MORALES WINS NO. 2,500; LONG-SHOT PLAY LEADS TO ‘HIGH ROLLERS’ TRIUMPH

By Mike Henry —-

OLDSMAR, FL. – In a sport awash in numbers, Pablo Morales was determined to push a big one to the back of his mind at Tampa Bay Downs.

“I knew I could get it (career victory No. 2,500) today, so coming here the only thing I was thinking about before the race was to enjoy the moment,” Morales said after a thrilling, come-from-behind head victory aboard 4-year-old gelding Roger McQueen in the second race secured the milestone. “As I was putting my goggles down, I was taking it all in.

“I was thinking I could win, but I was thinking about the journey.”

Fortunately, in terms of the way the race developed, Morales didn’t over-think things. He got a good position stalking pace-setters Bode by You and Imperial Bird early in the 5 ½-furlong, $12,500 claiming event, then began to despair after those two sprinted away through an opening quarter-mile in 21.63 seconds and the half in 44.90.

“Oh, man, I really thought I wasn’t going to get there” at the 1/8-mile pole, Morales said. “I was handcuffed without being able to whip, because I had used my 6-strike limit just trying to keep up with the leaders because they were going so fast.

“All I could do the last eighth of a mile was hand-ride him as hard as I could,” Morales added. “The (runner-up, Bode by You) ran a great race, but he got a little tired and I was able to pick up the pieces.”

Roger McQueen, a stakes winner as a 2-year-old, improved to 3-for-8 lifetime. Owned by Carolyn Wilson and trained by Larry Rivelli, Roger McQueen was claimed from the race by new owner-trainer Juan Arriagada.

Morales, a 34-year-old Lima, Peru product who is second in the Oldsmar standings to Samy Camacho with 36 victories, appears to be in the prime of his career. He rode 210 winners in 2022, the fourth time in the last six years he has won 200 or more races. He earned his eighth riding title at Presque Isle Downs last year with 134 winners, 58 more than runner-up Antonio Gallardo.

Morales credits his strong support system, which includes his family and his agent, former jockey Paula Bacon, for his ongoing success.

“My family (wife Erin and children Sophia and Camilo) are my main motivation. They are my everything, and I hope I’m making them proud,” he said. “Paula, I have so many good things to say about. I have to have more than 1,000 wins with her. We work well together, we’re friends and she has my best interests in mind. We care about each other, on the racetrack and away from it.”

Morales wasn’t done thanking people, not quite. “All the support I’ve gotten from owners and trainers has been huge, and the fans have been great to me these past few years. They’ve been nothing but kind to me,” he said.

36-1 shot key to High Rollers victory. At the outset of last week’s “High Rollers” Handicapping Contest Presented by Horse Tourneys at Tampa Bay Downs, Dylan Donnelly of Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., committed to making 10 mythical $50 win bets over Friday and Saturday’s cards.

In a field of 114 players, the 31-year-old Donnelly – who won $264,000 in the 2020 Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge – sensed the need for a long-shot score to be in contention for the top prize. He was one of a mere handful of players Friday who got hep to Audrey, a 5-year-old Florida-bred mare whose 1-for-20 career record entering the seventh race led to her being generally dismissed at odds of 36-1.

But in the vernacular of the trade, Donnelly saw something he liked.

“I thought she was improving and would save ground from the No. 1 post, and it looked like a weak field,” Donnelly said. “I figured if they ran that race again there could be a lot of different winners, so I thought, let’s take a shot.”

A minute and 42 seconds later, Audrey and jockey Mario Fuentes made it to the winner’s circle, with the $74.60 payoff netting $1,865 in mythical contest earnings. “The way the race went, I really never thought she would lose,” Donnelly said. “That kind of separated me from the pack, and I didn’t have to worry about chasing horses to catch up.”

