Barry Guariglia bought his first horse in 1987, owned Dan Patch Award-winner Stienams Place a decade later, and has enjoyed his share of successful horses in the years that followed. But none of it compared to what he experienced last year with Manchego. It was, in a word, perfect.
Manchego was a perfect 12-for-12 in 2017 and became the first undefeated two-year-old female trotter in Breeders Crown history as well as the first unbeaten two-year-old female trotter to win a Dan Patch Award. She will be among the honourees at the U.S. Harness Writers Association’s Dan Patch Awards banquet on February 25 in Orlando.
“I’d have to put her on top,” said Guariglia, whose Black Horse Racing shares ownership of Manchego with John Fielding and Herb Liverman. “Stienam’s Place was the last million-dollar horse I had, ironically 20 years ago, and in the middle we’ve had some nice horses, but nothing quite like this.”
Guariglia, a financial advisor, has enjoyed harness racing for more than 40 years. He was at the Meadowlands Racetrack when it opened in 1976 and got into racehorse ownership at the age of 27.
“I bought my first yearling then; I didn’t know anything,” Guariglia said. “It’s just kind of grown since then. I like going to the track, I like the whole process. It’s one of the pleasures I have, a good diversion from what I do here.”
In addition to owning Stienams Place and Manchego, some of Guariglia’s other successes have included stakes-winners Emotional Rescue, Money On My Mind, Muscle Mass, My Starchip, and Take The Money. He bred millionaire Green Day, the 2007 Yonkers Trot winner.
Manchego was a $120,000 yearling buy, under the name Whispering Hills, at the 2016 Lexington Selected Sale. She is a daughter of Muscle Hill out of Secret Magic whose family includes millionaire Possess The Magic.
She had four wins under her belt when she captured her first stakes final, the Jim Doherty Memorial on Hambletonian Day at the Meadowlands. Victories in the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes championship, Peaceful Way Stakes, Bluegrass and International Stallion Stakes, and the Breeders Crown followed. She ended the year with $873,948 in purses.
“Training down, I always heard good things,” Guariglia said about Manchego, who is trained by Jimmy Takter. “I saw her on a 15-degree day last February and I thought she was pretty mature for February. She looked all business. She’s not the biggest thing, but she always held her own. She was pretty nice.
“When she won the Jim Doherty, I started to think she was a little special. Obviously, she just kind of rolled from there. I love her attitude. She pins those ears and she likes to be in front.”
Guariglia was unaware Manchego could make history in the Breeders Crown until two days prior to the race.
“I had no idea, which was probably better,” he said, laughing.
Manchego won all but one of her races by at least two and a quarter lengths and had an average margin of victory of nearly four lengths.
“Hopefully she’s going to come back as good,” Guariglia said. “Of course, they always have to get a little better at three. I always tell people that I never anticipate winning, because you never know what’s going to happen, but it’s kind of nice to have one that you feel has enough to handle anything you’re going against.
“We’ll take it one race at a time. Something like this doesn’t come along too often.”
(USTA)