Mo Donegal's Belmont Stakes victory continues Uncle Mo's trajectory of success

In just a decade as a stallion, Uncle Mo has consistently delivered success for those associated with him. Since entering stud in 2012 at Coolmore’s Ashford Stud, he has sired a pair of American classic winners – 2016 Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist and 2022 Belmont Stakes winner Mo Donegal.

The victory by Mo Donegal was a particularly sweet moment for the connections behind Uncle Mo, a four-time stakes winner who was the unbeaten champion 2-year-old male of 2010. The son of Indian Charlie was trained by Todd Pletcher for owner Mike Repole. Mo Donegal also is trained by Pletcher for Donegal Racing in partnership with Repole, a New York native who savored his first Belmont Stakes victory.

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“It’s a 40-year dream,” said Repole, who also owns Belmont runner-up Nest with Eclipse Thoroughbreds. “Coming to this track and Aqueduct, being a kid from New York, this is New York’s race. In 2011, I came in second with Stay Thirsty, and I watched the replay 150 times. I will no longer watch that replay. Getting a first and second here, it makes up for it. This was the biggest goal of my racing life, and I just accomplished it and I ran one-two!”

Mo Donegal was selected for $250,000 by Donegal and Pletcher as a Keeneland September yearling, with Repole buying in before this year’s Kentucky Derby, in which the colt was fifth after breaking from the rail. Pletcher-trained offspring of Uncle Mo include Grade 1 winners Outwork, winner of the 2016 Wood Memorial, and Unbridled Mo, winner of the 2018 Apple Blossom. He said the stallion’s runners often have physical similarities.

“It’s remarkable when you go to the sales,” Pletcher said. “You don’t need your catalog page in most cases. You can tell when you see an Uncle Mo. A lot of people say that’s a sign of a great stallion when they really stamp their progeny.”

Nyquist, Uncle Mo’s first classic winner, had followed in his sire’s footsteps by putting together an unbeaten 2-year-old championship campaign in 2015, capped by the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, to help Uncle Mo to what was then an earnings record for a North American freshman sire. Uncle Mo also is the sire of Golden Pal, winner of the 2020 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint and 2021 BC Turf Sprint.

Uncle Mo, fifth on the general sires list following Belmont weekend, will get a chance to showcase his versatility and continue to climb the charts. Three days after Mo Donegal won the Belmont at 1 1/2 miles on dirt, Golden Pal was to contest the Group 1 King’s Stand Stakes sprinting on the turf at the Royal Ascot meeting’s opening day on Tuesday.

Uncle Mo, also the sire of North American Grade 1 winners Bast, Dream Tree, Gomo, Mo Forza, Mo Town, and Yaupon, is closing in on several milestones. His progeny have combined to earn $84,661,009 through Sunday, and just a decade into his stud career, the $100 million mark is well within reach. Uncle Mo is the sire of 83 stakes winners, including 46 graded/group stakes winners.

Uncle Mo also is continuing to build his career as a sire of sires at a relatively early point in the curve. Nyquist continued to follow in his sire’s footsteps by finishing as the leading freshman sire of 2020, with a Breeders’ Cup winner and Eclipse champion in that first crop in Vequist. Laoban and Outwork – sons of Uncle Mo – were just behind Nyquist, in second and fourth on the freshman sire earnings list in 2020.

Mo Town, standing alongside his sire at Ashford, is a freshman sire of 2022 and is off the mark with an early-season winner. Uncle Mo’s other stallion prospects entering stud around the country in 2022 include Grade 1 winner Yaupon in Kentucky, Grade 1 winner Mo Forza in California, and well-bred graded stakes winner Uncle Chuck in Florida.