Uncle Mo is favorite horse at Breeders Classic

Uncle Mo, the colt who could cap a return from a life-threatening liver ailment with a Breeders' Cup Classic triumph, drew the 12th post and was made the early favorite for the $5 million race. International star So You Think, trained in Ireland by Aidan O'Brien, and filly Havre de Grace are reckoned among the toughest challengers to Uncle Mo in the race that anchors the two-day, 15-race, $26 million Breeders' Cup that returns this Friday and Saturday to Churchill Downs. Uncle Mo, trained by Todd Pletcher, was undefeated as a 2-year-old in 2010 but was scratched from the Kentucky Derby in May with an illness later diagnosed as a liver disease. The colt dropped 200 pounds and was sidelined for more than four months. When he returned in August he lost the King's Bishop by a nose but in October won the Kelso Handicap by three lengths. "We've come a long way since May," Pletcher said. Pletcher was pleased with the 12th post drawn by his horse, who will be ridden by John Velazquez in the 1 1/4-mile race and was priced Monday at 5-2. "It gives Johnny some options going to the first turn," Pletcher. "It's perfect. He's a good horse getting away from the gate." Havre de Grace drew the 10th post and was made the 3-1 second-choice. The filly has won five of six races this year, including a victory against colts in the Woodward. So You Think is one of 11 horses entered in Breeders' Cup races from the Coolmore stable in Ireland. So You Think was a champion in Australia before campaigning in England, Ireland and France this season, winning three Group One stakes. The son of 2002 and 2003 Breeders’ Cup Turf winner High Chaparral will break from the fifth post. "He's a very impressive horse," Pletcher said of So You Think, priced at 5-1 on Monday. "If he transfers his form to the dirt he's a legitimate contender." The big question facing Uncle Mo is how he will handle the Classic distance. "He's done nothing to indicate that he can't get the distance, but until he does it you don't know for sure," Pletcher acknowledged. "But he's coming into the race well and he's the most talented horse in the field." While the Classic highlights the Breeders' Cup slate, plenty of attention will be focused on the $2 million Mile, where extraordinary French mare Goldikova will go for a fourth straight victory -- a year after she became the first horse to win the same Breeders' Cup race three times. Goldikova, who arrived from France at the weekend, was made the 7-5 favorite for the race on Churchill Downs' turf course. Among her 12 rivals is 6-year-old Gio Ponti, runner-up to Zenyatta in the 2009 Classic at Santa Anita and to Goldikova in the Mile last year. Gio Ponti, trained by Christophe Clement, was also pre-entered in the Classic this year, but his connections opted for the Mile. Friday's six races are highlighted by the $2 million Ladies' Classic. Pretty Plum, trained by Bob Baffert and winner of the Kentucky Oaks, was installed as the early 2-1 favorite.