William E. Morey earned his 1,000th career training victory Nov. 11 at Golden Gate Fields when his 7-year-old gray mare Sports Edition captured the seventh race.
Sports Edition was Morey’s lone entrant on the program and the veteran campaigner provided her trainer with the milestone win by rallying from fifth in a field of six to collect her 10th victory in 40 career starts. Jockey Julien Couton rode Sports Edition, who covered the one-mile distance over the Tapeta racing surface in 1:39.53 and paid $5.40.
Morey, who at age 36 is one of the youngest trainers to hit the 1,000 win mark, took out his trainer’s license in 2001 after serving as an assistant to his father, William J. Morey Jr., for eight years.
“That’s a lot of wins,” said the younger Morey, who has averaged 131 victories the past three years and has already won 129 races this year. “You don’t realize how many wins it is until you try to do it. It’s a result of good horses, good owners and good help. Hopefully, we can get to 2,000. We’ll start on that tomorrow.”
He did just that Nov. 12 at Golden Gate, winning the sixth race with the 4-year-old filly Red Hot Charlotte in an optional claiming allowance event at 1 1/16 miles on the turf.
Morey had no trouble picking out the most memorable victory of his first 1,000 triumphs.
“Trapper winning the California Sprint Championship (at Bay Meadows in 2003),” said Morey. “It was my first $100,000 stakes win and he was a horse we claimed (for $32,000 out of his debut). And he was owned by Joe Morey (no relation). Joe certainly helped us get to 1,000.”
William E. Morey made headlines in 2008 when he won the training championship at Golden Gate Fields’ spring meeting and dethroned perennial champ Jerry Hollendorfer, who had won 32 straight training crowns at the East Bay track, a streak that began in 1986. Morey saddled 25 winners during the 30-day session while Hollendorfer saddled 23.
He achieved a career high in wins (153) and earnings ($2,458,628) in 2008, when he tied for 16th in the nation in races won and ranked 61st in purse money won. He finished 27th in the nation in races won in 2009 when he sent out 126 winners.
Through Nov. 11, his horses had earned $14,969,260 from 4,067 starts.
Morey, who earlier this year captured the Alcatraz Stakes at Golden Gate with Hudson Landing, also trained stakes winners Penny Ante, Scrumpy, Don Jaun Con, Press Camp, and Stone Rain.
