A major stakes win was about the only thing missing on trainer Richard Moreau’s C.V., and now he has that too, thanks to Boomboom Ballykeel’s upset victory in the $683,000 Metro Pace final at Mohawk on Saturday.
“That’s the biggest, without a doubt. I was starting to think it was a jinx and would never happen,” said Moreau, 48, whose previous high had been a $300,000 Quebec Sires Stakes final about a decade ago.
Always prolific in accumulating wins, Moreau has more than 4,000 career victories and still has an outside shot at reaching 5,000 by age 50. But he’s campaigned relatively few stakes horses and the ones he’s raced have been win-shy with big purses on the line.
“Going into the race, I would have been happy with third,” Moreau said of the Metro. “But he’s been getting braver the last few starts and we got a good trip.”
Moreau, who has led the nation in victories several times, was a finalist for an O’Brien award as trainer of the year in 2012 but Casie Coleman got the trophy.
“Maybe this will make a difference for me this year. At least now I’ll be able to say I won a big one,” said Moreau, who trains a 50-horse stable and again is leading in wins and money.
(A Trot Insider Exclusive by Paul Delean)