![]() “That’s kind of when I knew what I had,” Capilupi said. He always liked the way she looked but was blown away during a breeze going half a mile in late spring. Newly licensed as a trainer, Capilupi began conditioning Nicky’s Brown Miss himself. But both times, bidding on her failed to meet Capilupi’s reserve. She, like her mother, had a date with an auction ring – two of them, in fact. Her greatest gift, though, was still to come.Īfter retiring Nicksappealinglady, Capilupi tried his hand in breeding and matched his mare with Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner Big Brown. The horse would win four times and place in two stakes, including the Rosenna at Delaware Park, while racking up $158,728 in lifetime earnings. Nicksappealinglady would go on to a productive career, trained initially by Greg Sacco (a friend of Nick’s but not related) and later by Gary Contessa. She was promptly scratched from the auction and sold to Capilupi. Nicksappealinglady was a part of Uncle Nick that Capilupi needed to hold onto. “I had seen her and, based on my lessons that I’d received from my uncle on conformation and athleticism, I knew that I had to have her,” said Capilupi. In particular, Nicksappealinglady was slated for auction in Ocala. A short time later, one of Sacco’s business partners contacted Capilupi to discuss plans for selling his uncle’s horses. But then, unfortunately, the same day that the doctor said that he had a couple of weeks left, he ended up dying that night,” Capilupi said. “When the doctors told us that he was dying, we thought he had a couple of weeks left. His uncle had been diagnosed with cancer and didn’t have long to live.Ĭapilupi immediately set plans in motion to visit Sacco, whose condition went from bad to worse within hours of the initial call. Then, three days before Christmas the following year, Capilupi got a call. In 2005, Uncle Nick – who had moved to Ocala, FL, several years earlier – bred a Successful Appeal filly, later to be named Nicksappealinglady. “Just being around (horses), I enjoyed spending time with him. “Everybody knew him as ‘Nick,'” Capilupi said. He brought him to the farms, training centers and, of course, tracks around New Jersey, where Capilupi grew up. “Having this result is just a true testament to the value of the lessons I learned from my uncle.”Ĭapilupi’s uncle was Domenic Sacco, a longtime racing trainer and breeder who introduced his nephew to racing as a child. “Getting here wasn’t an easy task,” Capilupi said. And he’s made it to the Breeders’ Cup with a horse who means more to him than any amount of money Nicky’s Brown Miss might earn Friday. Unexpected tragedy, twists of fate, and a few calculated risks have landed Capilupi, 39, on racing’s biggest stage. Heck, he didn’t even have a trainer’s license until last year. After all, Savino Capilupi didn’t win his first race as a trainer until last month. There’s a good chance you wouldn’t recognize the name listed under owner and trainer for Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies’ contender Nicky’s Brown Miss. Photo by Cecilia Gustavsson, courtesy of Savino Capilupi.
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