Pat On the Back lowers his sights returning from foot problem

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Had things gone according to plan, Pat On the Back would have come to Saratoga targeting races like the Alfred G. Vanderbilt or Forego, both Grade 1 sprint stakes. A foot issue set those plans awry and now Pat On the Back will make his Saratoga appearance in Friday’s $100,000 Tale of the Cat, a stakes for horses who have not won a graded race this year.

Pat On the Back, trained by Jeremiah Englehart for Harold Lerner and partners, has run twice this year, winning the Affirmed Success in April and the Commentator in May, both restricted to New York-breds. Pat On the Back’s foot issue kept him out of the Grade 2 John A. Nerud Stakes at Belmont on July 6 and off the work tab for a month.

Englehart was considering training Pat On the Back up to the Forego on Aug. 24, but ultimately felt he couldn’t have him ready for that Grade 1 event. This race, Englehart said, could set up Pat On the Back for the Grade 2, $300,000 Kelso Handicap at Belmont Park on Sept. 21.

Though Pat On the Back is 3 for 5 at six furlongs, Englehart said: “It’s probably not his best distance, but I wanted to give him a race up here and it seemed like he was ready. His last work was really good.”

In April, Pat On the Back came off a nearly five-month layoff to win the Affirmed Success by 1 1/4 lengths. While the pace may not be as hot Friday as it was that day, Pat On the Back could still get the job done.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if he won because of him, he always tries and right now his foot is in pretty good shape,” said Englehart, who credited farrier Brad Dewey with working on the horse’s feet.

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Dylan Davis rides Pat On the Back on Friday.

He Hate Me looked good winning a third-level allowance here, one race after falling a head short in the same condition at Churchill in June.

“He’s coming off a good race, a little quicker than I want to come back,” trainer Stanley Hough said. “I didn’t think there would be a spot for him.”

Uno Mas Modelo has won the last four restricted stakes in which he’s run. His last two efforts, however, were a seventh in the Grade 3 Commonwealth at Churchill and a last-place finish in the Grade 1 Churchill Downs on May 4.

Trainer Anthony Quartarolo turned Uno Mas Modelo out for several weeks before bringing him back in toward the end of Churchill. Quartarolo was particularly impressed with Uno Mas Modelo’s most recent workout, a half-mile in 48.09 seconds with a final quarter in 23.54 seconds at Saratoga.

“His last work was a super work,” Quartarolo said. “He might need a race but he’s doing great.”

Skyler’s Scramjet has lost eight consecutive races since winning the Grade 3 Tom Fool in March 2018. However, he was good enough to finish second to World of Trouble in the Grade 1 Carter in April.

Completing the field are Killybegs Captain, third in the Nerud; Ruler of the Nile, a recent allowance winner at Churchill; Bon Raison; and Eight Town.