Board OKs new fairgrounds casino lease
- Santa Fe, NM - Dec. 21, 2011 - A state board led by
Republican Gov. Susana Martinez approved a new 25-year
lease Tuesday with the Downs at Albuquerque that will
allow the construction of a larger casino at the state
fairgrounds.
Good News for Sunland Park - By Ray
Sanchez - Sunland Park, NM - Dec. 19, 2011 - Friendship
can be a wonderful thing. Just ask Dustin Dix, director
of operations at Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino.
Didericksen, DM Shicago Heading Into Ruidoso Downs Hall
of Fame -
RUIDOSO DOWNS, NM - Dec, 16, 2011 – Five time-champion
jockey Kip Didericksen and Ruidoso Downs’ legendary
racehorse DM Shicago will be inducted into the Ruidoso
Downs Racehorse Hall of Fame during induction ceremonies
in June.
Handle, Purses Increase at Zia Park- by Michael Cusortelli for SureBet - Hobbs,
NM – Dec. 14, 2011 - Zia Park in Hobbs, New Mexico,
posted increases in wagering handle and purses during
its 50-day Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse meet, which
ran September 10-December 4.
Four Sixes Ranch, Heath Taylor Headed Into Ruidoso Hall
of Fame - RUIDOSO DOWNS, New
Mexico (December 13, 2011) – The famed Four Sixes Ranch,
currently owned and operated by Anne Burnett Windfohr
Marion, is the owner/breeder and Heath Taylor is the
trainer to be inducted into the Ruidoso Downs Racehorse
Hall of Fame as part of the 2012 class.
SunRay Park's 2012 stall
applications available; Futurity deadlines near -
Farmington, NM - Dec. 10, 2011 - The 2012 stakes schedule and stall
applications are now available for SunRay Park, in Farmington, NM.
Horsemen are reminded that nominations for the 2012 New
Mexico Breeders' Futurity (RG3) close on Monday, January
2
Sunland looks to ‘competitive, exciting’ season - Sunland Park, NM - Nov. 28, 2011 -
Business wasn’t exactly been overwhelming during the
summer at Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino. In fact,
because of the state of the economy, it’s been what
businessmen like to call “slow.”
State challenges La Mesa appeal of license decision
- Albuquerque, NM - Nov. 17, 2011 - The New Mexico
Racing Commission is asking a Raton judge to dismiss La
Mesa Racetrack and Casino’s appeal of the commission’s
decision that La Mesa’s horseracing license for the
unbuilt racino expired last year.
MJ
Farms Releases Stallion Fees - Nov.
10, 2011 - MJ Farms of Veguita, New Mexico, released
their 2012 stallion roster fee schedule for the 2012
breeding season.
Horsemen Say Problems at The Downs of Albuquerque Must
Be Addressed - Nov. 5, 2011 - The
New Mexico Horsemen’s Association – which represents
about 5,000 licensed racehorse owners, trainers and
grooms – says problems at the Downs of Albuquerque are
hurting horse racing, and that negotiations with any new
lessee should address the problems.
Story of Mine
That Bird Comes Out in Children's Graphic Novels
- 135th KY Derby Winner Story – Just in Time for the
Holidays - Roswell, N.M. – November 4, 2011 – People
say the story of Mine That Bird is the real life story
of “Rocky”, except this “Rocky” has four legs. Against
all odds, the remarkable little horse from Roswell, New
Mexico became the winner of the 2009, 135th Kentucky
Derby. Picked to run dead last, with odds against him at
50:1, Mine That Bird’s victory is the second largest
upset in Kentucky Derby history.
Trainers Fincher, Marr Enjoy Big New Mexico Cup Days
- Hobbs, NM – Oct. 30, 3011 - Trainers Todd Fincher and
Joel Marr each saddled the winners of three Thoroughbred
races during Sunday's 11-race New Mexico Cup Day program
at Zia Park.
Champion Ketel Won to A&A Ranch -
ANTHONY, NM—OCTOBER 29, 2011—Three-time champion Ketel
Won will stand the 2012 season at A & A Ranch, near
Anthony, New Mexico.
Attila's Storm Relocated to A & A Ranch
- Oct. 28, 2011 - Attila's Storm has moved from Jim and
Marilyn Helzer’s JEH Stallion Station-New Mexico
Division near Hondo to Fred and Linda Alexander’s A & A
Ranch near Anthony.
State-bred racing remains strong in New Mexico
- Albuquerque, NM - Oct. 28,2011 - Albuquerque, NM -
Oct. 28,2011 - New Mexico Horse Breeders’
Association executive director Anna Fay Davis presented
to the New Mexico Racing Commission on October 27th, her
race-a-day reports for Zia Park and The Downs at
Albuquerque.
Audit
says Fair in the Red -
Santa Fe, NM. — Oct. 21, 2011 - The New
Mexico State Fair is running in the red and doesn't have
enough money to finance day-to-day operations, according
to a new audit that prompted legislators on Thursday to
question whether taxpayers should be subsidizing the
fair. Auditors for the Legislative Finance Committee
said the fair has been losing money for years as
revenues and fair attendance dropped, but it has
continued to operate because it's not paying some debts.
This year's fair ended last month.
Martin encounters delays in rehab
- Houston, TX - Oct. 20, 2011 - This was to have been
their Christmas "away." - Hall of Fame quarter horse
jockey Jacky Martin and his wife/agent Tracey, a former
jockey, had purchased a creek-side log cabin outside
Ruidoso, N.M.
Bachelor Blues to Hourigan Horse Farm
- Anthony, NM - Sept. 28, 2011 - Grade II winner
Bachelor Blues will stand the 2012 breeding season at
Chris and Tina Hourigan’s farm near Anthony, N.M. The
10-year-old son of champion sprinter Smoke Glacken out
of the El Prado mare Wedding Day Blues will stand for
$1,200.
