King for a Day looks to fill void in New York stallion ranks

Uncle Mo made a brilliant start with his first sons to stud – one that drew high, even historic, praise.

“It reminds me of Storm Cat,” said Rick Burke, owner of Irish Hill Century Farm in Stillwater, N.Y. “Just one after the other, they just kept coming. Just a tremendous sireline.”

Uncle Mo’s sons Nyquist, Laoban, and Outwork were first, second, and fourth, respectively, on the 2020 national freshman sire list. Laoban, who formerly resided at Sequel Stallions in Hudson, N.Y., was a breakout success on that list as the only freshman in the top 10 standing outside of Kentucky, where newcomers have access to plentiful and stellar mares. But New York lost its young breakout, as Laoban was moved to WinStar Farm in Kentucky for 2021 off his early success and then died in May.

But New York has another of Uncle Mo’s heirs in waiting, perhaps. Grade 3-placed multiple stakes winner King for a Day entered stud this year at the Irish Hills and Dutchess Views Stallions operation, where he garnered a strong initial book of 90 mares.

“King for a Day is the typical Uncle Mo,” stallion manager Bill Leak said. “A lot of leg, stands very tall. . . . He looks like he’s ready to just go forward constantly, even when he’s standing still. Even though his frame is very balanced, he just looks like speed. He’s got a great walk. All the positives of Uncle Mo are in King for a Day.”

King for a Day, who raced as a homebred for Red Oak Stable, won 3 of 7 career starts for trainer Todd Pletcher. After taking the 2019 Sir Barton Stakes by 2 1/2 lengths on the Preakness undercard at Pimlico, he proceeded to win the Pegasus Stakes at Monmouth by a length over eventual divisional champion Maximum Security. In fact, he was the only horse to finish in front of Maximum Security that season. In 2020, King for a Day finished second by a neck in the Grade 3 Challenger Stakes at Tampa Bay.

Laoban’s breakout season in 2020 was led by Grade 1 winner Simply Ravishing and Grade 2 winner Keepmeinmind – who will keep his sire front of mind as he starts in the Grade 1 Runhappy Travers on Saturday at Saratoga. Laoban also will be well represented on Friday’s New York Showcase Day at the historic track.

New York Oaks winner A Bit o’Irish Sass, a member of Laoban’s first crop, will start in the Fleet Indian Stakes. The juvenile filly Laoban’s Legacy, from his second and penultimate New York crop, is entered in the Seeking the Ante.

Continued success for Laoban, and other sons of Uncle Mo, will boost the intrigue for King for a Day’s first foals, who will arrive in 2022. The young stallion was part of a strong duo of newcomers for the Irish Hill and Dutchess Views stallion roster this year, as the team also added 2017 Kentucky Derby runner-up Lookin At Lee, who bred 50 mares in his debut season.

“I’ve always felt that there’s been room for the right horse in this state,” Leak said. “The key is the right horse. Obviously, Laoban was the right horse. . . . And we’re hoping that King for a Day and Lookin At Lee are gonna be those right horses as well. They’ve both been received very well in the state, and we think they’re gonna have that opportunity to do it.”