Obviously makes return in American Stakes

ARCADIA, Calif. – When he returns Saturday from a six-month layoff, Obviously will find he has been replaced by Winning Prize as the top turf miler in California.

Obviously can get closer to regaining his ranking Saturday at Santa Anita, where he will try to wire the Grade 3 American Stakes. The race got easier with the announcement that Winning Prize will scratch and wait for the Shoemaker Mile on June 14.

Obviously should be loose on the lead in the American, though stretch-out sprinter Chips All In will be nipping at his heels, and graded winners Silentio and Tigah will kick late over a turf course that will be more extensively watered and aerated than recent weeks.

The course might not be as speed conducive. Obviously does not require a bias. He is a good horse, plain and simple.

As for the six-month layoff, that is not a concern of trainer Phil D’Amato.[bc_video_id:324705:]

“Last year, I would have said he needed a race,” he said. “This time, I think he’s primed to run a big race off a layoff.”

He will need to be. The purse is just $100,000, but the American field is strong. Seven entered the stakes, race 4 on an 11-race card that includes the $75,000 Angel’s Flight, race 9, for filly sprinters. First post Saturday is 11:30 Pacific.

Obviously was a beast one year ago for trainer Mike Mitchell, who has reversed roles with former assistant D’Amato. They are still on the same team, and Obviously is believed to be the same horse as in 2013, when he won the American, Shoemaker, and Del Mar Mile.

“He’s showing all his speed, and then some,” D’Amato said. “He’s jumping out of his skin right now.”

Obviously’s work pattern includes eight straight best-of-the-morning drills capped by a five-furlong grass work May 10 that D’Amato initially figured he mistimed. Good horses can be deceptive.

“He looked like he was going in 1:02,” D’Amato said. “I’m looking at my watch, and it said 58, so I called the clockers and asked, ‘What time did you get?’ – 58.”

Obviously, 9 for 18 with earnings of $1,037,361, is making his first start since finishing fifth in the Breeders’ Cup Mile. “The plan was not to run him until he was ready to run and give him all the time in the world,” D’Amato said.

Anthony Fanticola and Joe Scardino own Obviously, who will follow a campaign this year similar to last year’s. The Shoemaker is June 14, the Del Mar Mile on Aug. 24. Long-range options include the BC Mile and BC Turf Sprint.

“We’ll see where we’re at Breeders’ Cup time; both those races are kind of on the radar,” D’Amato said. “We’re going to see what he does in these first couple races. The BC Turf Sprint would definitely be under serious consideration.”

Joe Talamo rides Obviously.

The main rival for Obviously is Winning Prize, trained by Neil Drysdale. A Grade 1 winner in Argentina, he made a splashy U.S. debut in a Del Mar allowance, then misfired twice while compromised by track conditions. He finished fourth at Keeneland in an off-the-turf stakes, followed by a third in a Hollywood stakes run on a “good” course.

Winning Prize burst to top form with wins at Santa Anita in the Grade 2 Arcadia and Grade 1 Kilroe Mile on March 8. His subsequent work pattern has gaps, but Drysdale said: “We never stopped on him. He’s been working consistently.”

Winning Prize, 8 of 13, also has the BC Mile as his long-range target. Corey Nakatani rides Winning Prize, who is likely to be positioned right behind the speed.

Mike Smith was booked to ride Tom’s Tribute in the American, but the horse came up with a foot abscess after he won a minor stakes in 1:31.78 for a mile. Trainer Jim Cassidy said Tom’s Tribute will wait for the Shoemaker.

“He had a little abscess, we worked on it, and got it out,” Cassidy said. “He’s 90 percent now, but Mike and I both agreed to make sure he is 100 percent.”

Smith picks up the mount Saturday on Grade 3 winner Tigah, returning from an eight-month layoff. Silentio will be ridden by Gary Stevens, who fills in for the injured Rafael Bejarano. Silentio won the Grade 2 Citation.

Pure Tactics and Smart Ellis also were entered.

◗ The $75,000 Angel’s Flight, formerly the Railbird Stakes, is race 9. The seven-furlong sprint for 3-year-old fillies includes Oaklawn shipper Delta Flower, making her first start in California, and Empress of Midway, who flipped in the gate before the Kentucky Oaks and was scratched from that race.