SANTA CATALINA STAKES: LAVA MAN FLOWS TO WIN O'NEILL HORSE TAKES BIG 'CAP.Byline: Art Wilson Arthur Earl "Dutch" Wilson (December 11, 1885 in Macon, Illinois; died June 12, 1960 in Chicago, Illinois) was a catcher in Major League Baseball. Art Wilson was the catcher for Cubs pitcher Hippo Vaughn during the "double no-hitter" game in 1917. Staff Writer ARCADIA - Many in the on-track crowd of 49,089 were going nuts when Lava Man won Saturday's 69th running of the $1 million Grade I Santa Anita Handicap The Santa Anita Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in the late winter at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is a Grade I race for horses three years old and up, and is considered the most important race for older horses in North America during . So was winning trainer Doug O'Neill. O'Neill was watching the race alone near the finish line, amongst strangers, when Lava Man drew off in the stretch and then held off a late-charging Magnum by three-quarters of a length to increase his bankroll bank·roll n. 1. A roll of paper money. 2. Informal One's ready cash. tr.v. bank·rolled, bank·roll·ing, bank·rolls Informal to more than $2 million since being claimed for $50,000 in August 2004 at Del Mar. ``The people around me must have thought I was an idiot,'' O'Neill said. ``I was acting like an idiot. Some of them were probably thinking, 'I bet that idiot has $2 to show.' '' O'Neill had reason to celebrate. Lava Man, who completed the 1 1/4-mile journey in 2:00.57 as the 3-1 second choice in the wagering, joins Southern Image as the only horses to win two million-dollar races at one Santa Anita meet. They both won the Sunshine Millions Classic The Sunshine Millions Classic is a race for thoroughbred horses held in January at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California or at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Florida. Half the eight races of the Sunshine Millions are run at one track and half at the other. and the Big 'Cap, with Southern Image turning the trick in 2004. The victory also signified that Lava Man, who won last summer's $750,000 Grade I Hollywood Gold Cup The Hollywood Gold Cup is a Grade I stakes race for thoroughbred horses inaugurated in 1938 at Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, California. It was run as a handicap race until 1997 when it was switched to weight-for-age conditions. and finished third in the $1 million Grade I Pacific Classic at Del Mar before going sour, is officially back and apparently ready to further reward owners Steve and David Kenly and Jason Wood for one of the best Southland claims in recent memory. ``I think he's right back to where he was last summer,''O'Neill said. Following his gritty third-place effort in the 1 1/4-mile Pacific Classic, when he ran a torrid 45.4-second half-mile while setting the pace and yet lost by only three-quarters of a length, Lava Man did not travel well and was beaten by 45 1/2 lengths in the Jockey Club Gold Cup The Jockey Club Gold Cup, established in 1919, is a prestigious thoroughbred flat race open to horses of either gender three-years-old and up. It is typically the main event of the fall meeting at Belmont Park, just as the Belmont Stakes is of the spring meeting and the Travers at Belmont Park in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of . An 11th-place showing in the Japan Cup Dirt The Japan Cup Dirt (JPN G-1) is a race usually run a day before the Japan Cup. Race Information
castrated male horse. injured the bottom of Lava Man's foot. ``Coming back, every time he put his foot down there was a little puddle of blood,'' said jockey Corey Nakatani, who took over the assignment on Lava Man for the Japan race and remained aboard for the Sunshine Millions score in January and Saturday's victory - Nakatani's second in the Big 'Cap after his win aboard General Challenge in 2000. Enter blacksmith Jim Jimenez, who designed a special shoe for Lava Man so he could continue to train and prepare for the Sunshine Millions and rehabilitate the injured foot at the same time. ``Jim should be on my payroll with what he's done with this horse,'' O'Neill said. Magnum, ridden by Jon Court and sixth after the first three-quarters was run in a moderate 1:11.31, rallied strongly along the rail and finished second by 7 1/2 lengths over Wilko. High Limit finished fourth and 2005 Kentucky Derby winner Giacomo was fifth. Art Wilson, (626) 962-8811, Ext. 2103 art.wilson(at)sgvn.com CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Lava Man, with Corey Nakatani aboard, holds off Magnum in the $1 million Santa Anita Handicap. Benoit Photo |
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