Zia Park Ends Meet With Weekend Thoroughbred Stakes Tripleheader

Hobbs, NM – Dec. 2, 2011 - Zia Park in Hobbs, New Mexico, ends its 50-day season with three Thoroughbred stakes this weekend.

The stakes action gets underway with the $150,000 Zia Park Derby on Saturday. The 1 1/16-mile stakes has drawn six 3-year-olds, including 5-2 morning-line favorite Awesome Bet. A Kentucky-bred colt by Awesome Again owned by Mike McCarty and trained by Steve Asmussen, Awesome Bet has earned $222,990 from 10 starts this season, and his three wins include the $100,000 Barbaro Stakes at Delaware Park on July 9.

Awesome Bet's stakes resume also includes a second-place finish to Prayer For Relief in the 1 1/8-mile, $500,000 Super Derby (G2) at Louisiana Downs on September 10.

Another prominent Zia Park Derby contender, Thirtyfirststreet, won the $200,000 Lone Star Derby on the turf at Lone Star Park on May 30. The California-bred colt by Good Journey races for Mark Gorman, Neil Haymes, and Sterling Stable from the barn of trainer Doug O'Neill.

The complete lineup for the Zia Park Derby, in post position order including jockey assignments and morning-line odds – Hidden Recipe (Ry Eikleberry), 4-1; Happy Toes (Macario Rodriguez), 6-1; Thirtyfirststreet (Alejandro Medellin), 3-1; First Strike (Alfredo Juarez Jr.), 9-2; Awesome Bet (Luis Quinonez), 5-2; and Half Dome Dude (Enrique Gomez), 9-2.

Two Thoroughbred stakes will be contested on closing-day Sunday – the 1-mile, $120,000-added New Mexico Eddy County Stakes for state-bred 2-year-olds, and the 1 1/8-mile, $200,000 Zia Park Distance Championship for 3-year-olds and older.

The New Mexico Eddy County Stakes has attracted 12 entries, including two on the also-eligibles list. Likely favorite That's Who, a homebred Quinton's Gold gelding campaigned by Sam and Latane Stevens of La Mesa, Texas, and trained by Joel Marr, has banked $141,820 from five outs, and his three wins include the 6-furlong New Mexico Cup Juvenile Colts & Geldings Stakes (R) at Zia Park on October 30.

Honshu City, a homebred colt by Fusaichi Zenon (JPN) owned and trained by Susie Byrd, ran second to That's Who in the New Mexico Cup stakes. Honshu City's stakes record includes a neck victory in the 6-furlong, $72,000 George Maloof Futurity (R) for state-breds at The Downs at Albuquerque on September 25.

The complete lineup for the New Mexico Eddy County Stakes, in post position order including jockey assignments – Honshu City (Macario Rodriguez, 122), Mr. Wizard (Joe Martinez, 122), Crusher Lane (Adrian Ramos, 122), Damayorofclowntown (Ry Eikleberry, 122), T.V. Stevie (Ricardo Jaime, 122), Zenon's Star (Casey Lambert, 122), Sapello Larue (Cecilio Penalba, 122), That's Who (Carlos Madeira, 122), E Bar Way (Duane Sterling, 122), Vote Often (Alejandro Medellin, 122), AE-Valet M G (Juan Ochoa, 122), and AE-Deuce Lutui (Jimmy Coates, 119).

Racing Secretary Fred Hutton has assigned Skip A Smile the 122-pound top weight for the Zia Park Distance Championship. The 4-year-old gelding by Skip Away, who races for Rose Mary Chandler and is trained by Steve Asmussen, has won three of his four starts during the Remington Park meet, including the 1 1/8-mile, $100,000 De Bartolo Memorial Handicap on the turf on September 2, and the 1 1/8-mile, $100,000 Governor's Cup Stakes on August 20.

Everest Stables Inc.'s Vamoose, a 4-year-old gelding by Petionville conditioned by Henry Dominguez, has won two of his last three races, including the 1 1/16-mile, $55,000 Veteran Stakes at Zia Park on November 5.

The complete lineup for the Zia Park Distance Championship, in post position order including jockey and weight assignments – Red Lead (Ry Eikleberry, 118), Imco Spirit (IRE) (Miguel Perez, 120), Skip A Smile (Luis Quinonez, 122), Matto Mondo (CHI) (Alejandro Medellin, 119), McKenna's Justice (Miguel Hernandez, 116), Spurrier (Alfredo Juarez Jr., 116), Infinite Resource (Carlos Madeira, 116), Tiz True (Brayan Velazquez, 115), and Vamoose (Enrique Gomez, 121).