It will not matter if trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. wins the Pennsylvania Derby (G1) two, four, or even six times.
His first victory in the $1 million stakes for 3-year-olds at Parx Racing will always be the most meaningful for him.
For his victory in the 2019 edition with Math Wizard was much more than your typical 31-1 stunner and initial graded stakes victory for a young trainer.
It was a breakthrough moment on a national stage that showcased the then-32-year-old up-and-coming claiming trainer in south Florida.
It showed a national television audience how Joseph could convert a $25,000 claim for owner John Fanelli into a grade 1 runner capable of beating a Preakness Stakes (G1) winner.
It put on display his love for the sport with the tears that welled in his eyes as he spoke with raw emotion about the victory in the winner's circle.
'It was one of the few races I could not envision winning, but everything worked out. (Jockey Irad Ortiz Jr.) gave Math Wizard a terrific ride and the horse ran the race of his life," Joseph said. "God blessed us. It was an unforgettable moment."
And it opened the eyes of other owners hopeful of a rags-to-riches saga with one of their horses.
"We were winning races before (the 2019 Pennsylvania Derby) but that was my first grade 1 and first graded stakes win here. It gathered attention because it was on national television and we beat some very good horses," Joseph said about a field that included Preakness Stakes (G1) winner War of Will , Improbable, the beaten favorite in both the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) and Preakness and the champion older dirt male a year later, and Spun to Run , winner of the Big Ass Fans Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) less than two months later. "Winning the Pennsylvania Derby helped bring us the quality horses we needed to keep winning grade 1 stakes."
Joseph's elevator ride to the top floors of his profession will be reflected Sept. 24 when he returns to the Pennsylvania Derby for the first time since 2019 with not one but two of the 11 starters. Neither West Virginia Derby (G3) victor Skippylongstocking nor Curlin Florida Derby Presented by Hill 'n' Dale Farms at Xalapa (G1) winner White Abarrio are favored in the seven-figure 1 1/8-mile test, but that didn't stop Joseph in 2019. Nor could the long odds the Barbados-born trainer faced early in his years in the United States derail his career.
"There are a lot of good trainers out there and as a trainer you can only prove yourself when you get an opportunity," Joseph said. "The Pennsylvania Derby gave me that opportunity."
Statistics paint a vivid picture of how 2019 was a game-changer or, better yet, a career-changer for Joseph.
His career was already on an upward climb in 2019 as he stepped up from 35 wins in 2017 to 57 in 2018. In 2019, he finished with 95. Then in 2020, even in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Joseph's win total jumped to 128 and in 2021 it skyrocketed to 201.
His earnings also soared from just $1,280,403 in 2018 to $4,994,188 in 2020 and nearly double that, $9,066, 6060, in 2021. With three full months of racing left in 2022, his earnings stand at $7,979,732 with 132 wins.
"We try to get the most out of every horse we get and we appreciate every horse that is given to us, whether it's at a high level or low level. We enjoy working with claimers as much as we do stakes horses. We get the same feeling of satisfaction and disappointment with all of them," Joseph said.
His stable has expanded from 35 in 2019 to its current figure of 150 and his operation, which was based solely in south Florida, now also includes strings in New York and Kentucky. Moreover, the increase has impacted both the quantity and quality of his stock. While Math Wizard was his first graded stakes winner—and only one in 2019—he now has 21 graded North American stakes wins, including four grade 1 wins with four different horses.
"We're getting better quality horses now. We're not getting the top, top horses, but we are making the most out of what we've been given. We're thankful for that," Joseph said.
Joseph's success story surely resonated with Daniel Alonso, who owns Skippylongstocking. A couple of years ago, Alonso, a lifelong Miami resident, was looking to upgrade his Florida stable and Joseph was the obvious choice for him.
"My dad has owned horses for 40 years and we were in the claiming ranks for a long time. We wanted to upgrade the stable so we reached out to Saffie," said the 48-year-old Alonso, who is involved in commercial real estate. "I thought he was the best option in Florida."
