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Uncle Mo receives lofty 128-pound impost in Experimental Free Handicap

Last updated: 1/28/11 12:48 PM

Uncle Mo receives lofty 128-pound impost in Experimental

Free Handicap

Uncle Mo stamped himself as

the early Derby favorite following his Breeders' Cup tour de

force

(©Breeders' Cup Ltd.)

Unbeaten UNCLE MO (Indian Charlie), last year's champion two-year-old male

and a convincing winner of the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1), received the highweight assignment of 128 pounds on the 2010 Experimental Free Handicap, released

Thursday by The Jockey Club. It is the highest assignment since Horse of the

Year Favorite Trick received 128 pounds in 1997.

The filly division is headed by last year's champion two-year-old filly and

undefeated Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) heroine AWESOME FEATHER (Awesome

of Course), at 123 pounds.

The Experimental Free Handicap, published annually by The Jockey Club since

1935, is a weight-based assessment of the previous year's leading two-year-olds,

with the weights compiled for a hypothetical race at 1 1/16 miles on dirt. This

year's weighting committee of racing secretaries was composed of Ben Huffman of

Churchill Downs, P.J. Campo of the New York Racing Association and Thomas S.

Robbins of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club.

The committee weighted a total of 99 males and 92 fillies. Eligible for

weighting were all two-year-olds of 2010 that finished among the top four in

graded or listed stakes races run in the continental United States. Listed

stakes in 2010 were those with a value of $75,000 or more available to all

starters, and no restrictions other than age or sex.

Uncle Mo won his three starts last year by a combined 23 1/4 lengths and

earned $1,296,000. Owned by Repole Stable, Uncle Mo easily captured the

Champagne S. (G1) prior to his 4 1/4-length tally in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile.

He was bred in Kentucky by D. Michael Cavey, DVM.

The 128 pounds assigned to Uncle Mo is two pounds above the standard impost

for top Experimental colts, including last year's co-highweights Lookin at

Lucky and Vale of York (Ire).

To Honor and Serve follows

Uncle Mo on the Experimental Free Handicap

(Jessie Holmes/EquiSport Photos)

Uncle Mo is weighted five pounds higher than TO HONOR AND SERVE

(Bernardini), a winner of three of his four starts in 2010, including the Remsen

S. (G2) and Nashua S. (G2). He earned $264,640 for owner Live Oak Plantation.

Hopeful (G1) winner and Breeders' Cup Juvenile runner-up BOYS AT TOSCONOVA

(Officer) is next on the scale at 122 pounds. At 121 pounds are COMMA TO THE TOP

(Bwana Charlie) and PLUCK (More Than Ready). Comma to the Top won six of his 10

starts in 2010, including the CashCall Futurity (G1), Generous S. (G3) and Real

Quiet S., and Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf (G2) hero Pluck captured three of his

five starts last year.

In the filly division, the 123 pounds assigned to Awesome Feather is the

standard impost for top Experimental fillies and equivalent to the assignment on

last year's co-highweights, Blind Luck (Pollard's Vision) and She Be Wild.

Bred in Florida by previous owner Jacks or Better Farm Inc., Awesome

Feather's six victories in 2010 came by a combined 25 1/2 lengths. In addition

to the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies, she won the J J'sdream S. and all three

divisions of the Florida Stallion S. series -- the My Dear Girl, Susan's Girl and

Desert Vixen. She earned $1,495,746, and sold for $2.3 million following the

Breeders' Cup.

At 120 pounds are Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G2) vixen MORE THAN

REAL (More Than Ready) and Hollywood Starlet (G1) winner TURBULENT DESCENT

(Congrats).

At 119 pounds are Frizette (G1) scorer A Z WARRIOR (Bernardini) and R HEAT

LIGHTNING (Trippi). The latter captured the Spinaway (G1) and finished second in

the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies.

Among sires of Experimental horses, five stallions top the list of colts and

geldings with three representatives each. They are Bernardini, First Samurai,

Fusaichi Pegasus, Sharp Humor and Thunder Gulch. Lion Heart and Tapit head the

fillies' list with five representatives each. Combining the two lists, Lion

Heart and Tapit are the leading sires with six representatives each. Of the 191

juveniles weighted, 113 were bred in Kentucky, 43 in Florida and five each in

California and Texas.

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