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Where Did Uncle Heavy Get His Name From?
Uncle Heavy payout odds to win this week's Preakness Stakes were coming in at +1600 for a payout potential of $1600 for every $100 bet.
The story behind how Uncle Heavy got his name is detailed over at BloodHorse.
He's a big heavy horse but that's not where the name is derived from. Obviously he wasn't always 17 hands tall and weighing 1,250.
His name is actually a reference to trainer Butch Reid's brother Mark, who bred the colt with his wife, Barbara with Reid as the formal breeder of record, according to BloodHorse.
Mark enjoyed success as a heavyweight wrestler and a nickname soon emerged.
"They started calling him 'Heavy,'" said Butch. "We picked it up. Then the nieces and nephews started calling him 'Uncle Heavy.'"
Uncle Heavy is a Mudder
There is a 90% chance of rain showers Saturday, including the time of the race.
Uncle Heavy won The Withers on a sloppy track back in January.
'He looked like he was just hitting his best stride about 50 yards from the wire. He really started stretching out nice,” said Robert Reid, Jr. of Uncle Heavy. “I have always felt all along with this horse, the further the better. He certainly proved that today. A mile and an eighth was obviously well within his grasp. He actually missed one of his breezes, and a few days of galloping due to the inclement weather, so for him to go ahead and do that is quite a testament to the horse’s staying ability.”
Newbie (Sort of)
Robert "Butch" Reid Jr. might have nearly a thousand races under his belt dating back to 1985, including the 2020 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) with champion Vequist. But remarkably he has yet to enter a horse in the Preakness Stakes, until now.
Close But No Cigar
Five-time Eclipse Award-winning jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. is still seeking his first Preakness victory after finishing second on two different occasions over the last three years. This was accomplished on Midnight Bourbon (2021) and Blazing Sevens (2023).
Odds to Win the 2024 Preakness Stakes
1 Mugatu +4000
2 Uncle Heavy +1600
3 Catching Freedom +400
5 Mystik Dan +250
6 Seize the Grey +1500
7 Just Steel +1200
8 Tuscan Gold +375
9 Imagination +425
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