Mo Forza Lands Hollywood Derby
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Photo: Benoit Photo
Mo Forza wins the Hollywood Derby at Del Mar
A dream trip paid off in a big way Nov. 30 for a colt who has put it all together in his past three starts.
Under a rail-skimming ride from Paco Lopez, who was in the zone and won three stakes Saturday at Del Mar, Mo Forza extended his win streak to a trio and notched his first at the top level with a solid victory in the $302,457 Hollywood Derby (G1T).
The Uncle Mo colt took six tries to break his maiden but was competitive each time for breeder Bardy Farm and OG Boss. Since his first win Sept. 29 at Santa Anita Park, however, he has been undefeated.
"I think it's just maturity," trainer Peter Miller said of Mo Forza's improvement. "I'd like to say it was some genius trainer move, but I'd be lying.
"I've always been high on this horse. He's always shown a lot of ability, but it has taken time for him to put it all together. But we knew he had it in him."
Favored at odds of 5-2 in a field of 12 3-year-olds, Mo Forza came off an 18-1 upset of the Nov. 2 Qatar Twilight Derby (G2T) at Santa Anita to land the 1 1/8-mile Hollywood Derby.
Recovering well from a bump from Uncle Bull after the start, Mo Forza took up an ideal stalking spot in third along the rail. He tracked fractions of :23.90, :48.22, and 1:12.44 set by Neptune's Storm before shifting to the outside to engage the leader at the top of the stretch. Gradually wearing down his rival through a 1:36.62 mile, he edged ahead to win by three-quarters of a length.
"He got banged pretty good coming out of the gate, but he came back strong," Miller said.
The final time was 1:48.57 on a course rated good.
"You can look good when you're riding the best horse in the race," Lopez said. "I was using my hands on him during the running. I took a bit of a hold on him. I think he liked my hands. When we made the lead (in the stretch), he was waiting (on other horses). But we got busy.
"Today was a special day for me. Here I am: Del Mar. Big horses. Good jockeys. And I get to win three stakes. You've got to be lucky, and I was today."
Neptune's Storm was a half-length in front of third-place Standard Deviation, with Digital Age a rallying fourth. Kingly was scratched.
Mo Forza returned $7.60 on a $2 win ticket and improved his record to 3-3-1 from eight starts, with earnings of $379,460. He is the second Hollywood Derby winner in the past three years for Ashford Stud's Uncle Mo , who also sired 2017 winner Mo Town .
Bred in Kentucky out of the Unusual Heat mare Inflamed, Mo Forza is his dam's first foal. She produced an unnamed Graydar colt in 2017 and a Munnings colt in 2019 and was bred to Tapiture for 2020.