Despite being a highly decorated Hall of Fame trainer, there’s one race Bill Mott has yet to win. The Grade 1 Travers Stakes is something the 72-year-old horse racing trainer still doesn’t boast on his resume. But this year, things can finally sway in Mott’s favor at the Spa. Why? Because Sovereignty, son of Into Mischief, is making the trainer dream big. But the 3-year-old colt is also evoking other emotions.

“It’s probably our best chance so far to do it,” Mott said of his Travers chances after Sovereignty trotted over the finishing line ahead of Baeza to win the Grade 2 Jim Dandy Stakes last month. Bill has previously come close to winning the Spa race with three different horses, but success has eluded him every time. But looking at the Godolphin-owned horse, Mott can brace himself with hope again. Sovereignty’s impeccable form has been so good that he’s even making his seasoned trainer have flashbacks of a different horse that gave Mott countless reasons to smile about decades ago.

An article in the Thoroughbred Daily News from August 9 shared how the celebrity trainer’s mind has been drifting back to the 90s as he watches Sovereignty in the latter’s natural habitat. On Saturday, Mot watched his horse put out an excellent workout session for the first time since his Jim Dandy triumph at the Oklahoma Training Track. With assistant trainer Neil Poznansky on his back, the colt covered four furlongs in 48.99 (117/65) and galloped out in 1:02 2/5.

But while it was evident that Sovereignty didn’t let his speed take a hit after last month’s Grade II race, it was his body language that made Mott reminisce about the past. “He knows he is hitting the wire, and he is throttling down a little bit. That’s how Cigar was,” Mott fondly remembered the legendary horse who won 16 straight races during 1995 and ’96.

“He worked in 1:02 and three every time you worked him five-eighths. That is all he would do,” Bill further told TDN about how he sees shades of the Breeders’ Cup-winning horse in Sovereignty. Cigar was also named the Horse of the Year for two years in a row and is often considered the greatest horse trained by Mott.

Cigar also won the prestigious Dubai World Cup, cementing Bill Mott as a horse training stalwart. But the now-retired horse never got a chance to win the Travers, simply because he never entered the race during his career. Sovereignty does have a chance, but Bill is still skeptical about seating him in the same row as Cigar. “Probably has a ways to go, but he’s working on it,” the trainer said about his current poster boy matching up to the legacy of his predecessors.

But this time, Sovereignty could finally bring an end to the long wait for his trainer, especially given his long and impressive winning streak. Even then, it wouldn’t be an easy task, to say the least.

Sovereignty will have multiple chances to elevate himself in Mott’s eyes

“I think the Travers is important to me. It is a race I’ve never won, and I’d really like to win it before I check out,” said a chuckling Bill Mott right after his Jim Dandy victory on July 26. Vision and Verse, Hold Me Back, and Tacitus were the three horses who had previously given Mott hopes of winning the Mid-Summer Derby, but all three failed with that task. But this time, the chances look better than ever, thanks to the 2025 Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes winner, Sovereignty.

“He’s been pretty relaxed the last couple weeks coming out of the race. We were looking for a nice work today, which we got,” Bill told Bloodhorse after Saturday’s workout. Well, truth be told, both Sovereignty and Mott will need all the confidence in the world. After all, the calendar ahead looks pretty busy, and the duo needs to be on top of their game.

At the Travers, Sovereignty could once again cross paths with Baeza, the John Shirreffs-trained horse who finished both the Derby and the Belmont in second place. Moreover, the Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert will also enter the Spa race with Goal Oriented, making things further complicated for Mott & Co. Thankfully, though, one incredible talent might help to make the job somewhat easier.

Despite being considered Sovereignty’s arch-nemesis, Journalism, trained by Michael McCarthy, might be sitting out the late August race in a bid to do well at the Breeders’ Cup Classic, slated for late November. “We are going to take all the time to make this decision. We’re in no rush to make any decision on where he runs next,” said Journalism’s owner, Aaron Wellman, after winning the $1 million Haskell Stakes on July 19. While he didn’t specifically mention the intention to race at the Breeders’ Cup, one should believe that the next chapter of the rivalry between these two scintillating horses will unfold at Del Mar later this year, given the legacy of the Grade 1 race.

So, do you think that Sovereignty will be able to help his trainer finally find his way to the winner’s circle at the Travers Stakes? Or will Mott’s disappointing run at the Midsummer Derby continue? Just two more weeks before we find out!