Lifelong experience in the wild funhouse that is Thoroughbred racing has been essential to surviving the crazy 12 months that Hot Rod Charlie has provided to his connections. A year ago, it was the 94-1 shot grabbing the lead late in the TVG Breeders' Cup Juvenile Presented by Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (G1) only to be passed for the money by the bred-in-the-purple Essential Quality .
In 2021, the Hot Rod Charlie thrill ride has gotten bumpier still. A neck defeat to Medina Spirit in the Robert B. Lewis Stakes (G3). A victory in the Twinspires.com Louisiana Derby (G2) followed by a stirring stretch drive in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) that finished a length shy of Medina Spirit. A front-running gut check over 12 furlongs in the Belmont Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets (G1) that failed to keep only Essential Quality at bay. The disastrous heel-clip with Midnight Bourbon in the TVG.com Haskell (G1) that turned a stirring victory into a disqualification to last.
And, finally, a grade 1 triumph in the Pennsylvania Derby in which Hot Rod Charlie needed to survive another inquiry thanks to his second straight lane-changing incident.
Thankfully, Patrick O'Neill did grow up in the sport, watching his uncles Doug and Dennis run $8,000 claimers at Bay Meadows. Now, he and four best friends from Brown University own a leg of the Oxbow colt who has banked $2.1 million to date. And they will be doing it to the hilt on the Southern California coastline, watching their sophomore star tackle a daunting cast in the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) Nov. 6. Win or lose, their Airbnb might be the best place to spend World Championships week, with 250 of their friends and family due in for the festivities.
"It's been incredible. I can't even put into words the experience we're having," noted Patrick O'Neill, who with his buds race as Boat Racing, and own Hot Rod Charlie with William Strauss, Roadrunner Racing, and Gainesway Stable. "It's so cool to be able to share this with family and my best friends in the world. It's been a remarkable journey; crazy how one horse can bring so many people together."
Bought privately by Patrick's uncle Dennis and trained by uncle Doug, Hot Rod Charlie is providing a gratifying helping of family triumph and tragedy. Doug and Dennis' two older brothers, Danny and David, were both felled at early ages by melanoma, and Dennis is a cancer survivor as well. A portion of Hot Rod Charlie's earnings are donated by his ownership to help fight the disease.
Hot Rod Charlie was bred by Ed Cox Jr., an industry giant who bred or co-bred group 3 winner Woodman, grade 1 winners Shaadi, Marquetry, and Classy Cathy. He also owned the last named, as well as Kentucky Derby winner Swale. When Cox died in 2019, the majority of his horses had been dispersed at Keeneland's 2018 November Breeding Stock Sale. But his Oxbow colt became ill, and wasn't auctioned until he was a short yearling at Fasig-Tipton's 2019 February Mixed Sale. There, the father-and-son team of Bob and Sean Feld landed him for $17,000.
The Felds make a habit of buying good horses by off-brand sires, and this colt continued that trend. Sean Feld called every agent he knew as the colt progressed, imploring them to take a look at his walking video and conformation shot. Just before the 2020 Breeders' Cup, Dennis O'Neill responded, and bought Hot Rod Charlie privately. After selling 75% of the horse, Dennis gave his nephew a shot at the last quarter.
"We had bought two other horses," Patrick said, referring to his Boat Racing friends and partners Alex Quoyeser, Eric Armagost, Dan Giovacchini, and Reiley Higgins. "One was awful, and the other broke even, so we had some money from that one. I tried to buy some time, but Dennis told me since the colt was a half to Mitole, the price was going to go up if Mitole won the Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1). My own uncle was giving me the hard sell. Everyone came up game to take one more shot, and thank God we did, because that's how we ended up with Hot Rod Charlie."
Neither of Doug O'Neill's classic winners (I'll Have Another and Nyquist) lasted past the Triple Crown series to run in the Classic, although Nyquist had taken the Breeders' Cup Juvenile. But with his classmates Medina Spirit and Essential Quality both headed to the race, Hot Rod Charlie is being prepared to turn the tables on both them and some tough older horses such as Knicks Go .
"He has that blue-collar, gutsy, competitive nature," Doug O'Neill stated of the horse his owners call Chuck. "He's got gate speed and stamina, and he shows up every time."
Because of his tendency to want to run close to other horses, Chuck has been taking morning lessons designed to have him separate from the pack. For his Oct. 23 work at Santa Anita, O'Neill employed three other horses to keep his star on the ball and stop the unscheduled lane changes.
"All credit to Johnny Garcia, who gets on him every day, and to (jockey) Flavien Prat, who has done a wonderful job with him as well," said O'Neill. "He went straight as an arrow and looked fantastic."
Meantime, Patrick O'Neill is now fielding questions from his four twentysomething co-owners about sheets and speed figures. And they're having a blast.
"Everyone around Doug has a smile, and I've learned a lot from that," said his nephew. "You lose 80% of the time in this game, and it's tough. So you might as well have fun in the process."
In Hot Rod Charlie's drama-filled race career, a tough constitution and the ability to laugh are, well, essential. But his owners have brought forth a true People's Horse, plan to run him again next year if all goes well, and are enjoying one hell of a ride every step of the way.
"The plan is to run him next year. If all goes well and he's healthy, we're going to bring him back for his 4-year-old season. I don't know if we have a goal for next year, but clearly you have to look at the Pegasus World Cup (G1). You have to look at the Dubai World Cup (G1) and Saudi Cup (G1). We'll probably get together next week after the race and plot out a course. What do we want to do and how do we get there?" Strauss said.
"We're all sportsmen and we'd love to see him on the track and see what he can do at 4. That's why we're in the game. We're in the game for racing. Let's have fun."
Bob Ehalt contributed to this story.