Two groups vie for multimillion-dollar casino at Expo
New Mexico - Albuquerque, NM - Sept.
26, 2011 - The Albuquerque Journal reports the Downs at
Albuquerque and Laguna Development Corp. have submitted
proposals. Downs has leased more than one-third of Expo
New Mexico's 236-acre fairgrounds since 1985 for its
racetrack and casino.
Sunland Park Releases Lucrative 2011-12 Stakes Schedule
- Sept. 18, 2011 - Sunland Park has released its
Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse stakes schedules and
first condition book for its 2011-12 meet, which opens
on December 6.
Sunland Park will run 55 stakes – 35 for Thoroughbreds
and 20 for Quarter Horses – worth more than $5.7 million
in purses.
G1
Sire Quick Action to New Mexico -
BOSQUE, NM—Sept. 13, 2011—Quick Action (TB), sire of
2010 Los Alamitos Two Million winner One Quick First
Down, will stand the 2012 season at TNL Farm, Inc. near
Bosque, New Mexico.
After receiving input from its Medication
Committee, the New Mexico Racing Commission has
announced that it will resume testing of Aminocaproic
Acid. If the presence of this drug is detected in a
sample provided by a racehorse, the trainer may be
charged with a penalty assessed with a Class 4 drug.
Interior again rejects Jemez casino project in Anthony,
New Mexico -
Sept. 10, 2011 - The proposed Jemez Indian gaming casino
in Anthony, N.M., has again become an idea too far away
– literally – as a federal official again rejected the
pueblo’s application for an off-reservation casino.
Long-term, Tax Deductible Fund For Jacky Martin Through
Chaplaincy -
RUIDOSO DOWNS, NM - Sept. 10, 2011 — A long-term,
tax-deductible fund, called the Jacky Martin Fund, has been
established through the Ruidoso Downs Racetrack Chaplaincy
to aid paralyzed jockey Jacky Martin.
Zia Park Meet Opens Saturday
- Hobbs, NM - Sept. 9, 2011 - Zia Park opens its 53-day
meet with an 11-race program on Saturday with purse
increases. Officials said Thursday that all overnight
purses would be boosted 5 percent heading into the
50-date season for Thoroughbreds and Quarter Horses that
runs through Dec. 4. The move puts average daily purses,
including stakes, at a record $285,000 a program.
Llano
Teller, Quiet Again Ruidoso Horses of the Meet
- RUIDOSO DOWNS, NM - Sept. 8, 2011 - Two-time grade 1
derby winner Llano Teller has been named Quarter Horse
of the meet and Free Spirit Handicap winner Quiet Again,
who was also second in the Ruidoso Thoroughbred
Championship, has been named Thoroughbred of the meet at
Ruidoso Downs.
Court halts license process for NM track
- Sept. 7 2011 - Quay County’s effort to land the
state’s last racing license was halted Friday when Raton
District Judge John Paternoster granted an injunction to
La Mesa, the original license holder.
Hubbard All American Theater and Exhibit Open
- AMARILLO, TX—AUGUST 30, 2011—The R.D. and Joan Dale
Hubbard All American Futurity Theater and Exhibit opened
in August at the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame &
Museum in Amarillo, Texas. It includes a dynamic exhibit
with unique All American Futurity memorabilia, including
photos, silks and trophies, as well as a theater which
features documentaries of past All American Futurities.
Everyday Heroes to Stand in Roswell, New Mexico
- Roswell, NM - August 27, 2011 - Grade III stakes
winner Everyday Heroes has been retired from racing and
will enter stud at Dr. Kevin Blach’s South Springs
Stallion Station in Roswell, N.M.
Zia Park readies for September 10th opener
- Hobbs, NM, August 20, 2011 - With the sixth
year of racing set to open on September 10, the track
surface at Zia Park has been undergoing renovations to
maintain it's quality and safety.
City
eyes possible racino options -
Raton, NM - Aug. 13, 2011 - The City of Raton is asking
the New Mexico Racing Commission to extend the deadline
for applications to be submitted for the state’s sixth
and final horseracing license. The request comes as a
court battle continues between the racing commission and
the developer of a proposed racino in south Raton,
reported the Raton Range.
New
Mexico says $3 million for Baltimore slots license
should be returned - August 4, 2011
- The Baltimore Sun reported Wednesday that the Lawyers
working for the New Mexico attorney general's office say
the money paid in support of Canadian developer Michael
Moldenhauer's bid came from proceeds of an alleged
pay-to-play scheme involving the son of a friend of
former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson.
Sam
Thompson Memorial Jockey Award To Be Presented at
Ruidoso Downs - RUIDOSO DOWNS, New
Mexico (July 29, 2011) —The presentation of the first
annual Sam Thompson Memorial Jockey Award on is an
addition to All American Derby Day on Sunday, September
4th at Ruidoso Downs.
Chalmers Group Applies for 6th Racino
- Albuquerque, NM - July 21, 2011 - A group of investors
headed by Albuquerque businessman Don Chalmers has filed
an application to operate the state’s sixth racino.
Rehabilitation
for the
White
Fire
burn
area
conducted
while
horses
go about
their
morning
rituals.
Dropping
straw as
cover
for the
reseeding
of the
mountain
behind
Ruidoso
Downs.
Casino
could be losing bet for NMSU - LAS
CRUCES, NM - July 4, 2011 - New Mexico State University
is reviewing the possible financial impacts of a revived
proposal for an off-reservation casino in Anthony, N.M.,
a university official confirmed last week.
Silver For Me, Mighty B Valiant Head Stellar Rainbow
Futurity Trials – Ruidoso Futurity
winner Silver For Me and Remington Park Futurity winner
Mighty B Valiant, two of the top-four ranked
two-year-olds in quarter horse racing, head the 219
hopefuls entered to race in the 22 trials to the Grade
1, $700,000 Rainbow Futurity on Friday at Ruidoso Downs.
