Bucchero picked up winner No. 14 over the weekend when Free Smoke broke his maiden at Gulfstream Park in his fourth start as a 3-year-old.
The colt bred by Philip and Karen Matthews was a generous 4-1 with Angel Morales despite the fact that he had finished second in his previous two tries. With apprentice Morales in at a light 112 pounds, six less than each of Free Smoke’s five rivals, the son of Bucchero broke well behind the leaders in the five-furlong turf race, made a strong three-wide move on the turn and into the stretch, then outgamed the closers late to score by a neck in :56.46.
The $145,000 OBS April 2-year-old is 1-2-0 in his four starts, and the check for $30,700 lifted his bank account to $50,450.