Big John B seeks first dirt win in Cougar II

DEL MAR, Calif. – In his 32-race career, Big John B has thrived on turf and failed on dirt.

A 6-year-old gelding, Big John B has won 12 races, all on turf, including the Grade 2 Del Mar Handicap last summer, and earned $507,175 overall. He has earned $3,985 in four starts on dirt and synthetic tracks.

The record has not discouraged trainer Phil D’Amato from entering Big John B in the $100,000 Cougar II Handicap at 1 1/2 miles on dirt at Del Mar on Friday. There is no doubt that the distance is a good fit. The challenge will be the surface.

“I think he can do it,” D’Amato said. “He’s always trained really nicely on the dirt. I’ve always wanted to try him. The only thing that held me back is he ran poorly on it early in his career.”

Big John B, owned by Michael House, is part of a field of seven in the Grade 3 race. He faces a solid field that includes Sky Kingdom, who has been second in the last two runnings of the Cougar II, and Lideris, a Group 1 winner in Peru in 2014 who was sixth in the Grade 1 Gold Cup at Santa Anita on June 27.

KEY CONTENDERS

Big John B (Last 3 Beyers: 96-96-97)

Big John B ended his 2014 season with a ninth-place finish in the Breeders’ Cup Turf at Santa Anita. This year, he has had mixed form, finishing last of eight as the 8-5 favorite in the Grade 3 Last Tycoon Stakes at Santa Anita on April 25 but rebounding to win a starter handicap under 130 pounds at 1 1/2 miles on turf for former claimers June 28.

“I like the spacing for this race from his last race,” D’Amato said.

In many of his races, Big John B has closed from the back of the field, but D’Amato said the gelding is not one-dimensional.

“He can be more tactical than you think,” D’Amato said.

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Sky Kingdom (Last 3 Beyers: 95-101-80)

Sky Kingdom will go favored on the basis of his win in the Grade 3, 1 1/2-mile Tokyo City Stakes at Santa Anita in March and a third in the Grade 2 Brooklyn Stakes at the same distance at Belmont Park on June 6.

Trained by Bob Baffert for Westrock Stable, Sky Kingdom has not been worse than third in five starts at 1 1/2 miles.

“That’s his distance,” Baffert said.

Cat Burglar (Last 3 Beyers: 80-94-80)

Cat Burglar has never raced at 1 1/2 miles. A 5-year-old trained by Baffert, Cat Burglar was fifth in the Grade 1 Stephen Foster Handicap at 1 1/8 miles at Churchill Downs on June 13. He has yet to win a stakes in four starts at that level.