Kelso Hdp (G2)

[Man o' Taz]

Even if he wins the Classic, they would have to be out of their minds to give Mo HOTY. It would have to be one of the worst HOTY campaigns ever. If Mo would win the Classic, as long as Tizway or Havre put in a good placing, then one of them still deserves HOTY more than Uncle Mo.

What if Tizway and HDG finish up the track and Mo delivers another scintillating performance where he does something remarkable like breaking Secretariat's track record at Churchill?

I agree it would have to be a long shot for him getting HOTY?

The other possibility is that, if you are going to retire him, you race him once afterward in the Cigar Mile/Clark Handicap to get him another Grade I win against older horses...

That would give him three graded stakes wins against older horses -- two Grade Is including the Classic and an amazing Kelso performance. And if he ran in the Cigar Mile -- that would be a homecoming effort of sorts for Mo and his connections after their BC triumph...

Now, I would argue without the Cigar Mile/Clark Handicap win by Mo-- that Grace deserves HOTY no matter what Mo does in the Classic...given her three Grade I wins -- one against males. But perhaps that's just me...

[Blue Jeans]

Congrats to Uncle Mo. That was quite a show!

Hope Jackson Bend is feeling well ... proud of his second place.

[Man o' Taz]

Congrats to Uncle Mo. That was quite a show!

Hope Jackson Bend is feeling well ... proud of his second place.

He still managed a 112 BSF...coming in second...and was impressive as well.

[islandgirl45]

He still managed a 112 BSF...coming in second...and was impressive as well.

He was. There's no quit in JB. If he's been able to get through at the rail instead of losing momentum when he had to move outside, I bet he'd have been closer, although I don't think he'd have beaten Mo.

[Man o' Taz]

He was. There's no quit in JB. If he's been able to get through at the rail instead of losing momentum when he had to move outside, I bet he'd have been closer, although I don't think he'd have beaten Mo.

I think the reason he closed so well was because the rail was an awful place to be. I think he was only able to dig in once he got off the rail a little bit which is why I thought he should have been taken outside rather than inside to start with.

[islandgirl45]

I think the reason he closed so well was because the rail was an awful place to be. I think he was only able to dig in once he got off the rail a little bit which is why I thought he should have been taken outside rather than inside to start with.

Could be, I meant that he lost momentum when he had to switch paths.

[Man o' Taz]

Could be, I meant that he lost momentum when he had to switch paths.

Oh. OK. My mistake for not understanding.

[tcw]

Makes me think what might have been with the TC races.

Sounds familar... from late July:

http://www.thoroughbredchampions.com...CLE-MO!/page17

"If Mo does return to his previous, pre-Wood M. form and goes on to run the table the rest of the year, including the BCC, people are likely to wonder "what if" had he been healthy and run in the TC events."

[Apollo]

Makes me think what might have been with the TC races.

But we believed. And as Mr. Pletcher says -- until he wins at 10 furlongs its still a question mark. We do know that he likes the Churchill track - at least he liked last year's BC version.

I hope the Uncle Mo naysayers -- who suggested he'd be retired before he ever raced again, that he was never a quality three year old, and that he would never win another race again are eating some massive crow.

It should have been Mo's year. He was compared to Slew somewhat prematurely but it had far greater validity than other similar comparison's I've seen.

Current form means next to nothing when an athlete of that ultra special caliber caliber throws in a clunker. I always default to how good are you, not the stooge how good are you playing? Every losing goofball in Las Vegas looks at the most recent result and projects it to rerun, a bookmaker's dream. Now the naysayers are stuck. They've already asserted Mo didn't improve at 3, in fact declined, and tends to falter late. But any logical evaluation of his 2011 races concludes he physically wasn't his true self in those subpar outings. You can't run a race like this out of nowhere minus extreme ability. A very good horse came to him with a head of steam and Mo shrugged him aside like a kid brother.

Mo's race is the most explosive and impressive I've seen all year. Kudos to Partymanners for posting. On Saturday I attended a college football game and missed the races.

Mo's only Breeder's Cup problem is lack of seasoning toward rating in a big field. But he's got that sustained burst that can overcome plenty of traditional concerns.

[TapitsGal]

glad to see Uncle Mo win...knew he could do it

[Man o' Taz]

Sounds familar... from late July:

http://www.thoroughbredchampions.com/showthread.php/5778-UNCLE-MO!/page17

"If Mo does return to his previous, pre-Wood M. form and goes on to run the table the rest of the year, including the BCC, people are likely to wonder "what if" had he been healthy and run in the TC events."

Indeed. :-D

I like the quote below from the bopper...

Some dreams do come true...

Taz, you are such a starry eyed dreamer. A 38 and change breeze after getting his adze kicked in the first week of April gives you hope that this horse will return to prominence?

It should have been Mo's year. He was compared to Slew somewhat prematurely but it had far greater validity than other similar comparison's I've seen.

Current form means next to nothing when an athlete of that ultra special caliber caliber throws in a clunker. I always default to how good are you, not the stooge how good are you playing? Every losing goofball in Las Vegas looks at the most recent result and projects it to rerun, a bookmaker's dream. Now the naysayers are stuck. They've already asserted Mo didn't improve at 3, in fact declined, and tends to falter late. But any logical evaluation of his 2011 races concludes he physically wasn't his true self in those subpar outings. You can't run a race like this out of nowhere minus extreme ability. A very good horse came to him with a head of steam and Mo shrugged him aside like a kid brother.

Mo's race is the most explosive and impressive I've seen all year. Kudos to Partymanners for posting. On Saturday I attended a college football game and missed the races.

Mo's only Breeder's Cup problem is lack of seasoning toward rating in a big field. But he's got that sustained burst that can overcome plenty of traditional concerns.

And he has the fact that he has only run 5 races all year...which for some horses is a full season...