Special 10 a.m. first post!
NMHBA Supports Letter-Writing Campaign
- Albuquerque, NM - June 29, 2011 - The New Mexico Horse
Breeders' Association would like its members to send
letters to Governor Susana Martinez opposing the Jemez
Pueblo's plan to build an off-reservation casino in
Anthony, about 20 miles north of Sunland Park Racetrack
and Casino.
Sunland Park ‘Gateway to Greatness’- June 21, 2011 - Sunland Park Racetrack and
Casino has a new slogan: “Gateway to Greatness”
And boy, does it fit. Think of it, horses that ran in
the Sunland Derby recently have gone on to win the
Kentucky Derby (Mine That Bird in 2009) and the Belmont
Stakes (Ruler On Ice this year) and finish third in the
Preakness (Astrology this year). Those three races make
up the Triple Crown.
A
helicopter completes a straw drop near Ruidoso Downs on
Saturday during the racing action. Straw mulch is being
dropped on 1,800 acres of the White Fire burn area in an
effort to rehabilitate the forest. Those 1,800 acres are
part of 5,900 acres that have been seeded. The straw
mulch will encourage seed germination while reducing
water erosion during the upcoming summer monsoon season.
The White Fire burned 10,500 acres and destroyed five
homes on April 3. Ruidoso Downs photo by
Gay Harris
Racehorse Hall of Fame Ceremony -
RUIDOSO DOWNS, NM - June 18, 2011 – Peppers Pride,
trainer John Bassett, jockey Jerry Burgess,
owner/breeder Johnny T.L. Jones Jr. were inducted into
the Racehorse Hall of Fame and publisher Ben Hudson was
honored with the first Ruidoso Downs Racehorse Hall of
Fame Special Recognition Award before the all-time
largest attendance for the enshrinement evening at
Ruidoso Downs on Friday night.
Jockey Chapa Reinstated -
Albuquerque, NM - June 13, 2011 - Roman Chapa who was
suspended for five years in 2007 for possession of an
electrical device has been reinstated to ride by the New
Mexico Racing Commission on a probationary basis.
Courtney Darnell Dies, Mass set for June 9
- Courtney Marie Darnell died when a tree fell on her
car during a storm. She was 25. At the time of the
accident, Courtney was preparing to take a vacation to
Hawaii and had just dropped off her pets with her
parents, racehorse trainers Cliff and Cindy Darnell. She
would have turned 26 on Saturday, June 11.
Ruidoso Futurity & Derby webcasts- June
8, 2011 - SureBet
Racing News will be taking you onsite with Tom Dawson as
your host, for the first leg of the “2011 All American
Triple Crown Series” from Ruidoso Downs Racetrack &
Casino beginning Friday morning.
Update on Jockey Ricky Ramirez's Injury -Farmington, NM - June 6, 2011 - As of
midnight on Sunday morning, jockey Ricky Ramirez was
listed in serious condition at San Juan Regional Medical
Center in Farmington.
Local Business groups endorse plan for Anthony casino- Las Cruces, NM - "This process
isn't a popularity contest," said Scott Scanland. "I
guess this is their appreciation of a business that's
been providing jobs and taxes for 50 years in Dona Ana
County. I guess this is the way they say 'thank you' to
that," he said, referring to the Sunland Park operation.
The Downs at Albuquerque has released its stakes
schedule for its 54-day meet -
The Downs at Albuquerque will run 34
stakes worth more than $1.3 million in purses. As in
recent years, the highlight of the track's stakes
schedule will be Lineage Day on August 21, during which
11 stakes for New Mexico-bred Thoroughbreds and Quarter
Horses will be run. Purses for Lineage Day will total
nearly $500,000.
OMER’S SCRATCH: MURPHY’S LAW IN FULL BLOOM - By
PETE HERRERA - Maybe all the fuss of the past year is
because Bernadine Creager’s family has been in horse
racing for more than 40 years, and she realizes that
part of her life is drawing to a close.
La Mesa requests injunction to stop racing commission
- ALBUQUERQUE, NM - June 2, 2011 - La Mesa Racetrack and
Casino on Wednesday, June 1, 2011, filed for an
injunction in district court, asking the court to stop
the New Mexico Racing Commission from giving away its
license to another racetrack operator.
> Sunland Park, received approvals for a 77-date
mixed meet for Thoroughbreds and Quarter Horses during a
recent meeting of the New Mexico Racing Commission. The
season will open Dec. 6, 2011 and run through April 17,
2012.
World Record Holder Valiant War
Hero Tops Entrants To Ruidoso
Futurity Trials
- Valiant War Hero makes his
first start since setting a
world record while winning the
Grade 1, $253,004 West Texas
Futurity when he heads the
201entrants in the 21 trials to
the Grade 1, $500,000 Ruidoso
Futurity on Friday, the opening
day of the summer season at
Ruidoso Downs.
Record-Setting Ruidoso Derby Field To Be Set On Saturday
at Ruidoso Downs - RUIDOSO DOWNS, NM
(May 23, 2011) – Champion American Runaway makes his
3-year-old debut on Saturday at Ruidoso Downs when he
attempts to qualify for the Grade 1, $702,648 Ruidoso
Derby, the all-time richest running of the 400-yard
event.
Early Indications For Strong Summer Season at Ruidoso
Downs- RUIDOSO DOWNS, NM - May 18, 2011
– On the heels of 195 aspiring juveniles racing in the
first schooling races at Ruidoso Downs last week and
record-setting purses forecast for this summer’s major
races, the first indications are for another strong
summer season at Ruidoso Downs that starts on May 27.
QH
Noticias Launch - SureBet Racing
News, May 17, 2011 - On May 27th SureBet Racing News
will launch a sister website for Spanish-speaking
Quarter Horse racing horsemen, breeders and fans. The
address for this new site is
www.qhnoticias.com
. There is no membership fee, and the site is free for
everyone to visit.
