Talented pacer Uncle Lile is heading to North America.
Brought north on his annual pilgrimage to the sunshine state to escape the cold and harsh Bathurst winter, the Dawn Ofa New Day gelding performed exceptionally well for trainer Chris Frisby.
During his 10 start Brisbane campaign, Uncle Lile scored three victories, all at Albion Park while finishing third in the Gr.3 $30,000 Redcliffe Gold Cup behind Five Card Draw and Condagen.
“I was thrilled with the way he performed on this trip away, he’s such a good little racehorse and he always tries so hard every time he steps foot on a racetrack. With a bit more luck in running and some better draws, it could’ve been a whole lot better but it wasn’t to be.” Frisby said.
With earnings heading close to $250,000, Frisby said it’s becoming more difficult to place his stable star, in particular back home at Bathurst.
With a number of Australian and New Zealand pacers performing well in North America, Frisby decided to examine his options and feels Uncle Lile is best suited heading abroad.
“It’s going to be a sad day when he leaves the stable because he’s been so good to the stable and for so long and when you break it down, he’s been earning to close to $50,000 a season which is bloody good money.
“He’s an open class horse up here and back home but for me to take him to Menangle in Sydney, that’s a three hour trip just to get to the track which becomes quite taxing on all involved so the best option is to send him to North America.
“I spoke to a number of people about my plan and got in contact with Noel Daley and he’s happy to take him for me and race him up there. He’s a tough little bugger and he’s got good speed so I expect him to do a really good job, let’s just hope he settles in well and stays healthy.”
Boasting strong form lines on the smaller and tighter circuits in the western districts of New South Wales, Frisby believes Daley has unlimited options in placing Uncle Lile at tracks like Yonkers, Pocono Downs and Harrah’s Chester.
Ultimately, Frisby would be thrilled to see Uncle Lile competing at the world famous Meadowlands racetrack in New Jersey.
“I’ve spoken with Noel and there are some good options available to us with him up there, being based in the New Jersey area gives him some wiggle room. It would be fantastic to see him compete at the Meadowlands but some of these other tracks in the surrounding areas race for really good prizemoney too.
“He’s been looked after right throughout his career and he’s heading up in really good form so fingers crossed it can work out well for the horse, he deserves that.”
Uncle Lile finished a close-up 4th behind Stormfortheboys last Saturday night at Albion Park (August 20).
