Cooler Mike handles weighty assignment in Sir Barton

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Cooler Mike was a punctual choice in Saturday’s $100,000 Sir Barton Stakes, scoring comfortably over Thor’s Rocket in the 1 1/16-mile route for Ontario-sired runners at Woodbine.

Cooler Mike ($4.70) raced in fourth on the backstretch, as Eskiminzin set fast fractions before drifting out very wide on the far turn.

Cooler Mike made a three-wide bid into contention on the far turn, and then held off Thor’s Rocket in the final furlong to win by a length, in a time of 1:44.02.

Royal Laser finished a neck behind the runner-up while nosing out Magical Man for third in the seven-horse field.

Luis Contreras rode the handsome 4-year-old Cooler Mike, who was winning his first stakes on Tapeta after notching two turf stakes earlier at the meet.

“You have to get him back right away from the first jump, because he’s kind of aggressive,” Contreras said. “He was great today. I had a perfect trip. When I asked him to go at the quarter pole, he just gave me everything.”

Trainer Nick Nosowenko, who owns Cooler Mike in partnership with his father, Mike, said the son of Giant Gizmo had to give away considerable weight as the 126-pound highweight.

“He’s on fire right now,” Nosowenko said. “We were very concerned about the weight. He had to give nine pounds, but he motored through them, and kept going, and wasn’t going to let them go by.”