Uncle Mo: He’s back!
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Photo:
Eclipse Sportswire
It had been way too long since I had been to Belmont Park. It was with great anticipation that I headed to Super Saturday. There would be five grade one races, but I was most looking forward to the Kelso Handicap, which was a mere grade two event. The Kelso was where Uncle Mo was running.
I had seen Uncle Mo in his stall in the Todd Pletcher barn in Oklahoma area at Saratoga. He was contently hanging out, resting his head on his hay net. Uncle Mo impressed me with his calm and laid back demeanor. He was a happy horse.
Before the Kelso the paddock was bustling with anticipation. The whole Repole clan was there and they were wearing the Repole colors. There were orange blazers and ties. Many guys were wearing orange and blue caps emblazoned with logos of NY, the circled orange R of the Repole Stable, or the name Uncle Mo. Women were accessorized in orange and blue. It was a New York crowd. Eventually owner Mike Repole made his way into the scene and jokingly said, “Let me go train the horse!” Meanwhile jockey John Velazquez walked in and sought out the Repole grandmother to get a good luck kiss.
The whole time Uncle Mo walked very calmly and saddled like a professional. When Velasquez got a leg up from trainer Todd Pletcher and settled into the saddle Uncle Mo knew it was race time. His calmness turned into the ultimate image of a racehorse that was ready to take care of business. Uncle Mo looked amazing!
Uncle Mo ran even better than he looked. After the win a jubilant and giddy Repole described the race from the point when Jackson Bend mounted his challenge. At the point he thought, “Are we gonna lose by five or by ten? We went 23 and a half and I went like WOW. I couldn’t picture anything better. I thought Jersey Town might give some trouble, but he didn’t. And we went :46 and sped it up. No doubt in my mind that Zito and LaPenta probably said do not let Uncle Mo get away. Go and challenge him. And then Johnny just looked and he just took off.”
Repole then talked about the talent of Uncle Mo, “Everyone thinks he’s just a one dimensional speed horse. He can go six furlongs or a mile and a half. Todd’s been saying the whole time, he’s not only brilliant and not only fast, but he has the mind to go with it. So he’s able to rate. He’s able to hold and when Jackson Bend came up Johnny just shook him and said Mo, you go.”
Back in the summer when it appeared that Uncle Mo was recovering from his liver ailment I stated and hoped that there was still a chance that Uncle Mo would be a factor in the end of the year picture. It was great to be standing in the winner’s circle listening to Repole joke about their Breeders Cup plans, “I’ve got to talk to Todd, not for his opinion, but to tell him what to do. You know, I love the Classic. It’s a race I’ve loved 25 years watching. In my opinion, if you run Uncle Mo in the Sprint, he’s the favorite. If you run Uncle Mo in the Mile, he’s the favorite. Probably if you run him in the Classic, he’s probably gonna be the favorite. This is such a brilliant race horse that there’s not too many horses that you could say could run in all three distances and probably would be the favorite. I want to win the Classic…if Mo was in the Mile and won by eight lengths and Stay Thirsty was third in the Classic that would be a decision I would regret the rest of my life, so why not take two shots at a race everyone wants to win.”
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