BROOKSTONE BAY - By Michael Cusortelli -
Brookstone Bay didn't need much time to establish
himself as a top-notch sire of racing American Quarter
Horses.
Trainer Bobby Dan Crenshaw Dies -
RUIDOSO DOWNS, NM - May 13, 2011 – Trainer and former
professional football player Bobby Dan Crenshaw of
Carrizozo died on Wednesday after a prolonged battle
with pancreatic cancer. He was 67.
Racino
Applicant's Get Ready - ALBUQUERQUE,
NM - May 13, 2011 - Game on. Again. And to all
interested parties, a word of advice. Start getting all
of your ducks lined up. That was the message the New
Mexico Racing Commission put forth Thursday in
announcing it would begin accepting applications next
month for the state’s remaining racino license.
SunRay
Park and Casino Thriving in The Four Corners
- Special report by Martha Claussen - The 2011 live
Mixed Meet is off and running at SunRay Park and Casino
in Farmington, N.M. Well before opening day on Saturday,
April 23, improvements to both the facility and
racetrack surface were a top priority.
Ruidoso Downs Training Races Attract 195 Aspiring
Juveniles - RUIDOSO DOWNS, NM - May
5, 2011 – Some of the future stars of the upcoming
futurity season at Ruidoso Downs are undoubtedly among
the 195 2-year-old quarter horses who entered three days
of training races to be held on Monday through Wednesday
at the mountain track.
Full Kentucky Derby and Oaks Wagering, Numerous
Promotions Set For Ruidoso Downs -
RUIDOSO DOWNS, New Mexico (May 1, 2011) – Fans will get
as close to the $2,000,000 Kentucky Derby and the
$1,000,000 Kentucky Oaks action as they are allowed
without being at Churchill Downs by coming to Ruidoso
Downs and the Billy The Kid Casino on Friday and
Saturday.
Horses
test out new surface at RDRT - Horses
had the first opportunity on Friday morning to set foot
on the newly renovated racing surface at Ruidoso Downs.
Racing returns for the summer season at Ruidoso Downs on
May 27 with the daylong trials to the Grade 1, $500,000
Ruidoso Futurity. The racing season culminates on Labor
Day with the Grade 1 $2,400,000 (est.) All American
Futurity, the world’s richest Quarter Horse race.
- Photo by Gay Harris
MCGRAIL’S
PASSION FOR HORSE RACING STARTED EARLY - Special
Report by PETE HERRERA - ALBUQUERQUE, NM - April 29,
2011 - Horse racing has always been part of the package
in Jack McGrail’s life. While still in high school,
McGrail was at the 1973 Belmont to witness Secretariat’s
historic 31-length win that wrapped up his Triple Crown
run.
SureBet named finalist in American Horse Publications
2011 Annual Awards Competition
- APRIL 29, 2011 – SureBet Racing News has been named a
finalist in the prestigious American Horse Publications
2011 Annual Awards Competition in the Equine Website
category. Sixty-nine American Horse Publications members
were named finalists in the 2011 AHP Annual Awards
Contest for material published in and dated 2010.
Participation in this year’s contest represented 118 AHP
members and 839 entries. Held since 1974, the AHP Annual
Awards Contest provides members with an opportunity to
be recognized for excellence in equine publishing.
Lawmakers seek drug ban - WASHINGTON
DC - April 29, 2011 - A bipartisan pair of lawmakers is
seeking a national ban on performance-enhancing drugs in
horse racing, calling for a federal role in a sport that
lacks uniform standards. Under the legislation by
Sen. Tom Udall, D-N.M., and Rep. Ed Whitfield, R-Ky.,
any person with three violations of the prohibition
would be permanently banned from horse racing.
Borel to ride Sunland Park Derby winner Twice the Appeal
- April 27, 2011 - Jockey Calvin Borel, winner of the
Kentucky Derby three of the past four years, has found
his way into the Run for the Roses again this year
aboard Twice the Appeal winner of the $800,000 Sunland
Park Derby G3.
April 26, 2011 - AQHA Update:
The 2-year-old gelding Valiant War Hero has officially
set a world record for 300 yards. He covered the
distance in :14.594 while winning the West Texas
Futurity (G1). The time was evaluated and made official
by the AQHA racing department.
Moving
In for the summer - Ruidoso, NM - April
26, 2011 - These horses from the Blane and Trey Wood
stables are among the horses moving into the Ruidoso
Downs stable area this week. The track opens for
training on Friday and the summer season begins with
Ruidoso Futurity trials on May 27. Trey Wood trains the
nation’s top-ranked 2-year-old quarter horse and the
main contender for the Grade 1, $500,000 Ruidoso
Futurity Valiant War Hero. The Valiant Hero son set a
pending 300-yard world record of :14.594 in the West
Texas Futurity at Sunland Park on April 17.
Photo by Ty Wyant
The
2010-11 Sunland ends with a bang, keeps eye on Kentucky
- By Felix Chavez - Sunland Park, NM - April 25, 2011 -
By Ray Sanchez - Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino wound
up one of its most exciting, if not most profitable,
live racing seasons with a bang, treating horsemen to
more than half a million dollars in purses the last
three days.
DAVID
LIDBERG: FROM THE SHOW TO HEARTBREAK TO
ADDICTION - Special report by PETE HERRERA - David
Lidberg had been to the show. He’d ridden winners from
Santa Anita to Aqueduct.
At 19, he was rubbing silks with Hall of Famers Willie
Shoemaker, Mike Smith and Chris McCarron. In a 1983 Life
Magazine article that focused on the lives of jockeys at
Santa Anita, there’s a full-page photo of the apprentice
Lidberg sitting on a tack box, waiting for his next ride
at one of America’s most famous ovals.
