Repole Returns With Outwork for Uncle Mo

Mike Repole, the former owner of Uncle Mo  , believes the horse's eye-opening success with his first crop as a sire offers insight into what might have been.

"If Uncle Mo was healthy at 3, I think we would have seen a lot of what American Pharoah did last year," Repole said May 4. "He was that spectacular and that brilliant."

To be sure, it was a bold statement, given that American Pharoah   dominated the racing scene the way few horses have as the 12th Triple Crown champion and the first in 37 years. American Pharoah also was the first to complete the "Grand Slam" by adding a commanding victory in the Breeders' Cup Classic to his sweep of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands, Preakness, and Belmont Stakes (all gr. I).

But Repole, who will be represented in this year's Derby by Uncle Mo homebred Outwork, has never been afraid to think big and talk bigger. And Uncle Mo undeniably displayed brilliance until he soured so quickly five years ago.

ANGST: Uncle Mo Looks for First-Crop Classic Glory

 

The Breeders' Cup Juvenile (gr. I) and 2-year-old champion tore through his first four starts undefeated before the first sign of trouble, a perplexing third-place finish in the Wood Memorial (gr. I), his final Derby prep.

Repole, taking the advice of trainer Todd Pletcher, scratched Uncle Mo the day before the 2011 Derby with a mysterious ailment later determined to be cholangiohepatitis, a rare liver disorder. Understandably, Repole, a native of Queens, N.Y., describes that as the most painful moment since he realized his dream of owning Thoroughbreds.

"Uncle Mo was such a brilliant, special racehorse. To never have the chance to win the Derby with him was tough for me," Repole said. "You can be 3-years-old on the First Saturday in May one time in your life. To miss that—you don't get a second chance."

Even after Uncle Mo's scratch, Repole was left with Stay Thirsty   in the Derby. But he turned in a dull performance, struggling home 12th. Overanalyze   finished just one spot higher for Repole in 2013, setbacks that only deepened his hunger to win North America's premier race.

Outwork would have a place in Repole's heart even if he had not staved off the maiden Trojan Nation by a head in the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct Racetrack April 9 to earn enough points to qualify for the 20-horse Derby field. He owned not only Uncle Mo but the dam, Nonna Mia, who is named for his grandmother.

PEDULLA: Outwork Outlasts Longshot in Wood Memorial

Outwork first asserted himself when he placed second to stablemate Destin in the Tampa Bay Derby (gr. II) March 12, outdueled by a length. He drilled five furlongs in 1:01 April 29, a work that Pletcher found encouraging.

"What I really liked was the way he finished up," the trainer said. "He can sometimes tend to idle a little bit, as he did in the Wood Memorial, when he gets past the last horses. I thought he looked much more professional and more focused. He was concentrated throughout the gallop out."

Repole likes everything he is hearing and seeing about Outwork, a winner in three of four starts with earnings of $701,800.

"It's 100% opposite of the way I was feeling with Uncle Mo. He wasn't eating, he wasn't feeling good," he said of the trying days leading to that Derby. "This horse is eating everything, feeling good, grabbing the exercise rider, and taking him for a ride."

When Pletcher eyeballs the strapping Outwork, he is reminded of Uncle Mo.

"You see a lot of similarities in some of his offspring, and Outwork has kind of the same physique and look. It makes it extra special," he said.