Bob Black Jack turns up the heat

The injury that removed War Pass from the Kentucky Derby mix appeared destined to soften the pace dynamic but it appears now that Bob Black Jack is likely to make the field of 20 and this is a serious, frontrunning one-trick pony.

Regardless of the ridiculous bluster coming from the Big Brown camp, Bob Black Jack complicates matters. Though Big Brown once rated less than a length off the pace in a mile race against a cheap in which he faced only four horses, this is essentially a speed horse. Now, with three other frontrunners in the field, Recapturetheglory, Cowboy Cal and Gayego, Black Jack Bob – a need-the-lead type who has raced only on synthetic surfaces – turns up the heat. This is a colt who once ran a quarter-mile in 20.8 seconds and a half in :42.4 over a bizarrely fast track at Santa Anita. He has not won a race in which he failed to lead from barrier to wire but has been competitive against the leading Southern California horses including Colonel John, who will be among the favorites.

At the moment, Bob Black Jack is 21 on the earnings list, but Lexington Stakes winner Behindatthebar is not likely to be entered and Proud Spell, one of two Larry Jones-trained fillies in the top 20, is more likely for the Oaks. If neither Behindatthebar nor Proud Spell is entered on Wednesday, Denis of Cork would also move into the field.--PM