Repole Stable

As a teenager growing up in Middle Village (Queens),New York, Mike Repole would quench his thirst for racing and gambling action by either jumping on a bus to Aqueduct or by running to his favorite Off-Track Betting (OTB) parlor on Grand Avenue. Mike actually named one of his horses "Run to Grand Ave" in honor of his beloved OTB.

Today Mike comes to the racetrack with a lager bankroll then he once did having sold his company Glaceau, maker of Vitaminwater and Smartwater, to Coca-Cola for $4.1 billion in May 2007. Repole also was the co-founder of sports drink BodyArmor in 2011. Coca-Cola purchased 15% of BodyArmor in 2018 and then bought Repole out in 2021 for $5.6 billion, although Repole remains chairman of BodyArmor.

In addition to still attending and playing the races, in the last several years repole has ventured into Thoroughbred ownership. After having first started out with a large stable of mostly claiming horses, Mike has begun to upgrade his racing stock. His most accomplished and well known runner was Uncle Mo who was named the 2010 champion juvenile. Uncle Mo was also one of the favorites for the 2011 Kentucky Derby prior to having to be scratched Derby morning due to a rare liver ailment which plagued the horse. Uncle Mo has since retired to stud and made a big splash in his early years as a sire.

Repole sent Overanalyze to represent the stable in the 2013 Kentucky Derby, a colt who claimed victory in the Arkansas Derby over Frac Daddy and Carve. From there, Repole sent three starters to the Belmont with Overanalyze, Midnight Taboo, and the sole filly to run with the boys, Unlimited Budget.

In 2014, Repole Stables was represented by multiple Grade 1 winner Stopchargingmaria, who entered the race for champion 3-year-old filly with consecutive victories in the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes, Coaching Club American Oaks and Alabama Stakes. Other notable horses owned by Repole include Coach Inge, Notacatbutallama, Caixa Electronica and multiple Grade 1 winner Stay Thirsty, winner of the 2011 Travers Stakes.

In 2018-19, Repole was represented in major races by Vino Rosso, a son of Curlin who won the Wood Memorial Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets in 2018 and the Gold Cup at Santa Anita and Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic in 2019.

Repole realized a long-held dream in 2022 when Mo Donegal won the Belmont Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets. He bought a 25 percent interest in the colt from Donegal Racing prior to the colt’s fifth-place finish in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve. Mo Donegal won the Belmont by three lengths over the filly Nest, who Repole co-owns with Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Michael House.

Repole’s next stable star was 2023 champion 2-year-old male Fierceness, winner of the FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Presented by PDJF. Also a Grade 1 winner at 3, Fierceness disappointed in the Kentucky Derby but bounced back in the summer at Saratoga. He won the Jim Dandy Stakes Presented by Mohegan Sun as a prep for the DraftKings Travers Stakes Aug. 24 at Saratoga. Fierceness he delivered a performance befitting a champion in the famed “Mid-Summer Derby.” He tracked the pace from fourth behind Batten Down, Dornoch, and Thorpedo Anna, took over near the top of the stretch, and then dug in resolutely to hold off a sustained rally from Thorpedo Anna to prevail by a head in 2:01.79 for 1 ¼ miles.