Meet Presious Passion: The Florida Champion Turf Horse Winner of $2.7 Million!
Presious Passion: 2008 and 2009 Florida Turf Champion of the Year, Multiple Graded Stakes Winners, the 2009 Florida Horse of the Year, AND a Happy Retiree at Pleasant Acres Stallions!
Multiple grade I winner Presious Passion, who finished second in the 2009 Breeders’ Cup Turf (gr. IT), has been retired to Joseph and Helen Barbazon’s farm in Ocala, Fla.
The 9-year-old gelded son of Royal Anthem out of the Marquetry marePrincesa’s Passion ran his final race June 10, when he finished sixth in the grade II $200,000 Monmouth Stakes.
“It was awfully tough to say good-bye to him and I’ll really miss him,” said Mary Hartmann, who trained Presious Passion for owner Patricia Generazio. “We had a great time together and it was a great run.”
The chestnut gelding began his career in a maiden special weight for 2-year-olds in December of 2005 and made another 51 starts, winning 14 times, placing seven times, and finishing third twice as he amassed earnings of $2,694,599. Included on his resume are triumphs in the 2009 Clement L. Hirsch Memorial Turf Championship Stakes (gr. IT) and the 2008-09 editions of the United Nations Stakes (gr. IT).
He also won the 2009 Mac Diarmida Stakes (gr. IIT) at Gulfstream Park and the W. L. McKnight Handicap (gr. IIT) at Calder in 2007-08, and took the 2007 Pan American Handicap (gr. IIIT) and the Cliff Hanger Stakes (gr. IIIT) that same season.
Although Presious Passion competed at many different tracks, Monmouth Park was always his home. He made 17 starts there, 15 of which were on the turf. In those 15 races, he won five, finished second three times and was third once as he earned $1,145,500 on the course. – BloodHorse Staff, June 14, 2012 4:37 PM, Northeast Region, Southeast Region