Uncle Mo's First Resort Gives Godolphin 2YO Graded Sweep at Churchill

First Resort (Uncle Mo) sat a perfect, stalking trip beneath Luis Saez and held off a late rally from the odds-on 'TDN Rising Star' Jonathan's Way (Vekoma) to give Godolphin a sweep of Saturday's graded races for 2-year-olds in the GII Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes at Churchill Downs. With the victory, First Resort collected 10 points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby.

Off to a good start from his outside draw racing beneath the lights, the homebred was placed in a fantastic spot in second by Saez to press the pace outside of longshot leader Dapper Moon (Malibu Moon).

Saez hit the gas on the far turn and First Resort responded to strike the front three furlongs for home. The 6-1 chance cornered for home as the one to catch, opened an imposing advantage in the final furlong and continued on powerfully to score by 2 1/4 lengths.

Jonathan's Way, winner of the GIII Iroquois Stakes and a disappointing seventh at a well-backed 5-1 in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile, was away a bit awkwardly from his inside draw and was hard held by Joel Rosario while surrounded by horses racing in fifth for most of the way. Tipped out and into clear leaving the quarter pole, Jonathan's Way rallied nicely in the stretch, but was never a serious threat to the winner.

A debut winner as the favorite sprinting in the Ellis mud July 5, First Resort set a pressured pace and was a solid second in the GII Saratoga Special Stakes Aug. 10. He switched to grass with a fourth-place finish in the GI Summer Stakes at Woodbine last time Sept. 14. He was making his two-turn debut in the Kentucky Jockey Club.

Trainer Eoin Harty was winning his first graded race in nearly four years after saddling First Resort's dam to win the 2020 GI La Brea Stakes.

“He displayed his versatility today trying two turns for the first time,” Harty said. “Initially, I thought he'd be a little farther back, but after I saw the opening quarter I realized why he was there. He's a very talented colt and his mother wasn't as mentally sound as he seems to be. He was bred to be a good one and he really is. It's fun working with the generations of families with Godolphin. I'll speak with the team over the next couple of days and come up with a plan for him going into next year. It's very exciting to have a colt of this caliber.”

Saez added, “We were in a perfect spot early in the race. In his dirt races he was on the lead, but he was able to track just off the leader today with the pace being pretty slow. Turning for home I could feel I had a lot of horse beneath me. He really took off down the lane and I could tell the further this horse goes it will be better.”

Pedigree Notes:

Uncle Mo is now represented by 57 graded/109 stakes winners worldwide. Street Boss is the broodmare sire of three graded/14 stakes winners. The Harty-trained Godolphin homebred Fair Maiden upset the 2020 La Brea Stakes at Santa Anita and also came within a neck of capturing the previous year's GI Natalma Stakes over the Woodbine lawn. First Resort is her first foal. She is also responsible for an Into Mischief filly of 2023. She was bred to Flightline for 2025. First Resort's second dam and two-time winner Shieldmaiden brought $875,000 from John Ferguson at the 2009 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale. His fourth dam is GI Kentucky Oaks heroine Secret Status (A.P. Indy).

First Resort earns 10 points on the Road to the #KyDerby! 🌹 pic.twitter.com/jbRRcqNj1s

— Churchill Downs (@ChurchillDowns) November 30, 2024

Saturday, Churchill Downs
KENTUCKY JOCKEY CLUB S.-GII, $381,250, Churchill Downs, 11-30, 2yo, 1 1/16m, 1:43.01, ft.
1–FIRST RESORT, 122, c, 2, by Uncle Mo
                1st Dam: Fair Maiden (GISW-USA, SW & GISP-Can,
                                $324,778), by Street Boss
                2nd Dam: Shieldmaiden, by Smart Strike
                3rd Dam: Code Book, by Giant's Causeway
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN.
O/B-Godolphin (KY); T-Eoin G. Harty; J-Luis Saez. $238,440.
Lifetime Record: 4-2-1-0, $338,671. Werk Nick Rating: B+.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Jonathan's Way, 122, c, 2, Vekoma–Female Drama, by Indian
Charlie. ($290,000 Wlg '22 KEENOV). O-Rigney Racing, LLC;
B-Susan L Anderson Racing LLC (OH); T-Philip A. Bauer.
$62,400.
3–Tiztastic, 122, c, 2, Tiz the Law–Keesha, by Tapit. ($80,000 Ylg
'23 KEEJAN; $335,000 Ylg '23 KEESEP). O-Winchell
Thoroughbreds LLC, Mrs. John Magnier, Michael B. Tabor and
Derrick Smith; B-Capital Bloodstock (KY); T-Steven M.
Asmussen. $38,700.
Margins: 2 1/4, 1 3/4, 4. Odds: 6.33, 0.87, 11.48.
Also Ran: Dapper Moon, Render Judgment, Filoso, Redacted, He's Not Joking, Sonic Skidaddle. Scratched: Clock Tower.
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.