My Miss Mo Takes Down The Black-Eyed Susan

LAUREL, MD — Two weeks ago, Saffie Joseph Jr. found himself in an eerily similar situation when one of his horses was forced to scratch from a Grade I event right before the big dance. The latest casualty was My Miss Mo (Uncle Mo) who was scratched on Apr. 29, only two days before the running of the GI Longines Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs. No doubt, the 11th-hour defection had to sting a bit, however, the filly came right back to validate her connections' unwavering faith in her, winning Friday's GII George E. Mitchell Black-Eyed Susan Stakes at Laurel Park.

“We had to scratch out of the Oaks. But it was the right decision,” said Joseph. “This was a better spot for her. Everything works out the way it is supposed to in life. I try to trust my faith. I did not look at [missing the Oaks] as a disappointment, maybe for the owners it was, but for me, my philosophy is different. What is meant to be … today was the right race. No regrets.”

Owned by a partnership of Averill Racing, Mathis Stable and Tristan De Meric, the $320,000 OBS March graduate was installed the 5-2 favorite in the field of nine. Runner-up in the GII Davona Dale Stakes and GII Gulfstream Park Oaks in her two starts this season, the Florida-bred was breaking from post 10 with Tyler Gaffalione who was aboard for both those starts at Gulfstream.

Swiftly taken into contention as 60-1 chance Savor It (Vino Rosso) strode to the front, My Miss Mo was closely pursued by Miss Fulton Gal (Rock Your World) and Jumping the Gun (Gun Runner) as the opening quarter lit up at :24.14. A continued presence as the longshot held her advantage through a half in :49.10, My Miss Mo retained her striking position before assuming a narrow lead as Jumping the Gun started to press the issue to her outside.

With the two fillies battling head-to-head as the pacesetter began her retreat, it appeared to be anybody's race. However, the favorite inched ahead of her game rival at the top of the stretch and refused to be caught late, going on to score by 1 3/4 lengths over 6-1 Jumping the Gun. A.P.'s Girl (Honor A.P.) rounded out the trifecta. Majestic Lucia (McKinzie) completed the Super.

“Coming from the outside post, we wanted to get forward,” said Gaffalione. “She breaks alertly, so just wanted to not get ahead of ourselves, but let her get forward. That way we wouldn't lose too much ground going into the first turn. I was very confident.

“Going down the backside, I kept having to take a pull. She was wanting to get going a little bit, but she was doing it very easy. So I tried to sit as long as I could. She was traveling beautifully. So I just let her be. As soon as I called on her at the eighth pole, she found another gear. She did it well.”

A debut second going six furlongs against Florida-breds at Gulfstream last October, she rebounded to score by 12 lengths next time while adding an eighth of a mile in November. She rounded out her juvenile season with a fourth in Tampa's six-furlong Sandpiper Stakes on Dec. 6.

“We liked her from the beginning,” said Joseph. “We thought she showed so much speed that she was going to be a sprinter. We were wrong. We didn't see the goodness until we stretched her out. She is a different filly going longer.”

No Regrets

Joseph explained that officials at Churchill required various tests in order to be cleared to run in the Oaks, however, prior experience with White Abarrio (Race Day)'s gate scratch from last fall's GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile at Del Mar ultimately proved a learning lesson. Despite the setback, the grey went on to finish runner-up to stablemate Skippylongstocking the GI Pegasus World Cup in his very next start.

“Emotion has to come naturally,” said Joseph. “It's not like White Abarrio, it's not like Skippy [Skippylongstocking], it's not like the Pegasus. But it means just as much. I am grateful to be in this position and thankful to all the owners. God has blessed us to be here, and we are grateful to be here, and we appreciate being here because it's not easy to be here. It has been a journey. I'm grateful.”

Asked about the Oaks two weeks ago, Joseph explained, “They had a question mark on her on Monday. They wanted us to do things that we didn't want to do to put ourselves in jeopardy of missing this race. We took her out basically.”

Following her defection in Kentucky, the filly was checked thoroughly to make sure she could move forward.

“We took X-rays and the X-rays were fine and the horse was fine,” he confirmed. “The horse had a work, she came out of the breeze well, everything went well. She was obviously good to run today, correct?”

Now for the elephant in the room.

“I do believe they need to have dialogue with everybody to make a system that's going to be more protective of the horse but also more respectful and not rush into rash decisions that ruins the horse's career in a way,” said Joseph. “There's a fine balance. Horse safety? Yes. But also balance of not missing opportunities that never come again.”

Pedigree Notes:

My Miss Mo was consigned by De Meric Sales at last year's OBS March Sale and the consignor opted to stay in on the filly when she sold to Averill Racing and Mathis Stable for $320,000.

“We have a very short list and I only buy fillies,” said co-owner Rich Averill. “Tristan [de Meric] told [us] if we happened to buy her, they would love to stay in. We knew they liked the horse. I knew this filly was going to be above my budget that I normally pay. Saffie then told me that he had another owner that would like to get in. We just pieced it together and it all worked out.”

The first foal out of In A Dream, who is a half-sister to GIII Pimlico Special winner Harper's First Ride (Paynter), My Miss Mo has a yearling sister and foal brother by Flightline.

🌻MY MISS MO ($7.00) and @Tyler_Gaff win the $300,000 Black-Eyed Susan (G2) at @LaurelPark! @SaffieJosephJr trains the daughter of the late Uncle Mo. pic.twitter.com/iBadzR3k4n

— FanDuel Racing (@FanDuel_Racing) May 15, 2026

Friday, Laurel
GEORGE E. MITCHELL BLACK-EYED SUSAN S.-GII, $300,000, Laurel, 5-15, 3yo, f, 1 1/8m, 1:52.15, ft.
1–MY MISS MO, 118, f, 3, by Uncle Mo
                1st Dam: In a Dream, by Quality Road
                2nd Dam: Polyester, by Tiz Wonderful
                3rd Dam: No More Ironing, by Slew o' Gold
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. ($320,000 2yo '25 OBSMAR). O-Averill Racing, LLC, Mathis Stable, LLC and De Meric, Tristan; B-Valerie Mastromonaco, Tristan de Meric & Uncle Mo Syndicate (FL); T-Saffie A. Joseph, Jr.; J-Tyler Gaffalione. $180,000. Lifetime Record: 6-2-3-0, $328,030. Werk Nick Rating: A++. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree or free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Jumping the Gun, 118, f, 3, Gun Runner–Breaking Bread, by Quality Road. O-Imaginary Stables; B-John Guarnere (KY); T-Andrew L. Simoff. $60,000.
3–A. P.'s Girl, 118, f, 3, Honor A. P.–March X Press, by Shanghai Bobby. 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE. O-C R K Stable LLC; B-Parks Investment Group, LLC (KY); T-Peter Eurton. $30,000.
Margins: 1 3/4, 1, 4HF. Odds: 2.50, 6.30, 5.60.
Also Ran: Majestic Lucia, Miss Fulton Gal, Holly's Holiday, Braken Poppa, Ivy Girl, Savor It. Scratched: Haute Diva.
Click for the Equibase.com chart or the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.