Roughly a year after Whitmore was named an Eclipse Award winner, Moquett reached another career milestone when he saddled Kinfolk to win last Sunday's ninth race at Oaklawn Park.
Kinfolk represented Moquett's 900th Thoroughbred victory, according to Equibase, racing's official data gathering organization. Ridden by apprentice Kylee Jordan, Kinfolk ($27.20) came from off the pace to capture the sprint for $35,000 Arkansas-bred maiden-claiming sprinters by 1 ½ lengths over stablemate and heavily favored Kilgore.
Moquett, under his Southern Springs Stables banner, owns Kinfolk and bred the blazed-faced 3-year-old gelded son of Just a Coincidence in partnership with Bennie Westphal.
“It's a fun little face because he's going to make a great pony when he's done running,” Moquett said moments after the race. “That was neat.”
Kinfolk was making his second career start after finishing third in his Oct. 1 debut at Remington Park. Moquett recorded his 899th career Thoroughbred victory earlier on last Sunday's card when Woohoo Jackie Blue ($26.20) won her career debut in the seventh race under Ramon Vazquez.
Moquett, 50, grew up near Fort Smith, Ark., and started his first Thoroughbred in 1997 at nearby Blue Ribbon Downs in Sallisaw, Okla., according to Equibase. The purse was $3,250. Blue Ribbon, a tiny Thoroughbred/Quarter-Horse pari-mutuel facility, is now shuttered.Moquett saddled his first Thoroughbred winner in 1998, according to Equibase, and reached the sport's pinnacle when Whitmore captured the $2 million Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1) in 2020 at Keeneland and was named the country's champion male sprinter that year. Whitmore represented the first Breeders' Cup winner and Eclipse Awards winner for Moquett.
Kinfolk was Moquett's 11th victory at the 2021-2022 Oaklawn meeting and 288th overall in Hot Springs. Moquett also co-owned Whitmore, who shares the Oaklawn record for career stakes victories by a horse with seven.
Moquett has 900 Thoroughbred victories from 7,205 starters and purse earnings of $33,475,073 in his career, according to Equibase.
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