Moquett barn high on Far Right ahead of Arkansas Derby

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Far Right has a diverse cast of people working behind the scenes to bring out the best in the multiple stakes winner, who could start as the second choice to Southern California shipper American Pharoah in the Grade 1, $1 million Arkansas Derby on Saturday.

Far Right has wintered at Oaklawn, where twice he’s rolled up the rail to win stakes, taking the $150,000 Smarty Jones in his 3-year-old debut in January and the Grade 3, $300,000 Southwest Stakes in his most recent out Feb. 22.

The village tending to the horse was out in full force last Saturday, after Far Right had a powerful final breeze for the Arkansas Derby. The mood back at trainer Ron Moquett’s barn was hopeful as the team finds itself just one race from making it to the Kentucky Derby. Far Right sparked the enthusiasm with a half-mile drill in 48.80 seconds, with a five-furlong gallop-out in 1:00.80. He continued on strongly back to the half-mile pole, then was picked up by his pony.

“I told Bob LaPenta that breeze made me 10 years younger,” said Harry Rosenblum, who co-owns Far Right with LaPenta.

Rosenblum is a longtime Moquett client who is enjoying a memorable meet in his native Arkansas thanks to horses like Far Right and Gentlemen’s Bet, a stakes winner this season and a leading contender Thursday in the Grade 3, $300,000 Count Fleet Sprint Handicap at Oaklawn.

“I’ve been in the horse business now for 30 years, and talking about a team, I wouldn’t be with Ron Moquett if I didn’t think he didn’t have a good team and he wasn’t the best caretaker of a horse,” Rosenblum said. “He puts the horse first above everything, and that’s what I try to do – put the horse first. I couldn’t be more thrilled with the teamwork and effort that this stable has that helps us get to the big races.”

Moquett’s wife, Laura, gallops Far Right, while jockey Greta Kuntzweiler regularly works the horse that Mike Smith will team with again in the Arkansas Derby. Kuntzweiler was aboard for the work last Saturday, a move that indicated a strong fitness level present in Far Right.

“He was awesome,” said Kuntzweiler, a 39-year-old resident of Louisville, Ky. “It was the first time I’ve worked him just by himself, and he was really relaxed. With each race, he’s getting more confidence, more cocky, and more aggressive, so it was nice that he was really relaxed. He’s doing awesome.”

Laura Moquett also has seen Far Right become more aggressive over the past few months, but like Kuntzweiler, she said he’s been professional when it counts the most.

“He loves training so much, and you hate to take anything away from him wanting to train, but at the same time, you can’t let him do too much,” said Laura Moquett, a 36-year-old native of Iowa. “I do love his demeanor in his races. He’s not as aggressive in races. He’s just basically push-button. He’ll wait all day long, and then when you hit the button, he explodes. It’s like an explosive turn of foot, which is really cool, and that’s how I think he gets through on the rail like that. Plus, he’s not the biggest guy, so it’s pretty easy to thread the needle. And he lays it out. I really think that he tries hard every single time.”

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Kuntzweiler also said Far Right’s acceleration is one of his best assets.

“He’s really responsive, and he’s got a really quick reaction,” she said. “When you do ask him, it’s done.”

Ron Moquett has long credited the work of his wife and Kuntzweiler in the development of Far Right, who made his first start for the barn last September after being privately purchased by Rosenblum. Rosenblum and Moquett both said Kuntzweiler has a superior clock in her head, and both extolled the virtues of Laura Moquett’s horsemanship. Another central part of the team, they said, is groom Juan Sanchez. As for Laura Moquett, she and Far Right were practically connected at the hip last Saturday when the horse was grazing alongside the barn at Oaklawn.

“Whenever I get a chance, I send her on a trip with a horse, and the reason I do that is when she gets in a horse’s head, every animal falls in love with her,” Ron Moquett said of Laura. “Animals freak out over her. They have this kinship where they get along and they trust each other, and she’s constantly communicating and talking with them. Far Right respects me, and he likes me. He loves her.”

Laura Moquett, who met Ron when galloping for trainer Bernie Flint, said there’s a lot of energy at the barn these days heading into the Arkansas Derby and, hopefully, the Kentucky Derby.

“It’s what everybody dreams about from the time you’re born,” she said.