Uncle Mo, R Heat Lightning Arrive at Saratoga

After a two-month stay at WinStar Farm in Kentucky to recover from cholangiohepatitis, a severe inflammation of the bile passages and adjacent liver, Mike Repole’s Uncle Mo arrived at trainer Todd Pletcher’s barn on the Oklahoma backstretch of Saratoga Race Course at approximately 3:15 Monday afternoon.

Whit Beckman, assistant to Pletcher, guided last year’s Eclipse Champion 2-Year-Old Colt out of the van before walking him in front of the barn and giving him a bath.

Uncle Mo has not raced since the Grade 1 Resorts World New York Casino Wood Memorial at Aqueduct in April when he suffered his first career loss with a third-place finish. The colt was scheduled to run in the Kentucky Derby, but was declared a day before the race.

“He looked great,” Beckman said. “I hadn’t seen him since April when he was shipped to Kentucky for the [Kentucky] Derby. Then, he was a little skinny. Now, he looks 10 times better. He was walking great around here. He noticed people were looking at him. So, he put up his ears, turned his head, and gave them a pose.”

On Sunday morning at Belmont Park, Pletcher had mentioned that a possible next start for Uncle Mo is Saratoga’s Grade 1 Foxwoods King’s Bishop on Travers Day, August 27.

“He’s been galloping [at WinStar] for a little while already,” said Pletcher. “We don’t need any hiccups along the way, but [the Foxwoods King’s Bishop] is doable if everything goes well. He left Churchill a very fit horse; he just wasn’t completely healthy. He got ready very quickly after he came back from the Breeders’ Cup and won the Timely Writer [in March] off six breezes. We’re in a position to get close to that, if we want to.”

Also coming off the van with Uncle Mo was E. Paul Robsham Stables’ R Heat Lightning, who has not run since the beginning of April after winning the Davona Dale and Gulfstream Park Oaks at Gulfstream Park by a combined 15 ½ lengths. R Heat Lightning had also been at WinStar, where she had a chip removed from her right knee.

“She looked good, too,” Beckman said.  “She’ll probably be slower to come back. She’s not quite there yet. It will take a little bit longer to get her ready. We’ll take our time with her.”