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Pletcher Derby Dreaming? Emmanuel Impressive In Tampa Bay Allowance

As Pablo Morales returned to the jockeys' room alongside assistant trainer Juan Aguayo after his victory aboard Emmanuel in Tampa Bay Downs' sixth race on Sunday, a fan pretty much summed up what he felt privileged to observe.

“That was a magic carpet ride,” the spectator said. Morales nodded in assent.

Emmanuel, whose scheduled 2022 debut here on Jan. 7 was pushed back after he spiked a temperature, made the wait worthwhile today with a highly professional 4 ½-length victory from Glider in the sixth race, the mile-and-40-yard Cody's Original Roadhouse Race of the Week.

Already considered a Kentucky Derby prospect by a number of experts, the Todd Pletcher-trained 3-year-old colt broke alertly under Morales and led the six-horse field throughout. Trainer Mark Casse's colt Glider challenged at the 1/8-mile pole under Antonio Gallardo, but Emmanuel, as it turned out, was just getting started, as he finished in 1:40.24, impressive time on the fast but slightly tiring dirt surface.

Pletcher's other horse in the race, In the Union, finished third.

“I'm very pleased with the way he handled the two turns,” Pletcher said via text message. “We will keep all options open for his next start.”

Pletcher added that the Feb. 12 Sam F. Davis Stakes would be too soon to bring him back, but Tampa Bay Downs Racing Office officials will be working overtime to land him for the Grade 2, $400,000 Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby on March 12.

Morales was more expansive in his comments, having piloted the Ferrari-like colt around the track.

“Just a class horse. I felt like I had so many gears underneath me,” Morales said. “Every time I would just move a hair, he would take off a little bit more and just do it easily. He felt (Glider) coming on the inside down the lane, so I decided to give him a little bit of a hand ride and I could feel him extending more and more.

“He just did it easy – it felt like a workout for him. He acts like an old horse who has run 100 times and he gives you what you ask out of him. I'm thankful I was considered to ride him. It was a pleasure.”

To casual observers, Emmanuel, a son of More Than Ready out of the Hard Spun mare Hard Cloth, seems to be setting out on a similar 3-year-old path as Pletcher's Always Dreaming in 2017. Always Dreaming broke his maiden at Tampa on Jan. 25 at the mile-and-40 distance in his third career start. What came next? Victories in an allowance/optional claiming event and the G1 Xpressbet Florida Derby at Gulfstream, followed by a triumph in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands.

Owned by WinStar Farm and Siena Farm, Emmanuel was a $350,000 yearling purchase at the Keeneland September sale. He was bred in Kentucky by the Helen K. Groves Revocable Trust, out of a half-sister to both multiple Group 1-winner and $4.7 million-earner Hawkbill as well as Grade 1 winner Free Drop Billy.

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Pablo Morales Rides Five Winners For Second Saturday In A Row At Tampa

Don't let his looks deceive you; behind Pablo Morales's youthful appearance lurks a ruthless competitor.

“He looks so nice and polite,” said his agent, Paula Bacon, laughing because those are in fact two traits Morales possesses in abundance. “But he's actually a baby-faced sharpshooter in sheep's clothing.”

Bacon's metaphor hasn't been far off the last two Saturdays at Tampa Bay Downs. After riding five winners on Jan. 1, Morales did it again today, starting 4-for-4 before cooling off to go 5-for-8 with a second.

The performance gives Morales 23 victories at the meet, moving him into a tie for first with Antonio Gallardo. It is the third time Morales has won five races on a Tampa Bay Downs card.

“Unreal. That was awesome, what can I say?” said Morales. “I'm just as happy as I can be. This game is definitely weird, and we just have to stay after it every day. Things like this are what help me keep on going, no matter what.”

Bacon, a former jockey, said all the pieces are coming together for the 33-year-old Lima, Peru product to make a run at his first Tampa Bay Downs meet title. Morales has won seven titles at Presque Isle Downs, where he more than doubled the runner-up with 120 winners last season.

“He's been getting good mounts and he's making them count,” Bacon said. “He's riding incredibly well. He has a lot of natural physical ability, he picks things up right away and he is making smart decisions in his races.”