Setting a new trend at SunRay -
April 22, 2011 - Bucking the national trend of a sport
supposedly in decline, a new season of racing brings
another season of optimism at SunRay Park and Casino.
The new season of live thoroughbred and quarter horse
racing opens Saturday for 48 days, running Saturdays
through Tuesdays until July 12.
Desert
God A legend in his own time - by
Michael Cusortelli - The well-bred son of Fappiano was
New Mexico’s top sire in 2010, as stallions go, Desert
God has established himself as a legend in New Mexico
and throughout the Southwest.
That legend was solidified, in large part, by Peppers
Pride. Part of Desert God's 10th foal crop in 2003, the
mare brought status to her sire – as well as to New
Mexico racing – when she won 19 consecutive races and
earned more than $1 million from 2005 to 2008.
CROSS
BORDER RELATIONS - special report by Tom Dawson
Parts of West Texas and Southern New Mexico are
separated only by geographical anomalies.
In fact, Sunland Park Race Track and Casino lies in just
such area. Without a sign to alert the traveler, it is
impossible to know when passing between one and the
other. So maybe it is no surprise that a race named the
West Texas Futurity flourishes in New Mexico.
Sunland Park names top horses of the meet
- Sunland Park - April 20, 2011 - Sunland Park Racetrack
and Casino boasted an increasingly competitive horse
field when other tracks have seen their fields reduced
and depleted, continuing a wave of success for the
2010-2011 season.
Raton Regroups, primary goal is to see horse racing
return - Special By PETE HERRERA -
ALBUQUERQUE, NM - April 14, 2011 - The Raton ``Red
Shirts’’ were back, a clear message that they haven’t
given up on the idea of horse racing returning to the
northeast New Mexico community. Some two dozen Raton residents and civic
leaders attended Thursday’s New Mexico Racing Commission
meeting in hopes of influencing the governing body to
select Raton for the state’s sixth and final racino.
Racing
History Speaks - Special report by
Ty Wyant - Tucked away in computer hard drives and
illuminated in displays are the tales that make racing
memorable.
These stories are in the Racehorse
Hall of Fame at Ruidoso Downs and are available to
anyone who cares to listen. The Racehorse Hall of Fame
is open during racing hours throughout the summer and
during regular business hours during the Ruidoso Downs
offseason. There is no admission charge.
Jesse James Jr Gets First Stakes Winner
- Veguita, NM - April 10, 2011 - The Mr Jess Perry
stallion Jesse James Jr got his first stakes winner on
Sunday when his son Osbaldo captured the $248,491 New
Mexican Spring Futurity (RG2) at Sunland Park. The colt
earned $116,791 for breeder/owner Hubaldo Solis to vault
to the top of the list of Jesse James Jr’s progeny.
NEW MEXICO JOCKEYS RECEIVE INCREASE - April 7,
2011 - The Jockeys’ Guild and the New Mexico Horsemen’s
Association have reached an agreement on a new mount fee
schedule that will provide an increase in base mount
fees for jockeys at all New Mexico tracks. India Hatch,
the executive director of the New Mexico Racing
Commission, has temporarily approved the agreement. The
new scale is to go into effect on April 8, 2011 and then
the full Commission is to ratify the new scale during
its April Commission meeting.
RDRT Casino Reopens, Track Ready For Opener -
RUIDOSO DOWNS, New Mexico (April 4, 2011) –
The Billy The Kid Casino has reopened and Ruidoso Downs
is ready for horses to move into the stable area on
April 25 after the 6,500-acre White Fire burned adjacent
to the track property on Sunday.
Peppers Pride Produces Distorted Humor Filly
- March 31, 2011 - The pride of New Mexico, Peppers
Pride, who retired undefeated with 19 wins, produced her
first live foal, a chestnut Distorted Humor filly, in
February.
Training Races Set For May at Ruidoso Downs
- RUIDOSO DOWNS, New Mexico (March 28, 2011) – Training
races for 2-year olds are being scheduled at Ruidoso
Downs to support horsemen preparing prospects for the
summer season at Ruidoso Downs that begins with trials
to the Grade 1, $500,000 Ruidoso Futurity on May 27.
NEW
COMMISSIONERS MUST TACKLE OLD PROBLEMS - Special
Report By Pete Herrera - ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - March 25,
2011 - The four new members of the New Mexico Racing
Commission have had to hit the ground running.
What are Tucumcari’s chances of getting this racing
license? Tucumcari, NM - March 9,
2011 - The Quay County Sun spoke with Warren Frost, Quay
County Gaming Authority director, by phone Monday. Frost
discussed the upcoming application process for New
Mexico’s last racing license.
Stakes Schedule
Unveiled For Ruidoso Summer Season
- RUIDOSO DOWNS, NM - Feb. 28, 2011 –
The Grade 1, $2,400,000 (est.) All
American Futurity – the richest race in
quarter horse racing – highlights the
stakes schedule for the 60-day summer
season at Ruidoso Downs.
42-1 long shot
Golden Springs wins $50,000 Island
Fashion Stakes,
Trainer Joyce Salisbury saddles
first and third place finishers -
February 27, 2011 - Trainer Joyce
Salisbury hit pay dirt on Sunday by
finishing first and third in the $50,000
Island Fashion Stakes at Sunland Park
Racetrack and Casino. Her Golden Springs
posted a huge upset win at odds of 42-1.
- Tommie Morelos / Coady Photography
Fusa
Code breaks maiden in $100,000
Borderland Derby Win
- Sunland Park, NM - February 26, 2011 -
Fusa Code broke his maiden in style with
a driving win in the $100,000 Borderland
Derby at Sunland Park Racetrack and
Casino on Saturday.
