Worldventurer took advantage of a fast early pace and stormed from behind for a powerful seven-length victory Sunday in the $65,000 Emerald Derby for 3-year-olds at Emerald Downs.

With Julien Couton riding at 122 lbs, Worldventurer ran 1 1/18 miles in 1:49.79 and paid $7.80, $4.60 and $3. Blaine Wright is the trainer for owner Peter Redekop of Langley, B.C.

The victory was the fifth in 15 career starts for the Texas-bred gelding, and the $35,750 pushed his earnings to $263,182. Worldventurer is the fourth different winner in the 3-year-old division*joining Finallygotabentley, Mike Man’s Gold and Music of My Soul*but the Emerald Derby winner has won divisional honors the last eight seasons at Emerald Downs.

A triple stakes winner in Texas, Worldventurer competed in the final three races of the Emerald Downs series, compiling a win and two thirds, and winning the biggest of the four races might sway voters in his favor.

Valiant Flame, a 22-to-1 long shot ridden by Ronald Richard, rallied from last to finish second and paid $22 and $7.60. It was 7 ½ lengths back to Mike Man’s Gold, ridden by Javier Matias at 122, and a $4 show payoff.

Music of My Soul, the 4-to-5 betting favorite, got caught in an early pace duel*:21.80, :44.91, 1:09.98*and faded to a fourth place finish. Botch and Finallygotabentley, the other two horses in the early battle for the lead, finished fifth and sixth.

“It was one of the worst races I’ve ever ridden,” said Enriquez, Music of My Soul’s rider. “I wanted to get the lead but Juan Gutierrez (on Finallygotabentley) wouldn’t give it to me, and we ended up going way too fast.

“You’ve got to have a Plan-B, and I didn’t have one today.”

Music of My Soul became the 16th favorite to lose in the 18 years the Derby has been run at Emerald Downs.

Worldventurer benefited from the slugfest up front, but the gray son of Wimbledon-Better Than Most obviously has plenty of talent.

“The only thing that (Blaine Wright) told me before the race was that this horse didn’t like to be on the inside,” said Couton, a mainstay in Northern California who scored his first Emerald Downs victory. “Obviously they went pretty fast for the lead, so we were able to get out on the backside and get him into a good cruising speed. Hopefully, we can go farther.”

According to Wright, the plan is to ship Worldventurer to the $150,000 B.C. Derby at Hastings Racecourse on Sunday, September 8. Roscoe Pito in 2003 is the last horse to sweep the Emerald Derby and B.C. Derby.

NOTES: 2-year-old filly Charismata ($5) made an impressive winning debut in race three, running 5 ½ furlongs in 1:03.82 for trainer Doris Harwood and owners Ivor & Jack Jones. Harwood has eight 2-year-old wins at the meet (16-8-2-2), six more than any other trainer*In the $20,000 WTBOA Sales Incentive Program Allowance for 2-year-olds sold at the 2012 WTBOA Sale, Stikine Slough ($5) romped to an 18 ¾-length victory in 1:04.23 for 5 ½ furlongs. Ridden by Rocco Bowen for trainer Chris Stenslie and owners One Horse Will Do Corp. & Tina Saxwold, Stikine Slough made amends for a 10th place finish in the July 28 Emerald Express in which he encountered racing trouble and finished 10th as the 9-to-5 betting favorite. The 18 ¾-length winning margin is second largest in track history, exceeded only by a 19-length win by A. Lurie Girl on July 5, 2008*Jockey Anne Sanguinetti had her first three-win day at Emerald Downs, capped by a win aboard Famous Jessica ($9.80) in the 11th race finale*Juan Gutierrez and Eliska Kubinova rode two winners each, and Gutierrez is tied with Isaias Enriquez 74-all atop the jockeys’ standings*With 22 days left in the meet, Frank Lucarelli leads Jeff Metz 32-31 in the trainers’ standings, with Harwood third with 27 wins*Stenslie had three wins Sunday and is fourth with 26 wins*In Sunday’s seventh race, former Emerald Downs’ stakes winners finished first second and third as Our Eagle Boy ($9.60) edged Chu and I for the victory, and He’s All Heart finished third*Ba Snowbound Chick ($19) captured Sunday’s Quarter Horse opener under Leonel Camacho-Flores in :18.32 for 350 yards. Rf Pistol Pete, the 1-to-5 favorite with $4,353 of $5,393 wagered to show, finished fourth, and the $2 show prices were $11.80, $16.40 and $15.60*Live racing resumes Friday with first post6:45 p.m. It’s Longacres Mile week with the 78th running of the Grade 3 Mile set for Sunday, August 18. Entries will be drawnWednesday.