Pro Quality hits career peak with win in Wildcat Heir

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – To say Pro Quality is the big horse in trainer Ralph Catanese’s barn has little to do with his victory in last Saturday’s Wildcat Heir Stakes. That’s because Pro Quality is the only horse in the barn for Catanese, whose roots trace back to New England before he settled on the local circuit along with his brother, trainer Joe Catanese, nearly 40 years ago.

Pro Quality, a 4-year-old Florida-bred son of Exclusive Quality, is owned by his breeder and Catanese’s lone client, Rodney Lundock. Although he did not start until August of his 3-year-old season and was well beaten after troubled beginnings in his first two outings, Pro Quality wasted little time grabbing people’s attention when he came close to Gulfstream Park West’s 6 1/2-furlong track standard winning his maiden against open company last October in his third start. He earned a 90 Beyer Speed Figure.

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In the 11 starts since his maiden win, Pro Quality has registered two more victories while never finishing worse than third. The one-mile Wildcat Heir was the first stakes victory from very limited opportunities for Catanese, who worked for former South Florida mainstay Manny Tortora before taking out his own license.

“He was always the big kid on the block,” Catanese said of Pro Quality. “He’s over 17 hands, so neither the owner or I wanted to rush him to the races. He’s got a good stride on him, so ultimately I think he’ll go two turns and will turf, too. But for the moment, I don’t want to change what’s been working.”

Pro Quality rated near the rear of the seven-horse lineup after breaking last in the Wildcat Heir, swung five wide to commence his bid into the stretch under Luca Panici, and ran down the rail-skimming Shivaree in the final sixteenth. He earned a career-best 91 Beyer Speed Figure.

“We’ve been trying to get him to rate like that,” Catanese said. “He’s normally a very good work horse, but we blew him out a little slower for this race with that in mind. He’s still a little green in his races, but Luca knows him now, they get along well, and I thought everything went perfectly for him on Saturday. He’s so consistent and seems to be improving with every start, so I think he could be even better next year.”

Catanese, who said he expects to get a couple of 2-year-olds in from Lundock later this fall, said he’s very content having a one-horse stable at the current time.

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“When I worked for my father as a kid back in New England, before Rockingham Park burnt down, I walked horses, groomed,” he said. “You did everything you had to back in those days. And since I went out on my own I’ve never really looked for a whole lot of horses. I prefer to be able to do what I need to do with just a couple of horses. That way I make sure everything gets done right.”