Javier Morelos / Coady Photography
NM Racing
Commission: Mr. Moldenhauer, You Have No
License -
Special Report by PETE HERRERA -
ALBUQUERQUE, NM - Feb. 24, 2011 -
Canadian investor Michael Moldenhauer no
longer has a license to build the La
Mesa racetrack and casino in Raton.
Ruidoso Downs
changes to race days
- Albuquerque, NM - Feb. 24, 2011 -
Ruidoso Downs will race on a Friday
through Monday schedule for the 60-day
season that starts on May 27.
Sunland Park, NM - February 23, 2011
- The 5-year-old gelding
Wcrseperateandcool set a world record at
330 yards on February 6. Racing at
Sunland Park, the horse lowered the mark
to :15.951. The race, the third on the
card, was a $12,500 claiming race for 4
year olds and up that were non-winners
of three races.
PHOTO: Tommie Morelos/Coady Photography
Stel Gone Corona
wins $120,000 NMHBA Quarter Horse Stakes
- February 20, 2011 - Stel
Gone Corona won his fourth straight race
en route to a narrow victory in the
$120,000 NMHBA Quarter Horse Stakes at
Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino on
Sunday. The big strapping son of Stel
Corona held sway by a head over Docs
Famous Dash in a blanket finish.
- Lisa Dominguez / Coady Photography
Racino Promoter
takes case to Court of Appeals
- ALBUQUERQUE, NM - Feb. 19, 2011 - The
state's sixth horse track may start live
races this year, but it may not be in
Raton. That's according to a
recommendation from a New Mexico Racing
Commission hearing officer, who said in
a report released last week that
commissioners might want to look at
other sites for horseracing.
La Sorpresa upsets
Cali Baby to win $100,000 Sydney
Valentini Handicap - Sunland Park, NM - February
19, 2011 - Under an expert ride from
leading jockey Alejandro Medellin, La
Sorpresa rocketed past heavily favored
Cali Baby en route to her second
straight win in the $100,000 Sydney
Valentini Handicap at Sunland Park
Racetrack and Casino on Saturday.
Tommie Morelos / Coady Photography
Sunland Challenge Nomination Payment
Dates Changed - February 14, 2011 -
The nomination payment deadlines for two
upcoming Bank of America Racing
Challenge races at Sunland Park have
changed.
The $200 nomination
payment and $600 sustaining payments for
the Bank of America Sunland Championship
Challenge (G2) are now due March 1st.
The $110,000-added race will host trials
on March 26, with the final on April 10.
The $200 nomination
payment and $600 sustaining payments for
the the Red Cell Sunland Distance
Challenge (G3) are now due February
22nd. The $55,000-added race will host
trials, if necessary, March 19 with the
final on April 3.
For more
information, or to submit payment, call
the Challenge hotline at (877) 222-7223.
NM Racing
Commission, Gaming Control Board
consolidation bill tabled
- Santa Fe, NM - Feb. 16, 2011 -
Although there's been much talk during
the past two years about consolidating
and reorganizing various state
government departments, legislation to
accomplish that hasn't fared well in
this legislative session.
Quiet
Again controls pace and wins $50,000
Curribot Stakes
- Sunland Park, NM -
February 13, 2011 - Under a very
conservative tempo, Quiet Again
controlled the pace and drove home a
determined one-length winner in the
$50,000 Curribot Stakes at Sunland Park
Racetrack and Casino on Sunday. Jockey
Ken Tohill allowed Quiet Again to stroll
down the backstretch in fractions of
25.29 and 49.54 seconds for the first
quarter and half mile. His mount built
up a large reservoir of energy and was
ready for any challenge.-
Lisa Dominguez / Coady Photography
Hayley’s
Halo toys with rivals in $50,000 El
Diario Stakes - Sunland Park, NM - February 12, 2011 -
Arguably the best four-year-old filly in
New Mexico, Hayley’s Halo toyed with her
rivals in the $50,000 El Diario Stakes
at Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino on
Saturday. Under a measured ride from
Alejandro Medellin, the pair sped clear
in deep stretch to win by two
comfortable lengths.Tommie Morelos / Coady Photography
La
Mesa racing license gone; Report makes
recommendations to try to help solve
impasse - Feb
12, 2011 - The developer of a planned
horseracing track and slot-machine
casino in south Raton no longer holds a
racing license and if the New Mexico
Racing Commission considers any request
from that developer for a new one, it
should have an independent investigation
done to determine whether the proposal
“is realistic in its scope and is
financially feasible,” a hearing officer
has concluded.
SunRay
Park Racino Managers Watch Competitors Farmington, NM - Feb. 7, 2011 - When
Flowing Water Navajo Casino in Hogback
opened last October, its nearest
competitor, SunRay Park and Casino,
barely batted an eye.
The 11-year-old
racino, situated about 25 miles east and
on the opposite side of Farmington from
Flowing Water, has far more slot
machines and a horse racing track.
But the Navajos' planned $50 million
Northern Edge Navajo Casino, set to
break ground this month just west of
Farmington, has definitely been on
SunRay managers' minds.
Wiredfortwotwenty
surges to win $50,000 Budweiser Stakes
- Sunland Park, NM - February 5, 2011 -
Under a well timed ride from jockey
Isaias Enriquez, the classy
Wiredfortwotwenty surged in deep stretch
to claim a powerful 2 and 3/4 length win
in the $50,000 Budweiser Stakes at
Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino on
Saturday. Tommie Morelos / Coady Photography
Sunny Edwards Dies
- Big Springs, TX -
February 1, 2011 - W.L. “Sunny” Edwards,
94, died January 31, at his home in Big
Spring, Texas. A former president of Ruidoso Downs,
Edwards raced stakes winners such as
Sheswright, an earner of $109,258 who
ran in Easy Date’s All American
Futurity, and Bar Forth, who won a
division of the Ruidoso 550 Championship
and contested the finals of the Grade 1
Kansas Futurity, Kansas Derby, World’s
Championship Classic and All American
Gold Cup.
