[TouchOfGrey]

Originally Posted by randallscott35

He'll be scratched. Suddenly Repole owes it to us.

“This isn’t going to be a Saturday decision,” he said. “We owe it to the racing fans, we owe it to the public; it’s not our intention to drag this out.”

Uncle Mo's status still up in the air

Uncle Mo was to undergo another battery of tests on Thursday as three veterinarians – Dr. Doug Byars, Dr. Ken Reed, and Dr. Steve Allday – were to examine the colt. Repole said those vets in concert with trainer Todd Pletcher will ultimately make the final decision on whether Uncle Mo starts in the race. Uncle Mo drew post 18 on Wednesday.

The connections of Uncle Mo have been fighting the calendar trying to get Uncle Mo ready for the Derby four weeks after he suffered his first career defeat in the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct on April 9 and was subsequently diagnosed with a gastrointestinal infection. The infection needed to be treated with antibiotics and did impact the colt’s appetite for a little while. Though he has shown gradual improvement since shipping to Kentucky from New York on April 18, his connections are grappling with whether it’s enough to be ready to run 1 1/4 miles against 19 other 3-year-olds in the Derby.

“He’s gotten so much better since the Wood,” Repole said late Thursday morning. “Whether it’s enough, Todd Pletcher and the vets will make a decision and Mike Repole will live with that decision.”

More:

Repole expects a decision to be made on starting or scratching the champion two-year-old male by 9:30 a.m. EDT Friday and said a decision could be made Thursday evening. He said he will likely have a conference call with trainer Todd Pletcher and the team of veterinarians that have been examining Uncle Mo.

“If he’s not completely 100% by [Friday], we’re not going to run,” Repole said.

“At the end of the day, I’m not going to make a decision that puts the horse in any danger. If he’s not ready, it’s not going to be a tough decision. It’s not going to be the decision I want, but it will be an easy decision.”