New York-bred Mo Plex was set to run on the state showcase card during one of the biggest weeks in his home state, as he was entered for the Mike Lee Stakes on June 4 in Saratoga, during the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival.
However, Barn 85 at Saratoga Race Course, where Mo Plex resides for trainer Jeremiah Englehart, was placed under a 14-day quarantine on May 30 due to a positive case of strangles, a highly contagious bacterial infection that generally affects a horse’s respiratory system. Horses from that barn were not permitted to train with the general populus or to race during that period, and Englehart began considering other options for Mo Plex, whom he trains for R and H Stable.
"It was more Plan B," Englehart said last week of the Ohio Derby. "The Mike Lee was kind of our first choice."
Mo Plex gave an A-plus effort in his Plan B race, as he intently tracked Clever Again and then surged clear to a two-length win over Chunk of Gold, familiar names from the Triple Crown trail, in the Grade 3, $500,000 Ohio Derby on Saturday at Thistledown.
Mo Plex ($12.80) earned his fourth stakes win overall, and the second graded stakes victory of his career, as he also took last July's Grade 3 Sanford. That was at six furlongs, and the 1 1/8-mile Ohio Derby was his first start beyond a mile.
Englehart was keen to try the Complexity colt around two turns at some point this summer, and felt he was ready to do so in this spot, in his third start of the year and having not missed any training time due to the quarantine, as horses from the affected barn were assigned special isolated training hours.
Oaklawn stakes winner Clever Again, in his first start since behind roughed in the stretch and fading to last in the Preakness Stakes, broke sharply in the Ohio Derby to lead through the opening quarter of 23.42 seconds. Mo Plex appeared keen in the opening strides from the outside in the field of eight under Joe Ramos to track him into the first turn in second, with McAfee, second in the Peter Pan last out, tucking in behind them on the rail in third, and multiple Grade 2-placed Chunk of Gold getting an ideal trip covered up behind the pace. This was the latter's first start since finishing ninth in the Kentucky Derby, and he was sent away as the very narrow favorite over Clever Again, who had been the morning-line choice.
Clever Again continued on eagerly but kindly on the lead with his ears pricked, and Mo Plex, who had settled nicely under a tactful hold from Ramos, continued keeping him honest on his hip through the half in 47.74. McAfee continued to sit in a beautiful pocket, just waiting for room, and Chunk of Gold maneuvered outside to secure clear sailing before the real running commenced.
The top two quickened the tempo into the far turn, with Mo Plex drawing even near the three-furlong marker, and cutting the corner with better-than-a-length lead as Clever Again began to fade. Mo Plex was in the center of the track down the stretch, with Chunk of Gold diving inside and away, but the New York-bred was easily best, continuing to the wire two lengths clear. He stopped the clock in 1:50.72 for the nine furlongs on the fast track.
Chunk of Gold was second by two lengths over McAfee, and it was another 4 3/4 lengths to Extradition in fourth.
Brereton's Baytown, Clever Again, Bohemian Style, and Capo Luca rounded out order of finish. Curvino, who finished fifth in a turf allowance Friday at Churchill Downs, was scratched, along with fellow longshot Master Controller.
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