Lava Man leads Big’ Cap lineup

Lava Man has won eight races in a row in California, with three of them at Santa Anita.

Even so, the 6-year-old gelding didn’t really scare anybody away from the $1-million Santa Anita Handicap, which will be run for the 70th time late Saturday afternoon.

Eight other older horses entered the 1 1/4 -mile race Wednesday morning, hoping to keep Lava Man from making history. If the California-bred, who once raced against $12,500 maiden claimers, is successful in the Grade I, he will become only the third horse to win the Big ‘Cap twice.

John Henry was the first to accomplish the double in 1981 and 1982, although he needed help from the stewards to win his second. Perrault crossed the wire first but was disqualified and placed second.

Twenty years later, Milwaukee Brew won his first Santa Anita Handicap, then repeated in 2003, upsetting Congaree, who carried the same 124 pounds Lava Man was assigned for Saturday.

Lava Man, a winner of 15 of 36 races and with more than $4 million in earnings after he began his 2007 campaign with a win in the Sunshine Millions Turf on Jan. 27, will break from post seven Saturday.

He is the 4-5 favorite on Jeff Tufts’ morning line, which he wasn’t a year ago.

When defeating 17-1 shot Magnum by three-quarters of a length a year ago, Lava Man was the 3-1 second choice. High Limit, who finished fourth, was the 8-5 favorite.

The Big ‘Cap was the first of four Grade I victories in 2006 for Lava Man, whose lone blemish came when he finished seventh in the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

“As a trainer, these are the moments you live and work hard for,” said Doug O’Neill, who trains Lava Man for owners Steve, Tracy and Dave Kenly and Jason Wood. “There’s always pressure when you have a horse in a stakes race and this race is coming up deep. He was up to the pressure all last year and hopefully we will be again on Saturday.”

The 9-2 second choice is Arson Squad, who won for the fourth time in seven starts at Santa Anita when taking the Strub on Feb. 3. Trained by Bruce Headley for owners Mace and Samantha Siegel’s Jay Em Ess Stable, Arson Squad, a 4-year-old Brahms gelding, will be ridden by Garrett Gomez as he tries the Big ‘Cap distance for the first time.

The Pennsylvania-bred will also carry second high-weight of 117 pounds, and his trainer thought the assignment to Lava Man was generous.

“It’s not enough,” Headley told the Daily Racing Form’s Brad Free in reference to the spread in weights. “Lava Man at 124 is a gift. The race should be called the Santa Anita Gift Shop.”

From the inside out, the Santa Anita Handicap field includes Awesome Gem, El Roblar, Boboman, who will be making his first start on dirt, Ball Four, Spring At Last, who is also trained by O’Neill, Molengao, Lava Man, Arson Squad and McCann’s Mojave.

Besides the Big ‘Cap, entries were also taken Wednesday for the $300,000 Frank E. Kilroe Mile on turf and the $200,000 Robert B. Lewis Stakes for 3-year-olds at 1 1/16 miles.

A dozen are scheduled to run in the Kilroe, including defending champion Milk It Mick, and Great Hunter, who finished third in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile on Nov. 4 at Churchill Downs, will make his 2007 debut in the Lewis.

bob.mieszerski@latimes.com

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Big ‘Cap draw

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The draw for Saturday’s

Santa Anita Handicap

(Post: approximately 4:30 p.m.):

*--* PP Horse Jockey Weight 1 Awesome Gem T. Baze 116 2 El Roblar Migliore 114 3 Boboman Solis 115 4 Ball Four Leparoux 116 5 Spring At Last D. Flores 115 6 Molengao V. Espinoza 116 7 Lava Man Nakatani 124 8 Arson Squad G. Gomez 117 9 McCann’s Mojave Alvarado 115

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