Pegasus Turf among options for Mo Forza's owners
DEL MAR, Calif. – Mo Forza suffered an injury and missed the 2020 Breeders’ Cup. He got there this year, and then his chances were eliminated in the first jump.
A week after that disastrous beginning, Mo Forza is doing well at the San Luis Rey barn of his trainer, Peter Miller. But what the future holds for Mo Forza is yet to be determined, Miller said Sunday morning at Del Mar.
“I have to discuss it with the owners,” said Miller, who said the options include running in the Pegasus Turf in January and then going to stud, or heading straight to stud, or remaining in training for another year.
“There are different stud deals being discussed. We need to discuss what to do. But thankfully the horse is in good shape,” Miller said.
Miller believes the ragged start that impacted Mo Forza was in part owing to the delay caused by Master of The Seas acting up in the gate. He, like Albahr in the Juvenile Turf the previous day, was scratched after misbehaving, causing the other horses to be backed out and reloaded. Both are trained by Charlie Appleby, and shipped-in the week of the event.
“They should mandate that every horse go to the starting gate, starting 72 hours out, so that if they have a problem, they can come back 48 hours out and 24 hours out to fix it,” Miller said. “To not have that as a mandate is wrong.
“We didn’t do our due diligence as an industry. It may have cost Mo Forza millions, between the race and stud value. The amount of money is staggering. From a safety standpoint for the horses and the riders, as well as assuring the gamblers, it should be required.”
Miller said that his Breeders’ Cup Sprint contestant, the gelding C Z Rocket, would commence his 8-year-old campaign in 2022 at Oaklawn Park, where he was 2 for 2 this year.
“They allow Lasix, and he likes that track,” Miller said. “I’ll probably send a string there again. They open early, and they like horse racing.”
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