Mocito Rojo set for Oaklawn debut in Fifth Season

Mocito Rojo, who won five consecutive stakes at five different racetracks in 2019, will soon make his Oaklawn Park debut. Trainer Shane Wilson said Tuesday that Mocito Rojo is on deck for the track’s $100,000 Fifth Season on Jan. 25.

The race, at a mile, is for 4-year-olds and up. It will share a card this year with the $100,000 Pippin. Entries are Monday.

Mocito Rojo built his stakes streak between March and September last year, winning the Owner Appreciation Cup at his current base of Delta Downs, the Grade 3 Steve Sexton Mile at Lone Star Park, the Evangeline Downs Mile, the Governor’s Cup at Remington Park, and the Grade 3 Lukas Classic at Churchill Downs. The Fifth Season will be Mocito Rojo’s first start since a seventh-place finish in the Grade 1 Clark on Nov. 29 at Churchill.

“He’ll work again this Saturday, and we’ll run him in the Fifth Season,” said Wilson, who trains the horse for Wayne T. Davis. “It will be right at eight weeks between races, and we wanted to come back and go a mile. Plus, we want to see how he handles the racetrack at Oaklawn for down the road.”

Provided things go well, spring goals for Mocito Rojo include the $350,000 Essex Handicap on March 14 at Oaklawn and defense of his title in the Steve Sexton Mile, Wilson said.

Mocito Rojo has worked each of the last two Saturdays at Delta.

"I think he's going to be ready to roll," Wilson said. "We took a month off, just to chill out. He's back bucking and kicking coming off the racetrack."

Mocito Rojo is a 6-year-old who has won 17 of 27 starts for earnings of $804,400.