During the 2025 season, Pachelbel competed in 17 races, finishing outside the top three only once. Each time this filly, bred by Hoppertunity, raced in Pennsylvania, she earned substantial prize money through her various connections, ultimately leading the state’s money-winning horse rankings following a challenging season. Her total earnings, which included stakes winnings, breeder and sire owner awards, and an owner’s bonus, reached $207,447—well ahead of second-place Carousel Queen’s $187,675.
What stands out about Pachelbel’s earnings—and highlights how horses at nearly any level can thrive in Pennsylvania’s racing program—is that she participated in just one stakes race in 2025. Much of her success as a Pennsylvania-bred was fueled by her consistent competitiveness rather than high-profile stakes victories.
At five years old, Pachelbel spent the entire year racing at Penn National Race Course, competing at least monthly. She started the season with owner CDI Thoroughbreds and trainer Ernesto Padilla Preciado, who sold her for $12,500 in the summer of 2024 after previously purchasing her for $7,500 just three races earlier. In a remarkable turn of events, Hardesty Stables, owned by Michael Day and trained by Michael Moore, claimed Pachelbel for $100,000 in October, marking a spectacular rise in her value and a fantastic return on investment for her connections.
Most of Pachelbel’s races were allowance contests covering distances from six furlongs to a mile. She grabbed her first win of the year at a mile in April, then went on to win four of six subsequent starts, including a commanding 5 1/2-length victory in a seven-furlong allowance race on July 24. After being claimed in October, she quickly made an impact with New Connections, finishing second in the seven-furlong Discotic Stakes within two weeks. She returned a month later to secure her first win for her new owner in a six-furlong claiming allowance race.
Overall, Pachelbel took home five wins from 17 starts in 2025, earning $274,170 on the track—both career highs for starts and earnings—and tied her personal best for wins in a single season.
But that’s only part of the story.
Pachelbel led the 2025 breeder earnings chart, earning $105,911 for breeder Newell Thoroughbreds, who initially bred her as a homebred. Because she’s Pennsylvania-bred, she qualified for a producer award bonus equating to 40% of her in-state race winnings.
She also topped stallion awards at Northview Stallion Station with $26,477. Pennsylvania stallion owners receive a 10% purse bonus for their registered horses finishing in the top three during their first three races within the state.
Completing her earnings trifecta, Pachelbel’s connections claimed the state’s largest owner’s award, totaling $60,208. As a Pennsylvania sire’s progeny, she was eligible for a 40% prize money bonus for finishing in a top-three spot during overnight races at Parks.
Bred in Pennsylvania by Newell Thoroughbreds, Pachelbel is out of the Smarty Jones mare Brilliant Sunshine, who was stakes-placed. Brilliant Sunshine has produced six winners from eight starters, including multiple stakes winner Precious. Pachelbel’s second dam is the G2 stakes winner Tomorrow’s Sunshine.
Pennsylvania’s Leading Incentive Earners in 2025
This article originally appeared in the Paulick Report’s News section on February 3, 2026.
Fan Take:
Pachelbel’s story is a testament to how perseverance and strategic placement within state-bred programs can elevate a racehorse’s value and career. For horse racing enthusiasts, it highlights the growing significance of state-specific incentives in nurturing competitive fields and supporting local breeding programs, ultimately strengthening the sport’s grassroots foundations.
