Sharp Samurai the favorite for Sunday's Del Mar Mile Handicap

Catapult and Sharp Samurai, the 1-2 finishers in the Grade 2 Eddie Read Stakes on July 22, take a step back in distance from 1 1/16 miles in Sunday’s Grade 2, $200,000 Del Mar Mile Handicap. Sharp Samurai is the 7-2 favorite in the field of 12 on the morning line posted Friday by odds maker Russ Hudak.

Catapult got a perfectly timed ride from Drayden Van Dyke to rally from sixth place at the top of the stretch and nip Sharp Samurai by a nose in the Read. Having drawn the No. 1 post could prove to be an obstacle for Catapult while Sharp Samurai, the top 3-year-old of the 2017 meeting seeking a third Del Mar stakes victory in two years here, has the more comfortable No. 4 spot.

Trainer Mark Glatt will be seeking back-to-back Mile victories. He saddled Blackjackcat to win by a head over Vyjack last year.

Two-time Mile winner Doug O’Neill will be represented by B Squared, who has one victory in eight starts this year, seven of them coming in ungraded stakes.

“He’s been beaten a couple times as the favorite, but he’s been close almost every time,” O’Neill assistant Leandro Mora said of the 4-year-old son of Square Eddie who has $411,698 in earnings from 19 career starts. “It’s been maybe a little bit disappointing, but we always hope the next one coming up will be a good one.”

The field from the rail: Catapult (Drayden Van Dyke, 9-2), What a View (Kent Desormeaux, 20-1), True Valor (Brice Blanc, 20-1), Sharp Samurai (Gary Stevens, 7-2), Le Ken (Tyler Baze, 30-1), Bowies Hero (Joel Rosario, 8-1), Caribou Club (Mike Smith, 6-1), B Squared (Mario Gutierrez, 20-1), Fly to Mars (Tyler Gaffalione, 6-1), Om (Joe Talamo, 12-1), Big Score (Rafael Bejarano, 10-1), Next Shares (Stewart Elliott, 20-1) and Hunt (Flavien Prat, 6-1).