Trainer D'Amato's Success Long Time in Coming

Southern California trainer Phil D'Amato is an overnight success story that was 16 years in the making.



The 38-year-old native of San Pedro, Calif. took over the barn of retiring Mike Mitchell in April after serving 10 years as Mitchell's assistant, and has quickly established himself as a top-10 conditioner on the circuit with about a 20% strike rate.



Little known outside of Southern California, D'Amato will be starting Del Mar Handicap (gr. IIT) winner Big John B in the $3 million Breeders' Cup Turf (gr. IT) Nov. 1 at Santa Anita Park.



Big John B's Aug. 23 Del Mar victory, coming in the 5-year-old gelding's stakes debut, was a Breeders' Cup "Win & You're In" event guaranteeing the son of Hard Spun   a starting slot in the Turf. It was also one of five graded victories D'Amato has earned in the past five months as a head trainer, all with turf performers. It's success he admits he is a little surprised by.

"If you'd have told me at the beginning I'd have already won the stakes races I have, I would have definitely second-guessed that," he said.

D'Amato had planned to have two entrants in the BC Turf, but recent John Henry Turf Championship (gr. IIT) winner Bright Thought had to be taken out of consideration after developing a hoof problem that will require a couple of months to heal.



Owned by Michael House after a $50,000 claim at Keeneland in April, Big John B was previously in the Michael Stidham barn in Kentucky and was transferred to D'Amato's care in June. Big John B won an allowance/optional claiming race on the Del Mar turf by seven lengths and went into the Del Mar Handicap as the 8-5 choice.



In the 1 3/8-mile test, Big John B again demonstrated a powerful turn of foot while bidding on the outside rounding the far turn. He gained the lead in upper stretch and strode away to a 5 1/4-length triumph with Mike Smith aboard.



Big John B had one start since, finishing third in the 1 1/4-mile John Henry Sept. 28 in his Santa Anita debut after trailing the field to the quarter pole. He rallied through the stretch to finish 2 1/4 lengths behind Bright Thought.



"The bad part about it was he was last and the turf course was playing very fast," D'Amato said. "He came with a run, though. The good part is he came out of it fresh and ready. I couldn't be happier with the way he's been training."



Both races, however, were too short for the long-striding dark bay, the trainer feels. "The mile-and-a-half is what he really wants," D'Amato said, while acknowledging the tough task ahead for his charge.



Big John B has continued to show his sharpness in two timed workouts since the John Henry. He went six furlongs over the Santa Anita turf in 1:12 1/5 Oct. 19, and will have one  more drill before the race.



Smith will again have the mount in the Breeders' Cup Turf, D'Amato said. Bred by Brylynn Farm out of the Doneraile Court mare Baldomera, Big John B will go into the race with 11 wins from 29 career starts and earnings of $482,805.

In his first Breeders' Cup, D'Amato also plans to run Mitchell holdover Obviously for a third time in the BC Mile (gr. IT). Obviously gave D'Amato his first grade I triumph in the Shoemaker Mile in June at Santa Anita, where the trainer won four races on the closing-day summer program June 29.



Growing up in the South Bay area, D'Amato said his initial interest in horse racing came from his parents, who owned and raced some horses. A graduate of USC with a major in political science and a minor, as he says, in race-tracking, D'Amato went on to earn a degree in animal science at the University of Arizona's racetrack industry program.



From there, he had some stops as a groom and hot-walker before going to work for trainer Chuck Simon in the East and Midwest, where he said he learned a lot. But wanting to return home after about four years with Simon, D'Amato showed up at Mitchell's Hollywood Park barn asking for an assistant's job.



"He gave me a week's trial and I guess it worked out," he said. "It's been a long journey to this point, but a pleasant one."



The 66-year-old Mitchell underwent surgery to remove a brain tumor in June 2013. He continued to maintain a large training operation while turning over more duties to D'Amato. When he decided it was time to retire, Mitchell felt comfortable in handing the reins to D'Amato, whom he praised for his loyalty, work ethic, and ability.



Mitchell has retained a presence around the barn, D'Amato said.



"Mike's main role now is as a bloodstock agent, looking to acquire new talent," he explained. "But I definitely still lean on him for advice."



D'Amato has kept most of the Mitchell's personnel at the barn, adding a couple of foremen. He also opened a secondary barn for a string at the San Luis Rey Downs training facility in northern San Diego County. Jerry Tinsley, son of longtime trainer Cotton Tinsley, heads up that operation.



Mitchell, lifetime winner of 2,690 races with total purse earnings in excess of $67 million, enjoyed some of his greatest success with horses he had claimed and developed into graded stakes winners on turf. D'Amato worked with them as well, modest horses such as Star Over the Bay, Leprechaun Kid, On the Acorn, Big Booster, and Monzante.



He compared what Mitchell did with those horses to Bobby Frankel, the Hall of Fame conditioner who trained for Juddmonte Farms and other top-level owners. It was a good learning experience, he said.



"For 10 years, I watched their training regimens and saw that they trained their horses very similarly for the turf," D'Amato said. "Of course, Frankel was training million-dollar horses."