Even with that bonanza, Donnelly needed a victory by 3-year-old filly Juniper’s Moon in Saturday’s 11th race on the turf to claim first place. Red-hot jockey Samy Camacho got her home, and the $11.60 payoff meant another $290 in Donnelly’s bankroll and a $2,385 total, good for a winning margin of $27 from runner-up David Stiles.

Donnelly and Stiles, along with first-day leader Christopher Skotz and second-day top winner Josh Whitney, all won seats to a future National Horseplayers Championship tournament in Las Vegas. Donnelly will use his in 2024, since he is already in possession of two seats for next month’s event.

This was Donnelly’s first attempt at the “High Rollers” tournament, and he plans to come back. “It was a super-cool event, and there was a lot of euphoria when it was over,” he said. “I like the track a lot – it’s small, you can see anything pretty quick, the amenities are good and the gift shop is awesome.

“It was a different format than a lot of tournaments I play, but that was good because it tests your ability to adapt. You can’t be one-dimensional.”

In addition to his final bankroll figure, Donnelly earned $18,870 for the victory. Stiles collected $7,548; third-place finisher Scott Cavalieri won $5,661; fourth-place finisher Josh Whitney won $3,774; and fifth-place finisher Kevin Willett won $1,887.

Around the oval. Samy Camacho earned the Jockeys’ Guild Jockey of the Week Award for his performance on Saturday’s Festival Preview Day card. Camacho engineered a huge upset in the $150,000 Suncoast Stakes for 3-year-old fillies, riding trainer Gerald Bennett’s Florida-bred Dreaming of Snow to a neck victory from the 2022 Eclipse Award Champion 2-Year-Old Filly, Wonder Wheel.

Camacho rode two other winners Saturday to capture the award, which recognizes a Jockeys’ Guild member for their riding accomplishments on a weekly basis. The Jockeys’ Guild represents more than 1,050 active, retired and permanently disabled jockeys in the United States.

Dreaming of Snow paid $78 to win after outdueling Wonder Wheel through the Tampa Bay Downs stretch in the mile-and-40-yard race, which earned the Karyn Philipp-bred daughter of Jess’s Dream-Snow Fashion, by Old Fashioned, 20 qualifying points toward a spot in the starting gate for the Longines Kentucky Oaks on May 5 at Churchill Downs.

Camacho, whose brother, Samuel Camacho, Jr., also rides at Tampa Bay Downs, is attempting to win his third consecutive riding title at Tampa Bay Downs and fourth overall. He leads runner-up Pablo Morales 60-36 through the halfway point of the meet.

Camacho beat out Armando Ayuso, who won the El Camino Real Derby on Chase the Chaos at Golden Gate; Javier Castellano, who rode 10 winners during the week; Manny Franco, who won the Grade III Withers Stakes at Aqueduct; and Luis Saez, who won the Grade III Sam F. Davis Stakes here on Litigate.

Camacho rode three winners today. He won the first race on Risk Vs Reward, a 4-year-old Florida-bred gelding owned and trained by Juan Arriagada. Risk Vs reward was claimed from the victory for $12,500 by trainer Dennis Ward for new owner Lisa Slaten.

Camacho added the sixth on Savvy Layla, a 5-year-old gelding owned by Winning Stables and trained by Gerald Bennett. He won again in the seventh on the turf on Hereby, a 5-year-old gelding owned by Michael Schrader and Paul O’Neil and trained by Darien Rodriguez.

Carlos Eduardo Rojas won back-to-back winners. He captured the third race on the turf aboard Frenchy Departed, a 3-year-old gelding owned by Phoenix Stable and trained by Jose H. Delgado. Rojas added the fourth race aboard Money Song, a 5-year-old Florida-bred gelding owned by GOP Racing Stable and Impact Thoroughbreds and trained by Gerard Ochoa.

Thoroughbred racing continues Friday with a nine-race card beginning at 12:46 p.m. Tampa Bay Downs is open every day for simulcast wagering, no-limits action and tournament play in The Silks Poker Room and golf fun and instruction at The Downs Golf Practice Facility.

Photo provided by Tampa Bay Downs