Veteran Om Aims to Play Dragon Slayer in Kilroe Mile

He will always be the answer to a piece of racing trivia, and there are worst reputations to have than that of a dragon slayer. But to say that Om's biggest claim to fame is his association with others doesn't do justice to the high-level of consistency the son of Munnings  has maintained for four seasons.

Ever since that day at Del Mar in August 2014 when he bested a certain future Triple Crown winner in a maiden race, Om has only ventured outside of stakes company once and out of graded company three times. Even when he went through all of 2016 and 2017 without a victory, he still showed his quality—finishing in the top three eight times during a 12-race losing skid, including a nose defeat in the 2016 Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (G1T).

Last month, at long last, the Dan Hendricks trainee proved he has what it takes to get over the hump when he captured the Feb. 10 Thunder Road Stakes (G3T) at Santa Anita Park. When the 6-year-old horse starts March 10 in the $400,000 Frank E. Kilroe Mile Stakes (G1T) at Santa Anita, Hendricks won't be mad if his charge once again makes a name for himself by taking down a champion.

The one-time conqueror of 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah  will try to add to his résumé when Om and six others face reigning champion turf male World Approval in the Kilroe Mile.

Om's 22-1 upset over the future king of the American classics was a stunner four years ago, but a victory over World Approval Saturday would stand as a far more significant triumph, given the established credentials his Eclipse Award-winning foe brings to the table. Since cutting back in distance following his fifth-place finish in the Woodford Reserve Manhattan Stakes (G1T) in June of 2017, Live Oak Stud's homebred World Approval has rattled off four straight wins—including victories in the Fourstardave Handicap (G1T), Ricoh Woodbine Mile (G1T), and the Breeders' Cup Mile (G1T).

BALAN: World Approval All Class in Breeders' Cup Mile Win

The gelded son of Northern Afleet  had to work a bit harder than expected to take the 1 1/16-mile Tampa Bay Stakes (G3T) in his seasonal bow Feb. 10, prompting his connections to scrap a potential trip to Meydan for the 1,800-meter (about 1 1/8 miles) Dubai Turf sponsored by DP World (G1). He will be back in his wheelhouse at eight furlongs Saturday and even has some intel in his favor as jockey Flavien Prat—who will be aboard the 6-year-old gelding for the first time—guided Om to victory last month.

"I thought the timing was good, and I thought (the Tampa Bay Stakes) was a good race for him," trainer Mark Casse said. "He got a little tired late, but we know after a mile, you're pushing him."

Where the Kilroe was somewhat of a "Plan B" for World Approval, it has been the target for K.B. Sareen's Om since he closed out his 2017 campaign with a fourth-place finish in the Nov. 26 Seabiscuit Handicap (G2T) at Del Mar.

After Om started the year with another fourth-place effort in the Jan. 1 Joe Hernandez Stakes at Santa Anita, Hendricks looked at the Thunder Road and decided his venerable runner might regain his mojo by ditching his recent off-the-pace ways and getting back to frontrunning roots. Using the same early speed that carried him to three prior graded stakes wins, Om burst out to a seven-length advantage at one point during the one-mile Thunder Road and was able to fight back late against fellow Kilroe entrant Bowies Hero. It was his first victory since taking the 2015 edition of the Mathis Brothers Mile Stakes (G2T).

BALAN: Om Back to Winning Ways in Thunder Road

"It was very satisfying, because we knew he had it in him," Hendricks said of Om's Thunder Road win. "We looked at the form, and it was obvious we should just go, and it worked out real well.

"When he was 3, he was a little too fresh and rank, so we took the blinkers off and put (jockey) Gary (Stevens) on, and he got him to settle, even though he was on the lead. But as time went by and we got into the older-horse division, there was always someone that wanted to go too fast up front, so we started just laying off a little bit. He was running great but just not getting it done. It was just a little frustrating."

Both Om and World Approval boast the early speed necessary to dictate matters, but the latter can also stalk in the next flight.

"We can sit just off them," Hendricks said of Om. "The only problem is you have such a nice, classy horse in World Approval, that he can just sit and wait to pounce, and he's proven he can do it. So it's going to be a very interesting race."

Bowies Hero has done his best work at a mile, including his first graded score in the Mathis Brothers Mile Dec. 26 at Santa Anita. All four of the colt's wins since moving to trainer Phil D'Amato's barn in 2016 have been at eight furlongs on the grass.

"He's a horse who has steadily, gradually improved from race to race, from 2 to 4," D'Amato said. "I think he's on the cusp of being in that upper echelon of grass milers, but he's gotta get there. He got over the hump in the Mathis Brothers, and he's a great competitor. He always tries, and hopefully he can take another step forward against these horses. He's going to need to."

Entries: Frank E. Kilroe Mile S. (G1T)

Santa Anita Park, Saturday, March 10, 2018, Race 5

• Grade IT
• 1m
• Turf
• $400,000
• 4 yo's & up
• 2:14 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Free Rose (KY)	Kent J. Desormeaux	120	Richard Baltas	20/1
2	2Bowies Hero (KY)	Corey S. Nakatani	122	Philip D'Amato	6/1
3	3Next Shares (KY)	Rajiv Maragh	120	Richard Baltas	8/1
4	4Syntax (IRE)	Geovanni Franco	120	Philip D'Amato	15/1
5	5World Approval (FL)	Flavien Prat	124	Mark E. Casse	4/5
6	6What a View (CA)	Tyler Baze	120	Kenneth D. Black	15/1
7	7Om (KY)	Mike E. Smith	122	Dan L. Hendricks	5/1
8	8Channel Maker (ON)	Javier Castellano	120	William I. Mott	5/1