by Jeff Apel
Big expectations surround trainer Doug O'Neill and multiple Grade 1 winner Lava Man entering the $250,000 California Cup Classic Handicap on Saturday at the Oak Tree meeting at Santa Anita Park.
“The pressure is on me because I speak for Lava Man, and I don’t want to embarrass him,” O’Neill said. “He’s sound and he should run a big race Saturday. If not, maybe he’ll need a little breather.”
The California Cup Classic, a 1 1/8-mile race for three-year-olds and older, is one of eight stakes races on the California Cup XVIII card for California-breds. The stakes races have a combined purse value of just over $1.2-million.
Lava Man is the 7-to-5 morning-line favorite in a field of 11 entered for the Classic. STD Racing Stable’s and Jason Wood’s Slew City Slew gelding will carry high weight of 124 pounds, and will concede from five to 11 pounds to his foes.
A career earner of $5,214,706, Lava Man earned Grade 1 victories this season in the Santa Anita Handicap (G1) on March 3 and the Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes (G1) on June 30. Following consecutive sixth-place finishes in the Pacific Classic Stakes (G1) on August 19 at Del Mar and the Oak Tree Mile Stakes (G2) on October 7 at Santa Anita in Lava Man’s two previous starts, O’Neill and assistant trainer Leandro Mora changed the gelding’s training regime.
“We’ve tried something new, training Lava Man on Hollywood’s training track,” O’Neill said. “I think this has livened Lava Man up a little.”
Celtic Dreamin, who enters off a victory in the British Columbia Breeders’ Cup Derby (Can-G3) on September 23 at Hastings Race Course, is the only other graded stakes winner in the California Classic. Rafael Becerra trains Celtic Dreamin.
Saturday’s card features five stakes races for three year olds and older, including the $175,000 California Cup Mile Handicap.
Fillies and mares will compete in the $100,000 California Cup Distance Handicap, a 1 1/4-mile turf race, and the $150,000 California Cup Matron Handicap, a 1 1/16-mile race. A field of ten fillies and mares was entered in the $150,000 California Cup Distaff Handicap, a 6 1/2-furlong turf race.
Nine geldings were entered in the $150,000 California Cup Sprint Handicap, a six-furlong race.
Two two-year-old races that feature $125,000 purses—the California Cup Juvenile Fillies Stakes and the California Cup Juvenile Stakes—also will be run at 1 1/16-miles.
Jeff Apel is an assistant daily news editor for Thoroughbred Times
The field for the California Cup Classic Handicap, in post-position order, with (sire), jockey, weight, and trainer:
1. Rush With Thunder (Tribal Rule), Omar A. Berrio, 114, A. C. Avila;
2. Freesgood (Free House), Mike E. Smith, 113, William L. Currin;
3. Cheroot (Smokester), Martin A. Pedroza, 118, Darrell Vienna;
4. Celtic Dreamin (Game Plan), Garrett K. Gomez, 115, Rafael Becerra;
5. Tiz Afire (Cee's Tizzy), Joseph Talamo, 116, Martin F. Jones;
6. Add Heat (Unusual Heat), Tyler Baze, 114, Barry Abrams;
7. Valiant Effort (Bertrando), Alex O. Solis, 114, Clifford W. Sise, Jr.;
8. Seminole Native (Lil Tyler), Brice Blanc, 114, Jorge Gutierrez;
9. A Gallant Discover (Discover), Richard Migliore, 115, Sam J. Scolamieri;
10. Lava Man (Slew City Slew), Corey S. Nakatani, 124, Doug F. O'Neill; and
11. Bold Chieftain (Chief Seattle), Russell A. Baze, 119, William J. Morey, Jr.