Bacon, who watched today's card at home, marveled at Morales's winning ride in the fifth race, a maiden claiming event at a mile on the turf for 3-year-old fillies. After keeping his mount, trainer Tim Hamm's gray filly Music Amore, in a stalking position early, Morales spotted an opening on the turn for home and steered Music Amore to the promised land, resulting in a length-and-a-half victory from Sign and Seal.

“He made a last-second decision to cut the corner turning for home, and I thought that was a really smart move,” Bacon said. “When he altered course to go inside, I thought that won the race for him.”

Morales's winning streak was halted in the seventh race on the turf, the Lambholm South Race of the Week, when he finished second aboard Pythoness by a half-length to Bleecker Street, a 4-year-old filly ridden by Hector Rafael Diaz, Jr., and trained by Chad Brown.

“Yeah, it took dang Chad Brown to get him,” Bacon said of the four-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer.

Morales's first victory came in the second race on Daily Briefing, a 4-year-old filly owned by Curragh Stables and trained by John P. Terranova, II. She paid $8.40 to win as the second wagering choice. Morales won the third race on Bear Creek, a 5-year-old gelding owned by Mark Hoffman and trained by Dennis Ward. He paid $10.80 to win.

After sitting out the fourth and winning on 2-1 favorite Music Amore, Morales captured the sixth race on 5-2 favorite Curlin's Thrill, a 5-year-old gelding owned by Sabal Racing Stable and Patrick Rhodes and trained by Darien Rodriguez.

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The jockey's fifth victory came in the ninth race, a come-from-behind effort by 5-year-old Florida-bred gelding Cajun Casanova, owned by Monster Racing Stables and trained by Jose H. Delgado. Cajun Casanova paid $5.80 to win as the second betting choice. “That horse just ran huge today,” Morales said. “He has been running against tough horses, but when things go his way he is a monster. He liked to run and he gives it his all.”

Bacon, who has been retired as a jockey since 2002, looks forward to teaming with Morales throughout the season in hopes of challenging for the top spot.

“We still have to work our butts off to get anyplace,” she said. “This is a very deep jockey colony, but I know Pablo is going to keep to the task.”

Morales agrees with Bacon's assessment that he is physically and mentally capable of contending. “I'm in good shape and I'm healthy, and that's the main thing. I'm going to keep on working and wait for the right opportunities, and when I do get them, thank God I'm able to prove myself, because by proving myself to the trainers and owners they'll opt to ride me. Obviously, I can't do anything without their help,” he said.

“I'm extremely thankful to all the connections. I do this for myself, my family and the people who root for me. It can be sort of a roller coaster here, but days like this put me in the fight, and hopefully I'll get in a groove of staying more busy.”

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Pablo Morales Notches Second Five-Win Day At Tampa Bay Downs

Pablo Morales started 2022 with a bang, riding five winners to move into second place in the early-season jockey standings at Tampa Bay Downs in Oldsmar, Fla.

Morales, a 33-year-old from Lima, Peru, got things going Jan. 1 by sweeping the early daily double. He won the first race on Imtakinittothebank, a 4-year-old Florida-bred gelding owned by Volar Corporation and trained by Kathleen O'Connell. Morales captured the second race on Jack Rabbit Quick, another 4-year-old Florida-bred gelding bred and owned by Endsley Oaks Farm and trained by Rafael Schistl.

Morales's next victory came in the fifth, when he kept 8-year-old campaigner Nick the Cardshark to the task through the stretch to defeat long shot Killeen by a head. Jose H. Delgado trains Nick the Cardshark for owner Carole Star Stables. Morales then won the ninth race, the Lambholm South Race of the Week, on 6-year-old gelding Mystic Link for owner Kelly's Racing and trainer Jon Arnett.

By winning the 10^th, the Male Division of the Tampa Turf Test aboard 6-year-old gelding Dazzling Truths, Morales accomplished the rare feat of winning both halves of the early and late daily doubles. Dazzling Truths is owned by Sabal Racing Stables and Patrick Rhodes and trained by Darien Rodriguez, the same connections to win the Tampa Turf Test Fillies and Mares Division with Vip Nation.

