Up close and personal

Watching the $1-million Santa Anita Handicap in person Saturday might not be Mike Willman’s first choice, even if he didn’t have to work.

A little superstitious, Willman, the owner and co-breeder of McCann’s Mojave, indicated that a remote view might be preferable when his horse takes on Lava Man and others in the Arcadia track’s most significant race.

“Maybe I should ship [myself] to San Diego,” Willman joked.

Considering recent results, no one could blame him for wanting to keep things as they have been. Watching McCann’s Mojave from afar has worked out well for Willman. The 7-year-old son of Memo has won three consecutive races without his owner being present, including a shocker at nearly 34-1 in the $1-million Sunshine Millions Classic on Jan. 27 at Gulfstream Park.

Of course, Willman will be in Arcadia for the 70th Big ‘Cap. A longtime local radio and intertrack television host, Willman is in his second year as the track’s director of publicity and will be busy on a day when the card includes two other graded stakes -- the $300,000 Frank Kilroe Mile and the $200,000 Robert Lewis Stakes.

About five months ago, it didn’t seem possible that McCann’s Mojave would be in a position to win consecutive $1-million races. When he finished sixth in the California Cup Mile on turf Oct. 28, it was his fifth loss in succession since he’d won the California Cup Classic in November 2005.

Frustrated, Willman, who had seen the bay win seven of his first 15 starts, talked with trainer Paddy Gallagher and they decided to ship the horse to northern California. Willman chose to send him to Steve Specht, a trainer Willman considers his best friend in racing.

“I wanted to get [McCann’s Mojave] into a colder climate, a different situation, and thought that maybe would pick his head up and turn him around,” Willman said. “It looked like we weren’t going anywhere.”

The move didn’t produce immediate results. In his first race for Specht, McCann’s Mojave finished seventh of 11 in the John Henry Handicap on Nov. 24 at Bay Meadows.

“After that race, I thought he was done,” Willman said. “You’re not supposed to lose confidence in your horse, but I had. I told [syndicated handicapper Bob] Ike, ‘The game is over.’ Steve called me and told me to please let him have another chance with the horse.

“I told him, ‘He’s your horse, don’t worry about it.’ What I didn’t tell him is, the horse was one bad race away from being supplemented to the Barretts’ winter mixed sale [in January] or being sold privately.”

That bad race has yet to come. McCann’s Mojave won an optional claimer by a nose Dec. 10 over a sloppy track at Bay Meadows, then followed with another score in the slop Dec. 26 at Golden Gate Fields. He was ridden in both by Frank Alvarado, who will be aboard again in the Santa Anita Handicap.

The decision then was made to head to Florida and the Classic, a race in which McCann’s Mojave had finished sixth when it was run at Santa Anita in 2006.

“I thought the race at Golden Gate was the best of his life,” said Willman, who has had various other jobs at the track, such as mutuel clerk and jockey agent. “I loved the way he did it and I thought it was kind of a no-brainer to go down there, and Steve was fine with it because of the way the horse was doing.”

Not long after Lava Man had won the Sunshine Millions Turf at Santa Anita in his first start of 2007 -- and after bringing the gelding’s jockey, Corey Nakatani, to the press box to speak to the assembled writers -- Willman shut the sliding glass door to his office to watch the Classic.

When the field reached the stretch and McCann’s Mojave and Alvarado were still in front, the noise level began to rise.

“I was pounding my desk uncontrollably and I knocked a bunch of stuff off it,” he said. “It was absolutely surreal.”

Winning a $1-million race is always special, but this one was especially sweet for Willman. He had gone through a divorce and had spent a lot of money in getting custody of his two young sons, Jason and Matthew.

“The final quarter-mile was like a run for my life,” he said. “It helped stabilize my life and the life of my kids. I had to borrow a lot of money to make sure that my kids would have the kind of life every kid deserves, that is a stable home, community and school. It was amazing, absolutely unreal and I still get emotional when I think about it.

“After the dust had settled, I called Steve and said, ‘There’s something I want to read to you.’ I was looking at the chart of the race and I said, ‘The winner’s share is $550,000.’ We both laughed for about 20 seconds. Steve is a [great] trainer, but he’s never been able to get the kind of stock to run in races with that kind of a purse.”

Willman and Specht will try to do it again Saturday, although the task will be tougher. A victory would definitely trump the Sunshine Millions triumph.

“I know Lava Man is a monster, but when else in your life are you going to have a shot like this with a horse who is this good right now?” Willman said.

Specht, 57, agreed with Willman’s assessment and couldn’t be happier with how McCann’s Mojave is doing before the biggest race of his life.

“This horse is as good right now as he can possibly be,” said Specht, who took out his trainer’s license in 1969. “In my opinion, I don’t think there is any race in Southern California that is more significant. It would be special to win this race or even hit the board. As I told Mike, you can’t hit a home run unless you swing the bat.

“My main concern with the horse is the distance more than the company. You can’t take anything away from Lava Man. He’s a good horse, but ... he’s not a horse like Secretariat or Spectacular Bid, horses that were so monstrous. He has beaten some of the same horses that we’ve beaten.

“I don’t think he’s that big of a cinch in the race. I think we have a chance of beating him if we get a good trip. What I don’t know about is the mile and a quarter. He handled a mile and an eighth OK, so we’ll see.”

bob.mieszerski@latimes.com