PLOT THE DOTS (g, 6, Uncle Mo – Lady of Gold, by Medaglia d’Oro)
PLOT THE DOTS (g, 6, Uncle Mo – Lady of Gold {GSP-Can, GSP-USA, $254,598}, by Medaglia d’Oro) won the Jennings Stakes at Laurel Park on Saturday, Jan. 21, a race for horses bred or sired in Maryland, while making history and reaching a significant personal milestone. He became the first Maryland-bred stakes winner of 2023 by taking home his first stakes victory.
In the eight-horse field, Norman “Lynn” Cash owned and trained three horses, with Plot the Dots being the shortest odds of the three at 5-1. Stablemate Monday Morning Qb (10-1) took the lead and engaged in a duel with long shot Whiskey and You for the first quarter in 23.94 and the first half in 47.66. Ournationonparade, the even-money favorite, was stalked by second-choice Ain’t Da Beer Cold, while Plot the Dots ran in the subsequent flight of horses a few paths off the fence.
Jockey Jevian Toledo started to ask Plot the Dots and moved alongside the leaders at the top of the stretch as they rounded the bend and prepared to sprint down the long stretch run. Ournationonparade raced forward and had a tenuous lead, but Plot the Dots engaged him in combat outside and began to wear him down. The Uncle Mo gelding gained ground in the final eighth and crossed the finish line five lengths ahead, covering the course in 1:39.27 on a fast track. Galerio, a stablemate, made a comeback for second, and Ournationonparade held onto third.
Plot the Dots, a gelding by Uncle Mo out of Lady of Gold (Medaglia d’Oro), was bred by The Elkstone Group LLC. Throughout her career, Lady of Gold placed in multiple graded stakes races and made $254,598. Plot the Dots is Lady of Gold’s first foal; her only other foal is the filly by Distorted Humor, Gravity’s Rainbow, who was a first-out winner. Their granddam is a half-sister to 2007 champion older horse and MGISW Lawyer Ron (Langfuhr).
Plot the Dots made his racing debut at Laurel in January 2020 as a 3-year-old for his breeder and trainer Mike Trombetta. He broke his maiden at the second time of asking in February of that year, and in his ten outings in 2020, he won three races.
The Uncle Mo gelding made six starts as a 4-year-old in 2021, winning just once while finishing no better than fourth in three stakes attempts. He had his second appearance of 2022 in February and was claimed for $35,000 by Danny Chen and his trainer Claudio Gonzalez. The next outing, he won an optional claiming race and was tagged with a $50,000 price tag in March. In April, when he finished third in the Native Dancer Stakes, he earned his first black type. In the summer, when he finished second in the Deputed Testamony Stakes, he added another.
Plot the Dots, who had not won since March, was claimed by Cash on October 13 for $40,000. Since then, he has made five starts and won twice, including an optional claiming victory on Thanksgiving. He has made $96,540 for his present connections thanks to his Jennings Stakes victory.
Lifetime Record: 33-8-6-3, $436,716. B-The Elkstone Group, LLC (Stuart Grant) (MD); O/T-Norman Cash.
Clark Shepherd (Shepherd Equine Advisers), mating adviser for Stuart Grant (The Elkstone Group LLC), has designed the matings for Mr. Grant for several years. Most notable horses include G1W Mor Spirit, G2W Lady Fog Horn and G3W Edge of Reality along with several state-bred champions.
OPTIMAL Mating Analysis
Horses bred on OPTIMAL Matings have proven to possess more potential to become superior racehorses. In fact, most will break their maiden in the first two starts. Combined with a good physical, good vetting and a price that falls within a budget, OPTIMAL Matings help to focus on buying or breeding better racehorses.
OPTIMAL Mating Factors for Plot the Dots (Uncle Mo)
- Outcross Percentage = 83% (OPTIMAL >= 70%)
- Linebreeding Balance = 7 (OPTIMAL <= 10)
- 2nd Generation Linebreeding Balance = 7 (OPTIMAL <= 17)
- Grand sire/Grand dam Pair Percentage = 11% (OPTIMAL <= 17%)
- Gender-balanced Linebreeding Difference = 2 (OPTIMAL <= 2)
- Number of Dominant Runner Female Families = 4 (OPTIMAL >= 4)
- Number of Dominant Sire Female Families = 2 (OPTIMAL >= 1)
NOTE: All 7 factors are met.
Key Linebreedings
- 5×5 Danzig – through daughters Aurora and Mahasin
- 6,6,5×5,6 Northern Dancer – through sons Sovereign Dancer, Danzig, Dixieland Band and Sadler’s Wells – similar to G2W Sneaking Out (Indian Evening)
- Similar matings to:
- G2W Enola Gay (Uncle Mo)
- Uncle Mo over Sadler’s Wells
- G2W Sneaking Out (Indian Evening)
- Indian Charlie over El Prado
- G3W Donna Veloce (Uncle Mo)
- Uncle Mo over Sadler’s Wells
- G3W Hot Springs (Uncle Mo)
- Uncle Mo over Lord Avie
- G2W Enola Gay (Uncle Mo)
Whether you are new to the game, experiencing more losses than wins or just looking for a new approach, I am confident that I can help you breed or buy a better racehorse. To find out more about OPTIMAL Matings and how they can help your program, please subscribe to my Blog/News page HERE to receive future information on complimentary mating recommendations, sales short lists, stakes winner pedigree analysis, news on personal client success and any other random thoughts or ideas that I may have. Also, receive a complimentary copy of my report “Blind Luck or Designed Luck? – How A Kentucky Derby Winner Was Bred” sent directly to your inbox.
For inquiries or more information about Shepherd Equine Advisers, please contact Clark Shepherd at 859-321-6618, or by email at clark@bloodstock-agent-ky.com.
I would love to hear any comments or questions that you may have. Please submit them below. Maybe we can address them in a future post!