollase, El Gato Malo has won his first two starts by a combined 9 3/4 lengths.

Against a lineup that includes probable favorite Massive Drama, who has won two of three for trainer Bob Baffert, and impressive maiden winner Talk Of A Cat, El Gato Malo will get his stiffest challenge yet under new rider David Flores.

“He’s worked forwardly since his last race and I’m really looking forward to seeing how he does [today],” Dollase said.

The $150,000 San Rafael is one of three stakes today. The others are the $150,000 San Pasqual, which was supposed to have been run a week ago before racing was canceled because of bad track conditions, and the $200,000 San Fernando Stakes, which features the 2008 debut of Santa Anita Derby winner Tiago.

Sunday’s card also includes three stakes -- the $150,000 Santa Ynez, the $150,000 Santa Ysabel and the $150,000 El Encino.

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larry.stewart@latimes.com

bob.mieszerski@latimes.com