Oaklawn Park: Fire Starter skips Rebel for Sunday allowance

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Fire Starter is starting over. The promising 3-year-old who participated in Oaklawn’s first two stakes for his division bypassed the Rebel here Saturday and will instead run in an allowance on Sunday.

Fire Starter is part of a 12-horse field for an optional $75,000 claimer for 3-year-olds at 1 1/16 miles that is expected to go to post with 11 horses. Jet Cat was expected to be scratched to run in the Rebel, trainer Ed Frederick said Friday.

Fire Starter will be among the top choices in Sunday’s seventh race on the strength of whom he has been racing against. He was fifth, beaten four lengths, in the $150,000 Smarty Jones at Oaklawn on Jan. 20, then ran eighth to Tapiture in the Grade 3, $300,000 Southwest. Steve Hobby, who trains Fire Starter, thinks the horse would be best served moving back into the allowance ranks.

“He’s just running too green right now,” Hobby said. “He’s a real late foal, really just immature, and we want to back off and run in a little lighter company where he can learn something.

“He’s having a good time running around with everyone. He needs to look up front and say, ‘I want to catch that horse.’ ”

Fire Starter was a 10 3/4-length maiden special weight winner at Laurel Park in his fourth career start Dec. 31. He races for Arkansas residents Alex and JoAnn Lieblong, who purchased the horse for $300,000 as a yearling at Keeneland in September 2012. Fire Starter is a son of Tapit, and a half-brother to Grade 1 winner Bordonaro.

Channing Hill has the mount from post 3.

Others set to start include Son of Dixie, who exits a ninth-place finish in the Southwest, and Sheikinator, who was seventh last out in the Grade 1 CashCall Futurity in December at Hollywood Park.

A Step Ahead, who is a full brother to multiple Grade 1 winner Giant Oak, is also part of the field Sunday. He draws an improved post over his last start, when he was third in a one-mile allowance from post 10. A Step Ahead will break from the rail with the defection of Jet Cat.

The eighth race Sunday at Oakawn is a second-level allowance sprint for fillies and mares that drew Street Story, winner of the $100,000 Dixie Belle at Oaklawn on Jan. 10.