SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Trainer Bill Mott admitted it wasn’t his master plan to enter Poca Mucha in Wednesday’s $135,00 De La Rose Stakes and have the race rained off the turf onto a sloppy track, scratch down to a four-horse field, and have the odds-on favorite get involved in a suicidal duel for the lead.
But that’s the way things happened to work out, and the situation ultimately resulted in the 6-year-old Poca Mucha, by far the longest price on the board at 10-1, rallying from last to a spectacular 14 1/4-length victory over Be My Sunshine in the restricted one-mile stakes for older fillies and mares.
Poca Mucha was one of two horses Mott entered in the De La Rose along with Immensitude, who was one of the six fillies scratched after heavy rains fell earlier in the afternoon forcing the cancellation of all five races scheduled to be run on the grass, including the $75,000 Jonathan Kiser Memorial Novice Stakes over hurdles. Mott, who scratched Immensitude out of the race immediately after the surface change was announced, said he needed some time to mull it over before making the fateful decision to keep Poca Mucha, 1 for 6 in previous starts on dirt, in the field.
“I had two in there, one I had to scratch, and I asked the stewards to give me some time and let me have a look at it with the other one,” Mott explained. “I talked to Mr. Wachtel (principal owner of Poca Mucha), we went over her form, she had run good on an off track a couple of times even though not at Saratoga, and we decided to give it a try.”
Poca Mucha, who came into the race idle since finishing eighth in the Grade 3 Suwannee River at Gulfstream Park on Dec. 30 and winless in nearly two years, dropped to the rear of the four horse field under Joel Rosario, about 10 lengths off 2-5 favorite Hot Fudge and Sister Lou Ann, who dueled head to head through an exhausting 46.43 opening half-mile over the sealed and sloppy strip. Poca Mucha began her rally leaving the backstretch, checked briefly nearing the quarter pole, and found ample room inside the staggering leaders to take command upon settling into the stretch, then widened her advantage steadily thereafter.
Be My Sunshine, whose Saffie Joseph Jr.-trained and Ken Ramsey-owned stablemate Sister Lou Ann helped soften up the odds-on favorite on the front end, angled around the tiring leaders turning for home but was no match for the winner while easily second best. Favored Hot Fudge staggered home third with Sister Lou Ann eased to the wire nearly 30 lengths behind the winner.
The perfect storm of events helped Poca Mucha, who is owned by Wachtal in partnership with Pantofel Stable and Jerold Zaro, register her first stakes win in 22 career starts. She completed a mile in 1:37.45 and returned $22.60.
“I didn’t think the pace duel was going to hurt us,” said Mott. “As you saw it develop, they (Joseph and Ramsey) obviously had a plan and it worked out for us. It’s black type.
“She ran well and it makes you wonder if maybe we should have tried this before. I’ll be curious how the speed figures come back comparatively. It’s good to win a stakes and nice to win in Saratoga.”
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