Officiating Collects Graded Score in Mr. Prospector

Already related to a champion, Officiating  added even more value to his page Dec. 11 by holding off the favored late runners to capture his first graded stakes victory in the $100,000 Mr. Prospector Stakes (G3) at Gulfstream Park.

Vegso Racing Stables' 3-year-old Blame   colt, a Florida homebred, is a half brother to 2017 2-year-old filly champion Caledonia Road . He was sent off at 7-1 odds under Luis Saez following a last-out 10th in the Nov. 6 Showing Up Stakes at Gulfstream. That run followed his first stakes victory in the Sept. 5 Bear's Den on a sloppy, sealed track at the South Florida oval for trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. 

"His fast dirt form hasn't been good, but he's been training so good, that I said to (owner) Peter (Vegso), 'We've got to give him one more try. He trains too good on the fast dirt not to run good on it,'" Joseph said. "In the paddock, I said to Peter, 'He's going to win or get beat 20 lengths.' Thank God, he handled it well."

Officiating, who took on older rivals in the seven-furlong feature, broke from the outside post of seven before settling in fourth. Wind of Change  ranged up to take the lead out of post 2 and led through fractions of :22.18 and :44.75. The 9-5 favorite Endorsed  was last through the opening quarter, one spot behind 5-2 second choice Dennis' Moment . 

Saez made a three-wide bid aboard Officiating in the turn before his mount took over down the stretch. The two favorites made up ground but couldn't catch the winner, with Officiating crossing the wire first by three-quarters of a length. He completed the distance on the fast track in 1:22.28.

"We tried to break and be in a good spot right there, following the speed," Saez said. "We know there was going to be some decent speed, so we tried to just maintain him in the race. When he came to the top of the stretch, he gave me that good kick, good turn of foot, and he fought. He fought to win the race. That was an exciting race."

Endorsed rallied for second, a half-length in front of Dennis' Moment. Doc Amster , Wind of Change, Flap Jack , and Poppy's Pride  completed the order of finish. 

Officiating is out of the Dixie Union  mare Come a Callin , another Vegso homebred. From six foals of racing age, Come a Callin has produced three winners topped by Caledonia Road (Quality Road  ), who captured the 14 Hands Winery Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) on her way to championship honors. The mare also has 2018 The Vid Stakes winner One of a Kind  (Lemon Drop Kid ) and 2-year-old Celestial  (Quality Road), who made her first start in October at Belmont Park. Come a Callin's latest foal is a yearling Munnings   colt and she was last reported bred to Quality Road for 2022.

Offered by Eaton Sales at the 2019 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, Officiating was bought back on a final bid of $100,000. His record now stands at 3-4-2 from 14 starts and he has earned $206,547.

"I wouldn't want to cut him back to three-quarters," Joseph said of future race plans. "I'll talk it over with Peter, but they have a good series at a mile here."

Emmanuel Romps on Debut

WinStar Farm and Siena Farm's 2-year-old Emmanuel  got his race career off to a fast start Saturday at Gulfstream with a 6 3/4-length victory in his debut over a mile.

Trained by Todd Pletcher, Emmanuel, also guided by Saez, broke from post 1 in the 10-horse field and was a head in front for a quarter-mile in :23.66 to open the one-mile, $53,000 maiden special weight. He extended his lead to a length as he ticked off fractions of :45.97 for the half and 1:11.08 in three-quarters. The More Than Ready   colt then extended his margin down the stretch and crossed the wire in 1:36.47.

"We've had a lot of More Than Readys over the years, and this is a bigger, scopier colt than a lot of them," Pletcher said. "I told someone this morning that was asking about him, I said he kind of reminds me of a Verrazano type—a big, physical, strong imposing colt. You're always concerned going a mile first time out, but we felt like he had shown us enough in the mornings."

Emmanuel was bred in Kentucky by the Helen K. Groves Revocable Trust. He is the second foal and first starter out of the Hard Spun   mare Hard Cloth , a daughter of Trensa . The dam is a half to group/grade 1 winners Hawkbill  and Free Drop Billy  . Hard Cloth has since produced a yearling Kitten's Joy   colt and a weanling More Than Ready filly. She was bred to Munnings for 2022.

Maverick Racing, the buying arm of WinStar, paid $350,000 for Emmanuel when the colt was consigned by Gainesway to the 2020 Keeneland September Yearling Sale.