Bolo Marches Forward Following Emotional Comeback

A week after Bolo's 32-1 upset in the Shoemaker Mile (G1T) at Santa Anita Park, trainer Carla Gaines said the 7-year-old gelding is doing extraordinarily well following his second race off nearly a two-year layoff. After the likes of a comeback rarely seen in horse racing, Bolo has another big opportunity waiting for him Nov. 2 in the Breeders' Cup Mile (G1T) at Santa Anita.

"You think he'd be maybe a little tired," Gaines said, "but no, he's not. He's just cheerful as could be."

Bolo entered the May 27 Shoemaker with one allowance race under his belt and jumped straight to the front under jockey Florent Geroux. The dark bay led every step and turned away seasoned challengers to win by 1 1/4 lengths. The victory awarded Bolo an automatic fees-paid entry into the Breeders' Cup Mile, giving connections a chance to showcase their charge's talent on the world stage. 

Bolo's ability to perform was apparent from the start. Campaigned by Keith Brackpool's Golden Pegasus Racing since the beginning of his career, Adam Wachtel became interested early on and purchased a share before Bolo's sophomore campaign got rolling in 2015.

"I remember watching him run on the turf and thinking that this horse might be the best turf horse I had seen in a very long time," Wachtel said. "I just thought he looked incredible. I'm a numbers person, Ragozin Sheets, and he'd run as good a 2-year-old number that I recall any horse running on the turf."

The purchase was made around the same time Wachtel bought into Tourist , who won the 2016 Breeders' Cup Mile at Santa Anita with partners WinStar Farm and Gary Barber, and Take the Stand, who became a grade 2 winner for Wachtel, Earle Mack, and Brous Stable.

"Between these three, there's some Breeders' Cup champs in here somewhere," Wachtel remembers thinking. "But Bolo, he had everything. He was an incredible physical specimen, he covered a tremendous amount of ground, and he just had talent."

Bolo completed his juvenile season with a 4 1/2-length victory in the Eddie Logan Stakes on Santa Anita's turf. Still a colt at the time, he switched to dirt at 3 and finished third in the San Felipe Stakes (G2) and Santa Anita Derby (G1) before running 12th in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1) behind Triple Crown winner American Pharoah .

Back on turf, Bolo won the Arcadia Stakes (G2T) at 4 and 5 and placed in the Frank E. Kilroe Mile (G1T) both years. He wrapped up 2017 mid-way through the year with a sixth-place run in the Shoemaker Mile. 

A small tendon lesion kept Bolo from a 6-year-old campaign, and with no stud plans falling into place, connections began rethinking their options.

"We had not planned on bringing him back. We had some interest in stud duty from other countries, and it just didn't really pan out as it turns out," Gaines said. "Keith Brackpool, who is a very good friend and a client of mine, said, 'You know what? We might as well just try to bring him back.'"

Gaines cautioned it could take months for Bolo to recover from the injury and there was always the chance he may not come back from it, but connections decided to keep their fingers crossed. Gaines also credited the help of Dr. Wade Byrd. 

"It's been a long, slow process, but in the end it worked out," she said. "We got lucky."

During his time off, Bolo was gelded. Gaines noted he was a tough horse to handle—and she still keeps a cone in front of his stall so people don't get too close—but was brilliant in training. She also trained Bolo's sire Temple City , and said that toughness was passed down through the Dynaformer line.

"His demeanor going to the paddock for the Shoemaker this year," Gaines said, "it's just amazing how much calmer he was and how much more focused he was. Previously it was like walking a bear in there."

Bolo made his first start back April 28 going 1 1/8 miles in an allowance optional claiming event. The race was longer than connections wanted and Bolo finished fifth after leading into the stretch, but the gelding told them what they needed to know: he was still interested in racing.

"He needed that start, realistically. Seeing his performance in that race gave us confidence he was going to pop with a good race the second time," Gaines said. "The Shoemaker, it wasn't like I was searching for a grade 1. It just came up at the right time and we could get in it. If he comes back to his old form, he's as good as those horses."

In the Shoemaker, Bolo set fractions of :23.51, :46.95, and 1:10.44 on a good turf course. Horses following in his wake included grade 1 winners Delta Prince and Bowies Hero, as well as multiple grade 2 winners River Boyne and Catapult, who was runner-up in last year's Breeders' Cup Mile. While the horses who sat off the pace could not keep up in the stretch, Bolo fended off the latecomers to hit the wire in 1:34.07. He returned $67.80 for a $2 win bet.

"I've been fortunate to have some special horses in my career, but he's certainly right up there with the best of them," Wachtel said. "Just to do what he did, come back at his age off that injury, and do what he did I thought was pretty remarkable.

"I was really happy, for Carla in particular. To have come through all she went through knowing how good he was, and hoping to get the opportunity to win a race like that and finally get it accomplished, I thought it was pretty spectacular."

Gaines was fighting back tears as the Bolo crossed the wire.

"The performance was way over what I expected," she said. "I know in the paddock, looking at him and just looking at his demeanor, I told my foreman, I said, 'You watch this. He's going to hit the board.' I would have been so happy with third. I mean, how could I expect him to do that with those horses of such great recent form?"

A decision on Bolo's next race is still in the works, but Gaines said the Breeders' Cup Mile is the main goal for this season. Wachtel recalled playing golf with Brackpool one day prior to Tourist winning the same race.

"He texted me and said maybe we'll get to go back and play some golf before the Breeders' Cup Mile again. I said 'Well that sounds like a good plan to me.' I said 'I look forward to it,'" Wachtel said. "If things go well, (Bolo)'s certainly got the talent. We hope to be there in November and give him a chance to do something even more special."