D’Amato likes Obviously’s training leading up to Ricoh Woodbine Mile

TORONTO – Obviously has given trainer Phil D’Amato every indication the $1-million Ricoh Woodbine Mile is the place to make his 2015 debut.

The seven-year-old Irish-bred gelding will race for the first time this year Sunday at Woodbine Racetrack. Although Obviously hasn’t run in 2015, he’s still the early 3/1 second favourite and will break from the No. 1 post in the 11-horse field.

“He loves to run four or five races a year and just gives you everything he’s got,” said D’Amato. “He runs great fresh and if he wasn’t training as well as he ever has, if not better, I wouldn’t even consider this off the bench.”

The winner Sunday will earn $600,000 and a berth in the Breeders’ Cup Mile on Oct. 31 at Keeneland in Kentucky.

Obviously will attempt to become the oldest winner in race history. Obviously has won 11 of 22 starts and earned over $1.4 million.

Joe Talamo will ride Obviously, who also was fifth in the last two Breeders’ Cup Mile events.

Lea is the 5/2 early favourite trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott. The six-year-old Kentucky-bred is the field’s leading money winner at over $2 million with seven wins from 17 starts.

Lea drew the No. 10 post Thursday at Woodbine and will be ridden by Joel Rosario.

Lea comes off a disappointing sixth-place finish behind Honor Code in the Grade 1 Whitney at Saratoga on Aug. 8 and will race on turf for the first time in over two years. However, he won his first grass event in 2012 at Saratoga, captured a Grade 3 stake later that year on turf and the following season finished second and third to champion Wise Dan in the turf Firecracker and Fourstardave.

“He kind of ran up close to a fast pace. I don’t think that helped,” Mott said about the Whitney. “By the same token, I don’t think he handled the ground that well, I’m giving him that excuse.”

Since then, Lea has worked four times, including two good sessions on the Saratoga training turf.

“We were pleased enough with the way he worked on it (turf) that we thought he deserved another chance,” Mott said. “You’re going to run into good horses, if you’re trying to prove your horse and we know he’s a Grade 1 horse.”

Mott won the inaugural Woodbine Mile in 1997 with Geri and was second in 2011 with Courageous Cat by a neck to Turallure. Six-year-olds have won this event a leading seven times.

Grand Arch, trained by Woodbine’s Brian Lynch, is the 6/1 third choice and comes into the Mile on a winning note. Grand Arch won the Grade 2 Fourstardave over a mile at Saratoga by a neck over Ironicus.

“That performance sums him up,” said Lynch. “He’s going to fight every inch of the way, and that’s precisely what he did that day.

“This guy just keeps getting better with age.”

Grand Arch, Canadian-owned and Woodbine-based, was the 7/2 second choice in last year’s Woodbine Mile, finishing fifth to Trade Storm. The six-year-old gelding has career earnings of $1 million and will be ridden by Luis Saez.

Tower of Texas, a 12/1 longshot starting from the No. 6 post, is one of three Canadian-breds in the race. The others are Platinum Glory (No. 3 post, 30/1 odds) and Kaigun (post nine, 20/1 odds).

Tower of Texas is trained by Hall of Famer Roger Attfield and has won three of five starts this year. The son of Street Sense will be ridden by Eurico Rosa da Silva as Attfield chases his first Mile victory.

Platinum Glory has one win in nine career starts. The grey colt is trained by Mike DePaulo and will be ridden by Jesse Campbell.

The five-year-old Kaigun was the third choice in last year’s Mile and finished second, a half-length behind winner Trade Storm. Kaigun will be ridden again by Patrick Husbands of Brampton, Ont., who won the 2001 edition aboard Numerous Times.

The Woodbine-based Reporting Star earned a shocking win in the Play the King, finishing a nose ahead of Tower of Texas at 15/1 odds in the Mile turf prep. It was the fifth victory in 22 starts for the five-year-old American-bred gelding.

Turncoat, another Woodbine-based horse, drew the No. 5 post and is listed at early 30/1 odds. Turncoat has won four of 16 career starts but will be making his stakes debut with Omar Moreno aboard.