Strike
It Quick cruises in $50,000 KOFX – Radio
Handicap [G3]
- Sunland Park, NM - Jan. 29, 2011 -
Strike It Quick turned on the jets early
and cruised home a powerful winner in
the $50,000 KOFX – Radio Handicap (Grade
3) at Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino
on Saturday. - Tommie
Morelos / Coady Photography
Track
Renovation Underway At Ruidoso Downs For
Summer Season
- RUIDOSO DOWNS, NM - Jan. 28, 2011 – An
intensive renovation of the Ruidoso
Downs racing surface is underway on the
seven-eighths mile thoroughbred oval and
the 550-yard quarter horse chute under
the supervision of Ruidoso Downs vice
president of racing and facilities Les
Nichols and renowned international track
consultant Dennis Moore. - photo by Ty Wyant
Jockey Alejandro
Medellin fulfills prediction
- Sunland Park, NM - Jan.
27, 2010 - When Alejandro Medellin was a
youth growing up in Mexico City, his
grandfather Antonio Herrera always said
he believed his grandson would be a
jockey some day.
Angel
At Home wins $50,000 El Paso Times
Stakes - Sunland
Park, NM - January 23, 2011 - Angel At
Home poured on the pressure late to win
the $50,000 El Paso Times Stakes by a
neck over Paloma Mesa at Sunland Park
Racetrack and Casino on Sunday.
- Tommie Morelos / Coady
Photography
19-1
Beau Wizer sparks upset win in $120,000
Pepsi Cola Stakes
- Sunland Park, NM - January 22, 2011 -
Dismissed at 19-1 odds, Beau Wizer held
on in the final jumps to spark an upset
win in the $120,000 Pepsi Cola Stakes on
Saturday at Sunland Park Racetrack and
Casino. - Tommie Morelos/
Coady Photography
La Mesa
Park appeal hearing cancelled;
ruling planned -
Jan 17, 2011 - This week’s
appeal hearing regarding the
revoked La Mesa Racetrack and
Casino gaming license was
cancelled last week as the
hearing officer announced he
plans to first make a ruling on
a motion for summary judgment
earlier filed by the New Mexico
Gaming Control Board.
Shamrock
Girl takes $120,000 La Senora Stakes at
Sunland Park -
Sunland Park, NM - January 15, 2011 -
Shamrock Girl burst through the pack and
rolled to a strong 1-length victory in
the $120,000 La Senora Stakes at Sunland
Park Racetrack and Casino on Saturday.
Under jockey Agapito Delgadillo, the
three-year-old New Mexico-bred filly
powered her way to her second career
stakes win. - Javier
Morelos / Coady Photography
All American Derby
Supplemental Deadline February 1st
- RUIDOSO DOWNS, NM -
Jan.
14, 2011 – The only opportunity to
supplement to the 2011 runnings of the
All American Derby, Rainbow Derby and
the Ruidoso Derby at Ruidoso Downs
before the time-of-entry supplement is
on February 1.
Racing Exhibit
Coming to AQHA Museum
- Jan. 10, 2011 - The R.D. and Joan Dale
Hubbard Foundation makes a comprehensive
racing exhibit possible at the American
Quarter Horse Hall of Fame & Museum.
Noconi is 25th
Supreme Race Horse
- AQHA -
Jan.
10, 2011 - Champion Noconi is the 25th
racing American Quarter Horse since 1983
to earn the distinction of American
Quarter Horse Association Supreme Race
Horse.
Jockey agent Kathy
Bui, connects trainers, jockeys
- SUNLAND PARK, N.M. -
Jan.
9 , 2011 - Kathy Bui has known horse
racing all her life, so it is no
surprise that she is so good at her
current profession -- jockey agent.
Black
Hills defends $50,000 Winsham Lad Stakes
title in track record time
- Sunland Park, NM - January 8, 2011 -
With just one recent race under his
belt, Black Hills successfully defended
his title in the $50,000 Winsham Lad
Stakes at Sunland Park Racetrack and
Casino on Saturday. -
Tommie Morelos/ Coady Photography
All American
Triple Crown Nominations Due on January
15 for 2010 Foals -
RUIDOSO DOWNS, NM -
Jan.
7, 2011 – The nomination deadline for
the 2012 All American Triple Crown ‑
comprised of the All American, Rainbow
and Ruidoso futurities ‑ quickly
approaches on January 15 at Ruidoso
Downs.
NM Racing
Officials investigating mix-up
- special report by Pete Herrera -
SUNLAND PARK, NM - Jan. 6, 2011 - New
Mexico racing officials are
investigating a case of the wrong horse
being allowed to run in a claiming race
at Sunland Park.
Strike
It Quick Flies To Record
- by Ty Wyant - Sunland Park, NM -
December 30, 2010 - Strike It Quick,
owned by Jesse Hernandez Consulting
Inc., set an unofficial world record of
:16.642 for 350 yards when he won the
$40,000 Rio Grande Dash at Sunland Park
on Thursday afternoon. - Tommie Morelos / Coady Photography
Jannas
Pride powers to victory in $120,000 Red
Hedeman Mile
- Sunland Park, NM - December 30, 2010 -
Jannas Pride overwhelmed his rivals with
a powerful late move to gain a popular
victory in the $120,000 Red Hedeman Mile
at Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino on
Thursday. - Tommie Morelos / Coady Photography
NM Fair Commission
cancels meeting over
racetrack - ALBUQUERQUE,
N.M. - Dec. 29, 2010 -The
commission has canceled a
Wednesday meeting to
consider a new lease for the
track at the state
fairgrounds in Albuquerque,
known as Expo New Mexico.The New Mexico State Fair
Commission says it will
leave a decision to the administration
of Gov. elect Susana
Martinez, who takes office
with the new year.
