Did Uncle Mo’s get enough out of his three-year-old debut?

The Grade 3 Timely Winter at 1 mile at Gulfstream Park was supposed to be an easy race for Uncle Mo for his three-year-old debut, but was it too easy a prep? Surprisingly, he did not even break a 90 Beyer for his effort, receiving a modest 89.

It is difficult to say whether or not trainer Todd Pletcher had fully cranked up for this race or not. A visual analysis of the race suggests Uncle Mo had plenty left in the tank as he crossed the wire, and that the low Beyer was probably the result of the dawdling early pace. Uncle Mo took the lead, but found himself having run only 25 and 2/5 seconds after the first quarter. As a result, he ran the fourth quarter significantly stronger than the opening one, finishing up in about 23 seconds flat.

It seems he could certainly have run a great deal faster than he did, but was the race too easy for him? Remember, he is already making a relatively late start for horses serious about the Kentucky Derby, having made his first race as a three-year-old on March 12th. This will give him time for only one more race before the Derby at Churchill Downs, which might be cause for concern that he will not have acquired enough seasoning as a three-year-old to prepare him for the rigors of the Triple Crown.

His running of the Timely Winter seemed more like a glorified workout than a real race – I wouldn’t be surprised if the horse totally forgot that there were horses behind him, he seemed to be exerting himself so effortlessly. Only two races before the Derby is not ideal, especially when the first one was not a real battle.

Nevertheless, we know what freakish ability he does have and he had three good races as a two-year-old to give him that foundation he needs in order to win the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs.