'The horse you would compare Uncle Mo to most is Storm Cat' - the sire with mojo

If the question 'Who’s the daddy?' is posed regarding North American breeding these days, an emphatic answer can be given in equally snappy slang.

Uncle Mo – the male-line descendant of Poule d’Essai des Poulains winners Caro and Siberian Express named after a popular sports psychology term hailing the power of momentum – is on a roll as a sire that is unprecedented over at least the last two decades.

A trio of sons from the Coolmore stallion’s first crop foaled in 2013 staked out the foundation of a dynasty for their sire as they captured three of the top four positions on the North American freshman sire list for 2020.

Darley’s Nyquist, himself an unbeaten two-year-old champion and Kentucky Derby winner, led the way, with his first offspring featuring American champion juvenile filly Vequist and fellow Grade 1 winner Gretzky The Great. Nyquist’s progeny banked more than $2.42 million for the season.

Laoban, a Grade 2 winner, ranked second among freshman sires by progeny earnings and tied Nyquist for the lead by Graded stakes winners with two. Outwork, a Grade 1 winner, followed in fourth on the overall progeny earnings list behind Giant’s Causeway’s son Not This Time.

Both Laoban, who began his stallion career in New York, and Outwork are based at WinStar Farm for the 2021 season.

Needless to say, all three sons and the wellspring of their potency, Uncle Mo himself, are in high demand as breeding season approaches. Those sons have propelled the ascendant Uncle Mo further upward and into elite company.

“The horse you would compare Uncle Mo to most is Storm Cat," observed Coolmore's Adrian Wallace. "Not since then have we seen so many sons of one sire at the top of the freshman sire list. But one thing that Uncle Mo has done that Storm Cat wasn’t able to do is that he had this domination – three out of the first four."

Looking back over North American freshman sire lists from the past 20 years, no sire has come close to achieving what Uncle Mo and his first group of sire sons did in 2020. And only the most successful sire names have appeared with more than one son on the freshman list in a single season.

For example, A.P. Indy’s sons Congrats and Bernardini, from their sire’s sixth and ninth crops, ranked first and third on the 2010 freshman list by earnings. Unbridled’s Song’s sons Dunkirk and Zensational were first and seventh in 2013, with another son, Old Fashioned, 11th.

On at least six occasions, Storm Cat’s offspring gained more than one of the top positions on the freshman sire list, with 2003 one of his best seasons when, aged 20, his sons Forestry ranked fourth, Stormin Fever seventh, Tactical Cat 11th, Exploit 12th and Sea Of Secrets 15th. The following season, Storm Cat’s sons Giant’s Causeway and Bernstein, both from his ninth crop, ranked fourth and 11th.

While the freshman sire feat is unparalleled in recent years, Uncle Mo’s 16.3-hand shadow extended far beyond that achievement in 2020.

Uncle Mo racked up his best-ever statistics, ranking third overall among North American stallions on the general sire list, while offspring led by Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint winner Golden Pal banked a total exceeding $11.38m, topped only by the progeny of Into Mischief and Tapit. Uncle Mo also led all stallions on the continent with 14 Graded stakes winners.

A son of Indian Charlie – a dirt specialist by Irish-bred multiple Grade 1 winner In Excess, who was a son of Siberian Express and grandson of Caro – Uncle Mo was the most active stallion in North America in 2020. He covered 257 mares at an advertised fee of $125,000 after setting a record with 25 stakes winners from his first crop.

This year, Uncle Mo will command a $175,000 fee, tying him with Curlin as the third most expensive American stallion behind Into Mischief ($225,000) and Tapit ($185,000).

The momentum of Uncle Mo and his sons with juveniles is undeniably alluring, as well as unsurprising considering Uncle Mo was America’s champion two-year-old colt in a spectacular unbeaten season in 2010 and subsequently champion freshman sire in 2015 after beginning at stud with a $35,000 fee.

He and his sons, who are consistently cut from an imposing mould, tend to pass along precocity as well as solid bay colouring, never-ending scope and a versatility that can take them to Classic races and success on turf as well as dirt.

In addition to his French Classic-winning male ancestors, Uncle Mo is out of an Arch mare and has three lines of Northern Dancer in the first five generations of his pedigree, so performance on grass comes naturally.

Nyquist, pictured at Darley's Jonabell Farm, proved an exceptional racehorse in a brief career and has made a splendid start to his second vocationCredit: Michele MacDonald

Brilliant quality is the hallmark of freshman sire leader Nyquist, America’s champion juvenile male in 2015 who with his debut crop also ranked third among all North America’s leading sires of two-year-olds for 2020, behind only Into Mischief and Tapit and just in front of Uncle Mo and Laoban.

Nyquist’s four juvenile offspring who earned Grade 1 black type last year topped all other American sires regardless of crop year and represented 8.89 per cent of his starters.

An exceptional racehorse in a brief career, Nyquist was the first undefeated two-year-old champion and Kentucky Derby winner since Seattle Slew four decades earlier, so earned the right to be a sire success immediately.

"It's certainly what we all hoped, but to see it play out like it did was very gratifying, and it’s very exciting for what the future holds,” said Darley America sales manager Darren Fox of Nyquist’s impressive start at stud, which has resulted in a fee boost from $40,000 to $75,000.

“He’s booked full and amassed a stellar book of mares,” Fox continued, noting there are 13 Grade 1 winners in the group to date and nine producers of Grade 1 winners.

“There was extremely strong demand from the market and it was quite difficult to manage the demand, but it has resulted in a mouthwatering book of mares that will certainly set him up for good success going forward."

Nyquist covered 159 mares in 2020 and Fox said his book will be arranged so that it stays at that general level of quantity, although the quality will be significantly greater.

He said: “He’s definitely stepped up into that next tier with the calibre of mares he’s getting. I can’t wait to see what he does with this book."

At WinStar Farm, there is a similar kind of relish from breeders eager to get their mares into the books of Laoban and Outwork.

Laoban, pictured at WinStar Farm, has been extremely well received by Kentucky breedersCredit: Michele MacDonald

“I think the sky is the limit for both,” reflected Liam O’Rourke, WinStar director of bloodstock services, about the stallions’ potential to keep flourishing.

Outwork, who will continue to stand for $15,000, is expected to cover about 160 to 175 mares this year, while Laoban, as a newcomer to WinStar, will be evaluated to see how he handles the onslaught of mares anticipated as he stands for $25,000.

In 2020, prior to most of their initial offspring running, Outwork entertained 160 mares, while Laoban, in the smaller New York market, covered 67 at a fee of only $5,000.

“People were thrilled to see Laoban,” O’Rourke said of the stallion’s reception from Kentucky breeders. “He’s an absolutely beautiful horse. He’s got size, scope, class, balance. He’s built for durability, very correct and strong-limbed. It’s amazing - he just brings every physical quality to the table.”

Laoban’s first offspring included Grade 1-winning filly Simply Ravishing and Grade 2 winner and multiple Grade 1-placed colt Keepmeinmind, who was a fine third in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile.

As for Outwork, a statuesque horse bred by Uncle Mo’s original owner Mike Repole from Empire Maker mare Nonna Mia, his best offspring included stakes winner Outadore, who finished third in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf, and Saratoga stakes-winning filly Samborella.

Laoban's barnmate Outwork was bred by Uncle Mo’s original owner Mike RepoleCredit: Michele MacDonald

O'Rourke said: “Outwork has shown the ability to get strong stakes winners on dirt as well as having Grade 1 turf horses like Outadore, so there’s a lot of versatility. I think that’s one thing people appreciate about Uncle Mo and it’s coming through in his sons.

“There’s a lot of precocity and versatility, and they train on and can be Classic kind of horses. It’s a really good recipe. We’re fortunate we’re on the cutting edge of it, having two of his really good sons from his first crop.”

Uncle Mo and his male line are an outcross with many American mares, which allows him and his sons to be suitable to a wide gene pool, Wallace noted. The stallion has been particularly successful with Storm Cat line mares, such as the dam of Nyquist, as well as with the Unbridled and Danzig lines, to name a few.

Alongside Uncle Mo, Coolmore stands his son Mo Town, a Grade 1 winner on turf at three and a Grade 2 winner on dirt at two, for $7,500 at its Ashford Stud.

Mo Town has benefited from the appeal of his first crop, now yearlings, in sale rings and from Uncle Mo’s momentum, and is on course to cover more mares in his third season at stud than the 144 who visited him in his first season.

“The outcross factor is a huge part of it,” Wallace reflected on the burgeoning influence of Uncle Mo.

“A lot of horses get pigeon-holed into certain categories, but Uncle Mo just seems to defy that. Whether it’s dirt or turf, two-year-olds or Derby horses, it seems he can do it all, and I think that stems from the fact that you are able to breed him to such a wide cross-section of mares.”

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