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While Uncle Mo is garnering all the attention leading up to this year’s official derby trail, there is another horse – ironically owned and trained by the connections of Uncle Mo – that has the potential to make a big splash in his 3 YO debut this Saturday in The Grade 3 Gotham. His Name is Stay Thirsty !!

Stay Thirsty is Whitey’s Derby Pedigree play. By Bernardini, this horse will only improve with time and distance. Bernardini was a monster at age 3 as he captured the Withers, Jockey Club Gold Cup, Preakness, Travers and Jim Dandy. Bernardini is out of the great stallion and distance runner – AP Indy. On the Dam Side, He is out of  Marozia. The sire of Marozia is Storm Bird. Storm Bird who was two year old European champion colt, is best known for siring Storm Cat. Storm Cat has been extremely successful in the breeding industry. Storm Bird also sired multiple grade I and Preakness winner, Summer Squall. You can trace Marozia’s bloodlines back to such greats as Roberto, Northern Dancer, Arts and Letters, Native Dancer, and Nashua

From Lauren Stich’s Pedigree Blog:

“In addition to the high class of Bernardini, Stay Thirsty is from a King Ranch female family of superior quality. In addition to being a half-brother to stakes winner and multiple stakes-placed Andromeda’s Hero (Fusaichi Pegasus) and stakes winner, Superfly, Stay Thirsty’s second dam, Make Change (Roberto), was a stakes winner who finished a close second to Maplejinsky in both the Alabama Stakes and Monmouth Oaks, and she was also second in the Mother Goose Stakes and Ladies Handicap, and was third in the Ruffian, Gazelle and Bonnie Miss.

His third dam, Equal Change (Arts and Letters), was a courageous second to Ruffian in the Coaching Club American Oaks at 1 ½ miles.

Prominent stakes winners descending from this female line include Prove Out, who defeated Secretariat in a sloppy Woodward Stakes (and is the damsire of the great, Miesque), Heartland, Saidam, and Whywhywhy. Most importantly, Stay Thirsty’s fifth dam, Equal Venture, was a full sister to 1946 Triple Crown winner, Assault.

With a lineage like this and from an A.P. Indy sire line, Stay Thirsty is bred to be much more effective with maturity and stretching out in distance.”

As a 2 YO, Stay Thirsty rolled to a 5 1/2-length maiden victory in his second career start at Saratoga and ran well in defeat in the seven-furlong Hopeful, putting away the other speed on the front end before grudgingly giving way to Boys at Tosconova in the stretch. With his pedigree, Stay Thirsty figured to appreciate the stretch out to longer distances, but the dark bay colt was sidelined two months before making his two-turn debut in a difficult spot, the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1). His lack of recent activity showed as Stay Thirsty struggled home a well-beaten fifth behind Uncle Mo.

Stay Thirsty will be the favorite this weekend in what looks to be an average field at best. Pletcher will have him cranked and owner Mike Repole – A NY Native – would love nothing more than to win this one for his home fans.  The inside skinny is that Repole has high hopes for this colt and he won’t be afraid to run him in the Derby to face his Super-horse Uncle Mo. Repole paid 500K for this good looking colt and it looks like a solid investment based on his 2 YO campaign.

Bottom Line is Whitey says Stay Thirsty played second fiddle to stablemate Uncle Mo as a juvenile, but he has all the pedigree tools to mature into a better racehorse at 3. It wouldn’t surprise me if this horse improves leaps and bounds as a 3 yo and he should be peaking for the Derby. I think the Derby is a race that Pletcher will dominate in the next 5 years because his barn is absolutely loaded ! He broke the jinx last year and now that the monkey is off his back a repeat is very possible.

Even if Stay Thirsty loses in the Gotham, he may be a great Derby Future pick in Pool 2. He has the pedigree to do some damage on the first Saturday in May.