Midnight Storm, Om scheduled to meet again in Del Mar Mile
A field of six was entered Thursday in Sunday’s Grade II $200,000 Del Mar Mile, an event which will provide a rematch of the 1-2 finishers in 2016, Midnight Storm and Om.
Midnight Storm finished a half-length in front of Om last year and both went on to on-the-board finishes in Breeders’ Cup races. Midnight Storm was third in the Mile while Om came up a nose short making an incredible late rally in the Turf Sprint.
Midnight Storm will be switched back to turf after four starts on dirt in graded stakes in 2017. Om’s only 2017 start was a runner-up effort, beaten 1 ¾-lengths by Pee Wee Reese in the Grade III American Stakes at Santa Anita on July 4.
“He’s been doing well, his works have been good and it seems like he’s gotten good and tight since then and we’re ready to roll,” trainer Dan Hendricks said of Om. “It’s a tough race, but we’re part of it.”
The field from the rail: Vyjack (Flavien Prat), Om (Gary Stevens), Bal a Bali (Mike Smith), Midnight Storm (Rafael Bejarano), Blackjackcat (Kent Desormeaux) and Le Ken (Drayden Van Dyke).
PRAT TIES ROMAN AND TALAMO GRABS MOMENTUM IN JOCKEYS RACE
Flavien Prat won Wednesday’s third race on Lajatico ($7.60) and fourth on Bolser ($13.60) to move into a tie with apprentice Evin Roman atop the jockey standings. Both have 22 wins, Roman from 135 mounts and Prat from 104.
Joe Talamo made the most progress, however. Talamo won aboard Time for Ebby (1st, $46.80), Honor Maker (6th, $23.60) and Responsibleforlove (7th, CTT and TOC Handicap, $10.20) to leapfrog Tyler Baze and Kent Desormeaux and settle into fourth in the standings. Talamo has 14 wins from 80 mounts.
In the training race, Doug O’Neill picked up one win (3rd, Lajatico) to move within one of leader Phil D’Amato, 12-11.
Roman has six mounts on Thursday’s eight-race program, Prat has five.
Neither D’Amato nor O’Neill have representatives on Thursday, but third-place Richard Baltas saddles horses in three races and has two, one of them 5-2 morning line favorite Relentless Miss, going in the third race.
BALTAS, LINDO GUESTS FOR WEEKEND SEMINARS
Trainer Richard Baltas and Thoroughbred owner, breeder and syndicated handicapper Jon Lindo will provide expert commentary and selections at the upcoming Weekend Handicapping Seminars.
Baltas will do the honors on Saturday for a card that includes the Grade II $250,000 Del Mar Handicap, Grade I $1 million TVG Pacific Classic and Grade I $300,000 Del Mar Oaks.
Lindo is part of the ownership group of Skye Diamonds, winner of last Sunday’s Rancho Bernardo Handicap, and is currently the front runner by many victories of the four-member selection panel for the San Diego Union-Tribune racing page.
Lindo will be the guest of Scott Shapiro on Sunday.
The seminars are held from 12:45-1:30 at the Seaside Terrace near the top of the stretch.
CLOSERS – Trainer John Sadler estimated on Thursday morning that there’s an 80 percent chance his Hard Aces will run, for the third year in a row, in the Pacific Classic … Selected works from 123 officially timed Thursday: Smokem (3f, :36.40), Ransomed (4f, :46.20), Battle of Midway (5f, 1:03.40), Desert Steel (1:01.40), Oregon (5f, :59.80), Poetic (5f, 1:00.20), Slim Fit (5f, :59.80), Big Gray Rocket (6f, 1:12.80) and Just a Smidge (6f, 1:12.60).
Source: Del Mar Thoroughbred Club