Barkley gave his connections a lifetime thrill with his victory in the August 12 Longacres Mile (G3) at Emerald Downs, coming from well off the pace to score his first career graded stakes win.
The 5-year-old has now won stakes over the past four years and has racked up $351,800 in earnings for trainer Howard Belvoir and 90-person strong ownership group of Rising Star Stable III.
Barkley was near the back of the six-horse field for the first five furlongs before hitting his stride. Swinging four wide into the stretch, he rallied between horses to emerge with the lead at the furlong pole, then drew clear late to win by 1 1/2-lengths in 1:34.93.
Barkley was the first foal out of Numero d’Oro, an unraced daughter of Medaglia d’Oro whose dam Numero Uno was a three-time stakes winner of nearly a quarter-million dollars.