Morales got the most out of Dazzling Truths through the stretch, powering him to a 1 ¾-length victory from Bird's Eye View. He paid $6.80 to win after completing the 1-mile distance in 1:37.50.

Morales also had a second and a third from eight mounts. It was his second career five-victory day at Tampa Bay Downs, having gone 5-for-5 on May 4, 2019 (Kentucky Derby Day). Morales rode five winners on back-to-back days on Aug. 23 and Aug. 24 at Presque Isle Downs, where he was the runaway jockey champion.

Approaching the 10^th race, Morales knew he was in a zone and feeling good about his chances. “I'm sure it helped (winning three of the first five races), because everything flows and I was confident and happy. But it was also a factor that I was sitting on good horses and trying to give them good trips,” Morales said.

“I'm hoping this helps me get a little more business, because I think I'm doing pretty well. I don't even ride Wednesday, but I'm happy to at least be able to win some races with what I have. Hopefully, this will open more doors and create more opportunities and I can take advantage. God willing, I'll stay healthy and I'll keep working hard and I think I'll be alright.

“Of all the racetracks I've ridden, you don't take anything for granted here,” he added. “It's definitely not easy, so days like this I feel very lucky to go home to my family happy and to be able to keep working to gain more wins.”

Through Jan. 1, Antonio Gallardo leads the jockey standings with 19 victories, followed by Morales with 18 and Samy Camacho with 17.

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Jockey Of The Month: Pablo Morales Continues Living The Dream With New Personal Best

From 2017-2019, Pablo Morales rode 200 or more winners a year while establishing a personal-best earnings mark of $4,053,906 in 2019.

Despite those accomplishments, no one could predict the outcome when Morales left Tampa Bay Downs last December to compete at Aqueduct, known for its high purse money and strong jockey colony. And more than a few observers clucked “I told you so” when Morales started the 2020-2021 winter meeting at “The Big A” with only two victories from 53 mounts.

Behind his youthful, placid face, though, lies a steely determination to succeed. Morales (who had ridden four winners at Aqueduct during a “trial run” in early November of 2020) rebounded from his slow start to finish ninth in the winter meeting standings with 24 winners, including three stakes victories.

“I don't think I killed it, but I probably won enough races that people noticed,” Morales said.

That experience set the table for Morales to dominate this year's Presque Isle Downs meeting in Erie, Pa., where he rode 120 winners, 76 more than the runner-up. The 33-year-old product of Lima, Peru won with 32.2 percent of his mounts, a staggering figure for a 15-week meeting.

Morales has returned home for the 2021-2022 Tampa Bay Downs meeting, eager to see if he can challenge for a title among Oldsmar's deep colony. He has done nothing to disappoint his supporters early, winning nine races from his first 31 mounts to earn the Salt Rock Tavern Jockey of the Month Award.

Morales has also set a new personal single-season earnings mark in 2021 of $4.12-million-plus.

Agent Paula Bacon, for one, looks for the good times to continue.

“I think his confidence is better than ever, and that has gotten him even further,” said Bacon, a retired jockey. “He's confident in his decisions, and he has real good judgment. And I don't think anyone can out-finish him.”

Morales, who in recent years has turned to training in the ring with a boxing instructor to keep strong, believes he is at the peak of his skills. But he isn't taking anything for granted, aware of the dedication needed to stay at his current level.

“I love winning and I love racing. That is the thing I know how to do best,” said Morales, who has 2,268 career victories and has ridden at least 100 winners each year since 2010. “My goal, really, is maintaining – being able to keep working, hopefully keep getting titles and having a better season than before.

“My dream was always to come to the United States and be a jockey, and I get to live it and get the benefits of giving my family (wife Erin and children Sophia and Camilo) a good life.”

In the meantime, his quick start aside, Morales will keep fine-tuning the staying power that made 2021 such an excellent year and is reflected in so many of his come-from-behind victories.

“I can do whatever is needed, but usually I'm a guy who likes to sit on a horse and let them do their own running early instead of riding them off their feet,” he said. “When you have some horse left underneath you, they usually give you a pretty good kick and you're able to finish strong on them.”

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