Ransom the Moon targets Pat O'Brien Stakes

DEL MAR, Calif. - Ranson the Moon, the winner of the Grade 1 Bing Crosby Stakes on July 28, has earned another start at the current Del Mar summer meeting.

Trainer Phil D’Amato plans to run Ransom the Moon in the Grade 2 Pat O’Brien Stakes at seven furlongs on Aug. 25.

“He’s galloping so strongly I’m looking toward the Pat O’Brien,” D’Amato said. “I think he’s one of those horses that knows he won and he’s back on his game. I’ve wanted to see that for some time.”

Ransom the Moon holds a fees-paid berth for the Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Churchill Downs on Nov. 3 for his win in the six-furlong Bing Crosby. Ransom the Moon closed from ninth in a field of 11 to win by 2 1/4 lengths over Roy H, the champion sprinter of 2017.

Roy H is unlikely to start in the Pat O’Brien and is a candidate for the Grade 1 Santa Anita Sprint Championship at six furlongs on Oct. 6, according to Brian Trump, the racing manager for co-owner Rockingham Ranch. The winner of the Santa Anita Sprint Championship receives a fees-paid berth for the BC Sprint.