Rye's stakes win continues strong run for Morey stable

ARCADIA, Calif. – From his first graded stakes win to the richest win of his career, trainer William Morey celebrated two major milestones on consecutive Saturdays in January at Santa Anita.

Morey won his first graded stakes with Coniah in the Grade 3 Las Cienegas Stakes on Jan. 20. On Saturday, Morey won his richest race when Rye prevailed by a head in the $200,345 Unusual Heat Turf Classic.

The rest of the stable is winning, too. Through Sunday, the 20th day of the winter-spring meeting, Morey had won with 9 of 15 starters.

“I’ve had some hot streaks, but nothing quite like this,” he said Sunday. “How do you duplicate that?”

Rye overcame a wide trip through the last half-mile to win the Turf Classic at 1 1/8 miles in the final strides over Camino Del Paraiso. Morey said Rye emerged from the race “tired.”

“He ran hard,” he said.

Owned by Joseph Morey, who is no relation to the trainer, Rye had his third start following a seven-month layoff in the Turf Classic.

“We really targeted that race,” William Morey said.

The next objective may be the Grade 2 San Luis Rey Stakes at 1 1/2 miles on turf March. 24.

“It’s time to look at the open stakes schedule,” Morey said. “I think he’ll run a mile and a half.”

Morey’s recent success has come with a 15-horse division, a smaller group than the 25 horses the trainer has at Golden Gate Fields. This week, Morey has Kenny Benny in a $16,000 claimer on Friday and plans to run Urban Bourbon in the Super Bowl Starter Handicap at 1 1/8 miles on turf. Rye won the same race last year.

Kenny Benny and Urban Bourbon won claiming races on Dec. 30.

Morey, 43, moved a division to Southern California in spring 2016. Morey’s stable won 16 races from 89 starters in Southern California from Dec. 26, 2016, through the end of the Los Alamitos winter meeting on Dec. 17, 2017.

He had a strong Del Mar summer meeting last year, winning with 6 of 21 runners. By comparison, he was winless with six starters at Del Mar’s autumn meeting.

“You keep doing all the things you do,” he said. “You can do the things you do, and you go O-for. We went O-for the Del Mar meeting in the fall. I know both sides of the ups and downs.”

Rye won the richest race of four stakes for California-breds on Saturday.

Edwards Going Left scored the flashiest win of the day with a six-length victory in the $150,345 Cal Cup Sprint at six furlongs for his second stakes win. Edwards Going Left ($6.80) raced on the inside throughout and beat a field that included Masochistic, the 7-10 favorite.

Masochistic was second in the 2016 Breeders’ Cup Sprint but was later disqualified from the purse money for a steroid positive. At the time, Masochistic was trained by Ron Ellis. Masochistic was transferred from Ellis to Bob Baffert last year. The Cal Cup Sprint was Masochistic’s first start for Baffert.

Edwards Going Left was second in the Grade 1 Malibu Stakes at seven furlongs for 3-year-olds on Dec. 26 and is a candidate for the Grade 1 Triple Bend Stakes at seven furlongs on March 10, trainer John Sadler said on Sunday.

Owned by Pete and Kosta Hronis, Edwards Going Left won the Cary Grant Stakes for California-breds at Del Mar in November.

“He’s getting better and getting stronger,” Sadler said. “He’s just matured and progressing as a racehorse. Those are words that are clichés, but they’re true.”

How About Zero won her first stakes on turf in the $151,035 Sunshine Millions Filly and Mare Turf Sprint on the hillside course. Ridden by Mario Gutierrez, How About Zero closed from fourth to win by 2 1/4 lengths.

Trainer Doug O’Neill said on Sunday that How About Zero will be pointed for the $100,000 Irish O’Brien Stakes for California-bred fillies and mares on the hillside turf course March 17.

“She’s grass through and through,” O’Neill said. “Down the hill is the first preference.”

How About Zero, who races for Paul and Zillah Reddam, won the 2016 Golden State Juvenile Fillies for California-bred 2-year-olds on dirt.

Heck Yeah, unbeaten in two starts, could stay on the hillside turf course after winning Saturday’s $102,415 Cal Cup Turf Sprint for 3-year-olds in his stakes and turf debut. A maiden-race winner at Los Alamitos in his debut in December, Heck Yeah could return in the $75,000 Baffle Stakes for 3-year-olds on the hillside turf course Feb. 18.

Trained by Baffert, Heck Yeah is owned by breeder Michael Pageler in partnership with Michael Sigband and Bob Baedeker.

Fines for two trainers

Trainer Carla Gaines was fined $750 for failing to report that a horse had been gelded, and trainer John Sadler was fined $500 for a medication violation, according to rulings issued by Santa Anita stewards on Friday.

The Gaines-trained Nevermissabet finished seventh in his debut in a maiden race on the hillside turf course. He was listed as a colt at time of entry.

Sadler was cited after Yuvetsi, who finished seventh in the second race at Los Alamitos on Dec. 1, tested in excess of the permitted level of dantrolene, a muscle relaxant.