Enola Gay Impressive In G2 Appalachian Victory

Uncle Mo’s Enola Gay (3f Uncle Mo x Dakota Queen, by War Front) showed an impressive turn of foot on Saturday to win the Grade II Appalachian Stakes in stakes record time at Keeneland in only her third career start.

Making her 2020 debut, the lightly raced filly raced midpack early on in the one-mile turf race under Julien Leparoux in her graded stakes debut. Down the backstretch, Enola Gay tucked a few spots further back in the field to give herself room to make a late run off the rail where she had been stationed for most of the race.

Racing down the stretch, Enola Gay had only two horses beat but with only a furlong to go, the 3-year-old clicked into another gear to collar the leaders in the shadow of the wire. Putting her head in front in the final few strides, Enola Gay secured her victory by a nose in record time for her second win in three races.

Uncle Mo’s seventh graded stakes winner of the year, Enola Gay is trained by Shug McGaughey for breeder Joseph Allen.

Enola Gay is out of a full sister to Listed winner The Brothers War and half-sister to Grade 3 winner Beauty Parlor with their Grade II winning dam Moon Queen producing four stakes horses from her eight runners. That mare is a daughter of Grade I winner Infamy with 13 stakes winners under Enola Gay’s first three dams.

The first foal out of her dam, Enola Gay also has an unnamed 2-year-old full sister.

It’s been another banner year for standout sire Uncle Mo, who has sired seven graded stakes winners and 17 stakes horses in 2020 led by Grade I Kentucky Derby hopefuls Modernist and King Guillermo.