HOLLYWOOD PARK : Mohamed Abdu Wins in Inglewood Handicap

Alex Solis had a hard time believing he and Peace didn’t win the $109,800 Inglewood Handicap Sunday at Hollywood Park.

“I wish all the horses I rode would run like that one,” he said.

In his first race in more than eight months, Peace ran well enough to improve his record on the Hollypark turf to 6-0.

Unfortunately for him, a horse coming off an even longer vacation ran a bit better.

Mohamed Abdu, who hadn’t been seen since suffering a leg injury in the Turf Paradise Handicap Jan. 28, 1989, was plenty fit for his return.

Scoring his first victory since he won the Col. F.W. Koester Handicap Oct. 23, 1988, at Santa Anita, the 6-year-old Rusticaro horse set all the fractions, then held off Peace in a stretch-long duel.

At the end, the 7-1 shot had beaten Peace, the 5-2 second choice, by a head. Mohamed Abdu completed the 1 1/16 miles in a rapid 1:39 2/5.

“It just took time to get him back,” said trainer Richard Mulhall after Mohamed Abdu won for the eighth time in 15 starts. “But he’s a pretty easy horse to train. He will train and he will work. Just like Peace. Peace trained well.

“If you have a horse that will train and work well, then it’s a lot easier to get him ready. Especially if it’s a good horse.”

The even-money favorite in the 1989 Turf Paradise Handicap, Mohamed Abdu pulled a suspensory ligament in his left foreleg when he jumped over the front of the starting gate. “When they sprung the latch, he was hanging on the gate,” Mulhall said.

“You always have doubt when they’re off that long. Actually, I really thought he was coming back better than he was before because he was a lot quieter. He used to be very nervous. He was a lot quieter today. He went to the gate well. I guess you settle down when you get old.

“Peace made a big move at him, and I knew Gary (Stevens) hadn’t asked my horse to run yet. They’re both good horses and they ran hard. We got him this time. I’d been reading how Peace was unbeaten on this turf course, but that’s only because I’ve never run here before,” he said with a smile.

Stevens, who was aboard for Mohamed Abdu’s victory in the Koester, was happy to see him back.

“Mr. Mulhall did a hell of a job getting this horse ready,” he said. “He was dead tight. He wasn’t going to let that other horse get by him. I thought it was going to be close (when Peace joined him), but I knew he wouldn’t quit from riding him before. He has an awful lot of try in him.

“I can thank Mr. Mulhall for getting me on the horse because my agent (Ray Kravagna) wasn’t too keen on riding him because he was coming off such a long layoff. I’m just glad we got the opportunity. He’s a very aggressive horse and he’s all right. He sure runs great fresh.”

The American Handicap July 4 and a meeting with Steinlen could be next for Mohamed Abdu, but Mulhall wasn’t ready to commit.

“It’s a possibility, but we’ll have to see how much this took out of him,” he said. “I’ve waited a year and a half with him, so I can wait a little bit longer if I have too.”

Classic Fame, the 7-5 favorite, rallied for third, a half-length behind Peace. Silent Prince, the longest shot in the field at 25-1, was fourth. Then came Miswaki Tern, Just As Lucky and Shining Steel, who trailed the entire way.

Sunday Silence and Ruhlmann, who will give Charlie Whittingham an extremely strong hand in Sunday’s $1 million Hollywood Gold Cup, will probably have their final drills for the race Wednesday.

Winner of the Californian in his first start as a 4-year-old, Sunday Silence worked a mile in 1:37 4/5 Thursday, a day before Ruhlmann went the same distance a second faster. “Both horses are doing well and they’re coming into the race well,” said Whittingham.

Others set to go in the Gold Cup, which is run at 1 1/4 miles, are Criminal Type, who has won the Pimlico Special and the Metropolitan Mile in his last two starts; Opening Verse, who is due to arrive at Hollywood Park today; Stylish Winner, the runner-up in the Californian; Mi Selecto, who is trained by Angel Penna and was fourth in the Pimlico Special; and Santangelo. Weights for the Gold Cup will be announced Tuesday.

Horse Racing Notes

Petite Ile, who won the Golden Gate Handicap Saturday, might make her Southern California debut in the $250,000-added Sunset Handicap July 23, closing day at Hollywood Park. Trained by Ed Gregson, the 4-year-old filly had previously won the Yerba Buena and finished second in the Countess Fager at Golden Gate Fields. . . . Claimed for $80,000 by trainer Robert Marshall June 1, Solar Launch paid immediate dividends for his new connections Sunday. Moved back to the dirt after five consecutive turf races, the 3-year-old Sassafras colt beat his five allowance rivals by 5 1/2 lengths and equaled the track record of 1:14 4/5 for 6 1/2 furlongs. No doubt, the record could have been his alone, but Kent Desormeaux geared him down in the final yards. . . . Gary Stevens won two other races Sunday: the fourth on 2-year-old Deposit Ticket and the sixth on 8-1 shot Golden Voyager. Fifth in his first two starts, Golden Voyager, who was a $1.4 million yearling purchase, won by eight lengths in 1:34 3/5 for the mile. . . . Mohamed Abdu paid $17 to win and earned $64,800 for his owners Meyer and Mollie Gaskin and Nandor Markovic.