ARCADIA, Calif. – Flagstaff is emerging from the shadow of his 3-year-old sibling Game Winner. A lightly raced 5-year-old gelding, Flagstaff scored a hard-fought victory in the $100,000 Damascus Stakes on Friday at Santa Anita to stamp his re-entry as a potential graded stakes-caliber sprinter. Flagstaff ($4 favorite) defeated comeback 3-year-old Roadster by a nose in the seven-furlong Damascus. Extra Hope finished a length and three-quarters back in third. Comical finished fourth in the small field. Horse Greedy scratched. “That was a heck of a horse race, can I count that as a Breeders’ Cup win?” trainer John Sadler cracked afterward. Sadler won his first Breeders’ Cup race last year with Accelerate, and though he cannot count the Damascus as a BC win, he can add Flagstaff to his cast of top sprinters. Sadler-trained Grade 1 winner Cistron is nearing a return to training. Catalina Cruiser and Selcourt entered Breeders' Cup one-turn races to be run later Saturday. Flagstaff, third last out behind Omaha Beach and Shancelot in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Sprint Championship, found class relief in the ungraded seven-furlong Damascus. Victor Espinoza guided Flagstaff outside pacesetter Comical Ghost, got first run into the lane, and held off troubled Roadster to win in 1:22.36. Flagstaff’s win was his fourth from just nine starts. “He’s had all kinds of stuff,” Sadler said, explaining his abbreviated career. “He had colic at 3, he’s been injured several times, the only time he didn’t bring home a check [off the board] he chipped a hind ankle. Flagstaff is healthy now, and Sadler said long-term plans could include a trip to Dubai for the $2.5 million Golden Shaheen next March. “We’ve always thought he was a good horse, but things didn’t go right for him,” Sadler said. “He’s the soundest he’s ever been.” A gelding sired by Speightstown and produced by Indyan Giving, Flagstaff is owned by Hronis Racing and Lanes End Racing. Flagstaff’s sibling Game Winner won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile last year and earned the Eclipse Award as outstanding 2-year-old male. The 3-year-old Roadster ran well in defeat. Running for the first time in more than four months, the Santa Anita Derby winner checked on the backstretch, lost position, re-rallied, but could not get past Flagstaff. “This isn’t his distance,” trainer Bob Baffert said. “I probably should have run him in the Mile the other day.” Baffert was referring to the $75,000 Comma to the Top on Oct. 27. Baffert will wait to see how Roadster comes out of the race before targeting his next start. “He certainly wants to go long,” Baffert said.