HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – The millionaire Lone Sailor will have some key variables working in his favor on Friday, when he makes his 5-year-old debut in the featured eighth race at Oaklawn Park. The mile and a sixteenth route is an optional $50,000 claiming/allowance that drew a field of 12. It starts the new race week at Oaklawn, which opened Jan. 24 to a crowd of 20,000 then welcomed an estimated 30,000 for its first Saturday. Lone Sailor last raced Dec. 21, closing for third in the $75,000 Tenacious in the slop at Fair Grounds. He was beaten three-quarters of a length by Pioneer Spirit, who came back to take the $100,000 Fifth Season on Saturday at Oaklawn, with a Beyer Speed Figure of 98. Lone Sailor will break from post 3 on Friday. :: To stay up to date, follow us on: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter “He’s a horse that would like to get his track,” said Tom Amoss, who trains Lone Sailor for G M B Racing. “If it were to come up raining, that wouldn’t hurt our feelings. He also likes a pace and as long as the field stays intact, there should be a good pace to run at.” Lone Sailor could be in luck. Oaklawn’s main track was muddy for works Tuesday, and with more rain in the forecast, including a 20 percent chance for Friday, he could get a wet track. Lone Sailor’s one local appearance came in the slop, when he finished second by a neck in last year’s Grade 2, $750,000 Oaklawn Handicap. The pace scenario Friday should at least be honest. The speed signed on includes Dueling, runner-up in the $250,000 Zia Park Derby; Curlin Rules, an invader from Southern California; Pinson, the field’s second-leading earner with a bankroll of $421,475; Drifting West, who wired a field of allowance rivals last out at Remington Park; and Muskoka Warrior, who makes his two-turn – and dirt – debut after being based at Woodbine. Jockey Joe Talamo has the mount on Lone Sailor. Amoss and Talamo teamed up to win a race here opening day in what was something of a reunion for the Louisiana natives. Talamo was long based in Southern California before moving his tack this year to Oaklawn, and Amoss is a fixture in the Midwest. “The last time he had ridden for me was probably as an apprentice,” Amoss said. “He’s a very skilled and talented rider.” Martin Garcia will ride Dueling for trainer Jerry Hollendorfer. The horse set the pace in the Zia Park Derby in his last start Nov. 27 and was beaten a neck by Mr Money Bags, who on Sunday won the $75,000 Stonerside Sprint at Sam Houston Race Park with a career-high Beyer Speed Figure of 98.