Alonso has five horses with Joseph and "Skippy" is the gem. The son of Exaggerator was bought for just $37,000 from the Top Line Sales consignment at the Ocala Breeders' Sales Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training after selling for $15,000 at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale.
Heading into Saturday's grade 1 test, the grade 3 winner bred by Brushy Hill has a mark of 3-1-3 from 12 starts with earnings of $672,600.
"It's been great working with Saffie," Alonso said. "He's a fairly young guy in this business but he's very professional and he's a straight shooter. He doesn't shoot smoke up your butt. He lets you know what he's thinking and I appreciate that. It's a pleasure working with him," Alonso continued.
Aside from his West Virginia Derby win, Skippylongstocking ran in two legs of the Triple Crown: the Preakness (fifth) and the Belmont Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets (G1), where he was third.
"I can't say enough about Skippylongstocking. We bought him cheap in the sale for $37,000 and he gets better and better and each time we run him, he tries hard," Joseph said. "He was the first horse to place in a classic for me and I'll always remember that, and to see him win the West Virginia Derby, it was such a gratifying moment for everyone, including the horse. He deserved to be a graded stakes winner. You have to appreciate a horse who tries as hard as him. You can't teach that. A horse either has it or it doesn't."
Joseph, who ran White Abarrio in the Kentucky Derby (16th), was also one of just two trainers to have a starter in all three legs of the Triple Crown, joining Ken McPeek. For both trainers, it reflected a bucking of a trend that has made shrinking field size in graded stakes an epidemic at major tracks.
"If the horse is ready, we'll take a chance," Joseph said. "You can't win a race if you are not in it."
Though C2 Racing Stable and La Milagrosa Stable's White Abarrio is coming off a weak seventh in the TVG.com Haskell Stakes (G1), he was second in the Ohio Derby (G3) in his prior start. The gray son of Race Day bred by Spendthrift Farm also provided the trainer with another memorable moment with his Florida Derby score.
"White Abarrio was our first grade 1 winner in Florida. That meant a lot," Joseph said about his $936,150 earner. "That day at the Florida Derby, I remember looking at Charge It (who was second). He was twice as big as White Abarrio. And then you look at the value of the two horses. We bought White Abarrio for $40,000 and before that he sold for $7,500. Charge It is probably worth millions, but that's what's great about racing and what gives everyone hope. You can compete against the elite and win."
As much as winning is now a staple in Joseph's life, it wasn't always that way.
The son of a father and grandfather who were successful trainers in his native Barbados, Joseph began training at the age of 18 and in 2009, at 22, he became the youngest trainer to win the country's Triple Crown.
That success fueled a desire to move to the United States in 2011, though some in his family were against it.
"My dad (Saffie Joseph Sr.) thought it was the wrong move," Joseph said.
After five seasons of toiling in Florida and winning no more than 19 races in a year from 2011-16, Joseph had less than a dozen horses. Most them were family owned and he began to consider returning home.
"I was young and a little crazy when I came to the United States," he said. "I was chasing a dream. I wanted to get to the top. But then you get here and reality sets in. No one knows anything about you. No one cares about you. You have to start all over again. I started with two horses here. It was tough. It took us about seven years to really get going. Some people look at us as an overnight success but they missed all the hard work that has gone into it."
Then he had a fateful discussion with his now 71-year-old father.
"It was the fifth- or sixth-year here and I said to myself 'This doesn't make sense.' We were spending all this money and not getting anywhere. It was time to go back to Barbados. But my dad turned to me and said, 'We can't go back. We've come too far to go back.' It meant so much to me to have that kind of support from my father, who was originally against me coming here, It gave me a lot of confidence. Experience builds character and everything got better after that."
About five years since that talk, Joseph's voice still cracks with emotion as he recalls it. As much as he has risen from obscurity to 10th in North America in earnings last year, he remains humble and still remembers all of the hard work and support that went into it.
It wasn't an easy road to success for Saffie Joseph Jr., but thanks to Math Wizard and the Pennsylvania Derby, he has indeed been able to travel along it.
