Staying on turf, Morley has options for Donegal Momentum

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Back from Newmarket where he purchased two well-bred yearlings at last week’s Tattersalls auction, trainer Tom Morley is making plans for some of his current stable stars.

Donegal Momentum, who won the Gio Ponti Stakes on Oct. 3 at Aqueduct, will be pointed to the Grade 3, $200,000 Hill Prince Stakes on Nov. 9 at Aqueduct. There is a chance he could be re-routed to the Grade 1, $300,000 Hollywood Derby on Nov. 30 at Del Mar.

“I don’t think he has got a chance of getting nine furlongs on soft ground,” Morley said. “So, if the weather goes against us, he will go to California.”

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Donegal Momentum, a son of Uncle Mo, won the Gio Ponti, a one-mile turf stakes, by two lengths, making him 2 for 2 on turf. He also won his maiden by 8 1/4 lengths over a muddy, sealed dirt track in May.

So, is he a turf horse or a dirt horse?

“He’s a good horse,” Morley said. “Visually, his most impressive races have been his maiden and his Gio Ponti. One was on a very tight, sealed track that didn’t have a lot of water on top of it and one was on the turf. But he did run very well on a fast track in his second start. My gut would be he will stay on the turf for now.”

Pookie, a 2-year-old daughter of War Front, won a 1 1/16-mile maiden race on turf in her second start. She will be headed to the $135,000 Tepin Stakes scheduled for one mile on the turf here Nov. 17.

“We’ve always liked Pookie enormously,” Morley said. “She came in from Nick Esler at Sandhurst Thoroughbreds in Ocala and has done nothing but improve and improve since the yearling sale. She’s got a lot of leg under her for a War Front [progeny], which is very encouraging moving forward.”

Meanwhile at Tattersalls, Morley purchased a yearling colt by Dark Angel who comes from the family of female turf champion Sistercharlie, and a filly who is a three-quarter-sister to Modern Games, a two-time Breeders’ Cup winner having captured the 2021 Juvenile Turf and the 2022 Mile. Morley purchased those horses on behalf of West Paces Racing and VinLaur Racing Stables.

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