$10,000 Claim Mocito Rojo Looks to Snag Lukas Classic

Watchful eyes, a bit of research, and a stroke of luck combined to reward trainer Shane Wilson and owner Wayne Davis when they claimed Mocito Rojo from a maiden $10,000 race at Delta Downs on Dec. 21, 2016. That evening they were presented with an addition to their stable, a winner in his debut, and he has been adding to their bankrolls ever since.

After 23 starts and 15 victories, Mocito Rojo has banked more than $640,000 in earnings, a tally that could be padded Sept. 28 when the 5-year-old chestnut horse runs in the $250,000 Lukas Classic Stakes (G3) at Churchill Downs.

The race is closely matched. Five of his nine rivals are graded winners, three of them this year: Quip, winner of the Oaklawn Handicap (G2); Tenfold, who won the Pimlico Special Stakes (G3); and Silver Dust, winner of the West Virginia Governor's Stakes (G3) and Mineshaft Handicap (G3).

Mocito Rojo's accomplishments stack up with those more well-known horses. Racing largely at midlevel tracks in the South, he has racked up five black-type victories, highlighted by the Steve Sexton Mile Stakes (G3) at Lone Star Park in April and back-to-back runnings of the Evangeline Mile Stakes (2018-19).

Not bad for a modestly bred horse Wilson first spotted during morning training in Louisiana as a 2-year-old in December 2016.

"I had actually worked an older horse from the gate one morning at Delta Downs, and he was outworked by a chestnut colt," Wilson said, referring to Mocito Rojo. "I had seen the saddle towel and stuff. So I went back and looked at the workouts that morning, and I found his name."

Wilson and Davis then stayed on the lookout for him in the entries, and when he made his debut, they were ready to claim. Still, they needed luck, having to win a "shake," a random pill draw, with another owner when more than one claim was submitted for Mocito Rojo, Wilson said.

Since that fortunate evening, the son of Mutadda has taken them on a memorable ride, becoming one of the top horses in their home state of Louisiana and beyond. Mocito Rojo won the Aug. 23 Governor's Cup Stakes at Remington Park over the Lukas Classic distance of 1 1/8 miles.

Now he brings his connections for a race beneath the famous Twin Spires at Churchill Downs, the first local starter for them. "It will take his best, but every time we've put him a different distance, a different track, a little bit higher level, it just seems like he has run up to it," Wilson said.

Veteran Louisiana rider Gerard Melancon, aboard for the Governor's Cup victory, returns aboard Mocito Rojo, a son of Mutadda out of the Orientate mare Blushing Royale. The horse is favorably weighted, carrying 121 pounds, co-lightest in the field and four pounds less than highweighted Quip.

Seeking to bounce back from a tired effort in the $1 million TVG Pacific Classic Stakes (G1) Aug. 17 is the aforementioned Quip, who ran ninth, beaten 29 1/2 lengths, after establishing the early pace. Unlike Mocito Rojo, he already has experience over the Churchill strip. One of his three Churchill efforts resulted in a first-out maiden victory, another a runner-up finish behind Seeking the Soul in the June 15 Stephen Foster Stakes (G2).

Indicative of the competitiveness of the Lukas Classic field, three entrants—Pioneer Spirit, Silver Dust, and Kukulkan—were separated by merely a length when they finished first through third in the July 13 Michael G. Schaefer Memorial Stakes at Indiana Grand. Silver Dust then edged Kukulkan by a half-length in the Aug. 3 West Virginia Governor's Stakes.

The Lukas Classic, named in honor of Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas, is the richest of three Saturday night stakes at Churchill. Positioned as the ninth race on an 11-race program, it goes at 10:11 p.m. ET. The $150,000 Ack Ack Stakes (G3) and the $125,000 Jefferson Cup Stakes precede it as the seventh and eighth races, respectively.

The three stakes are part of Churchill Downs' Single 6 Jackpot wager, a carryover-driven bet that track officials announced Sept. 26 would have a mandatory Saturday payoff. The legs of the wager span races 4-9.

Entries: Lukas Classic S. (G3)

Churchill Downs, Saturday, September 28, 2019, Race 9

• Grade III
• 1 1/8m
• Dirt
• $250,000
• 3 yo's & up
• 10:11 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Hawaakom (KY)	Miguel Mena	121	Wesley E. Hawley	12/1
2	2Blueridge Traveler (KY)	Julien R. Leparoux	121	Kenneth G. McPeek	12/1
3	3Big Dollar Bill (KY)	Chris Landeros	121	Ian R. Wilkes	15/1
4	4Quip (KY)	Florent Geroux	125	Rodolphe Brisset	5/2
5	5Sir Anthony (IL)	James Graham	123	Anthony Mitchell	15/1
6	6Tenfold (KY)	Ricardo Santana, Jr.	123	Steven M. Asmussen	6/1
7	7Pioneer Spirit (KY)	Shaun Bridgmohan	121	Brad H. Cox	5/1
8	8Kukulkan (MEX)	Corey J. Lanerie	121	Fausto Gutierrez	6/1
9	9Silver Dust (KY)	Jack Gilligan	123	W. Bret Calhoun	6/1
10	10Mocito Rojo (KY)	Gerard Melancon	121	Shane Wilson	5/1