California Chrome brother Fort McHenry giving synthetic a try

Graded stakes on the dirt didn't work out so well for Fort McHenry, the 3-year-old sibling of champion California Chrome. So he'll take a drop in class when switching to synthetic on Thursday at Golden Gate Fields.

Trained by Doug O'Neill, the gelded son of Tapit, once purchased for $1.1 million by Coolmore, is set to go 1 1/16 miles in a $50,000 allowance race over the all weather track in northern California.

Post time for the sixth race is 6:15 p.m. ET.

Via private purchase by Janie Buss, the sister of Los Angeles Lakers owner Jeanie Buss, O'Neill took over Fort McHenry's training in February. He finished sixth of seven in the San Felipe Stakes (G2) after a third in allowance optional claiming event at Aqueduct on Feb. 2, then with the Todd Pletcher barn.

Fort McHenry sparked some hope last November when he broke his maiden at Gulfstream Park West, but the momentum halted when running ninth in his stakes debut, the Nov. 30 Smooth Air at Gulfstream Park.

Janie Buss campaigns Fort McHenry under the Purple Rein Racing banner. Overall, Fort McHenry, out of the mare Love the Chase, is 1-1-1 in six starts.