Whathaveigottado
wins $138,471 Sunland Park Winter Quarter Horse
Derby (G2) - Sunland
Park, NM - December 29, 2010 - Under red hot jockey
Jacky Martin, Whathaveigottado powered away to a
scintillating half-length victory in the $138,471
Sunland Winter Quarter Horse Derby (Grade 2) at
Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino on Wednesday.
- Tommie Morelos / Coady Photography
City
Cool romps by over 7 lengths in $100,000 Riley
Allison Futurity -
Sunland Park, NM - December 28, 2010 - City Cool
romped to a 7 and 1/4 length wire to wire win in the
48th running of the $100,000 Riley Allison Futurity
at Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino on Tuesday.
Under a steady ride from 5-time Sunland Park riding
champ Ken Tohill, City Cool delivered a rousing
performance and was never threatened. - Tommie Morelos / Coady Photography
Noconi
cruises home in $350,000 Championship at Sunland
Park G1 -Sunland Park, NM - December 26, 2010
- The razor sharp Noconi broke like a bullet and
cruised home an easy neck winner in the $350,000
Championship at Sunland Park (Grade 1) on Sunday.
- Tommie Morelos/ Coady Photography
Giorgino
speeds away in $178,646 Sunland Park Winter QH
Futurity G2 - Sunland Park, NM - December 26, 2010 -
Giorgino rocketed away from the gates and rolled to
a half-length victory in the Grade 2 $178,646
Sunland Park Winter Quarter Horse Futurity at 400
yards. - Tommie Morelos/ Coady
Photography
Facil
Catana dominates in $50,000 Bold Ego
Handicap
- Sunland Park, NM - December 26, 2010 -
With her lethal early speed, Facil
Catana raced away to a comprehensive 5
and 3/4-length victory in the $50,000
Bold Ego Handicap at Sunland Park
Racetrack and Casino on Sunday.
- Lisa Dominguez / Coady
Photography
Sunland Park’s top
trainer honored nationally
- Special report by Ray Sanchez -
El
Paso, TX - Dec. 22, 2010 - El Paso’s
Henry Dominguez, New Mexico’s leading
trainer, has received much recognition
throughout the Southwest. Now he can add
a national honor to his resume.
COPE: Start Over
on Raton Racino -
Special SureBet report by PETE HERRERA -
Albuquerque, NM - Dec. 21, 2010 - New
Mexico Racing Commission Chairman Marty
Cope says it’s time to go back to square
one on the issue of where the state’s
sixth racino should be built and who
should do it.
Bassett, Burgess
Named To Hall of Fame, Hudson To Receive
Special Recognition
- RUIDOSO DOWNS, New Mexico - December 21,
2010 – Trainer John Bassett along with
former jockey and racing official Jerry
Burgess round out the 2011 class to be
inducted into the Ruidoso Downs
Racehorse Hall of Fame during ceremonies
in June.
20-1
long shot Canadian Mash wins $120,000 Challenger Six
Handicap - Sunland Park,
NM - December 18, 2010 - Under jockey Salvador Martinez,
20-1 outsider Canadian Mash led throughout and earned a
rousing 1 and 1/2 length win in the $120,000 Challenger Six
Handicap at Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino on Saturday.
- Tommie Morelos/ Coady Photography
Johnny T.L. Jones
Jr., Peppers Pride Named To Ruidoso
Downs Racehorse Hall of Fame
- RUIDOSO DOWNS, New Mexico (December 15,
2010) – Internationally prominent
horseman Johnny T.L. Jones Jr. and the
undefeated New Mexico-bred Peppers
Pride, winner of each of her 19 starts,
will be inducted into the Ruidoso Downs
Racehorse Hall of Fame during June
ceremonies at Ruidoso Downs.
Sunland
Park Winter Derby [G2] Qualifiers
- Sunland Park, NM - December 11,
2010 - Four trials for the Sunland Park
Winter Quarter Horse Derby were held on
Saturday at 400 yards. Whathaveigottado,
an impressive son of 1989 All American
Futurity winner Strawberry Silk, won his
trial heat with ease in the top time of
18.996 seconds. - Tommie
Morelos / Coady Photography
Sunland Park Winter Futurity [G2] QUALIFIERS- Sunland Park, NM - December 10, 2010 -
BF SONIC BOOM scored the fastest
qualifying time in the Sunland Park
Winter Quarter Horse Futurity Trials
held on Friday: 400 Yards :19.05, BF
SONIC BOOM is owned by Birrel Farms &
James & Dianna Lynn, trained by Paul C.
Jones, Freddie L. Martinez, Up
-
Tommie Morelos/ Coady Photography
$19 million Live
Racing Season begins Dec. 10
- Sunland Park, NM - Dec 9, 2010 -
Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino begins
an impressive $19 million live horse
racing season on Friday, December 10 and
continues through Tuesday, April 19,
2011.
Sunland Park
receives full Safety Alliance
accreditation -
Dec.
8, 2010 - The National Thoroughbred
Racing Association (NTRA) announced
today that Sunland Park in Sunland Park,
N.M., has received full accreditation by
the NTRA Safety and Integrity Alliance
following a complete review of all
racing operations at the facility.
Imco Spirit,
Noconi Named Zia Park Horses of the Meet
- HOBBS, New Mexico - December 8, 2010 –
Zia Park Distance Championship winner
Imco Spirit has been named thoroughbred
of the meet and Zia Park Quarter Horse
Championship winner Noconi has been
named quarter horse of the meet for the
Zia Park season that concluded on
Tuesday afternoon.
Corona
For You Pulls Away To Win Sunland Park
Dash at Zia Park
- HOBBS, New Mexico - December 7, 2010 -
Corona For You wrapped up the fall Zia
Park season by pulling away to win the
$40,000 Sunland Park Dash on Tuesday
afternoon, the meet’s closing day.
- Tommie Morelos / Coady
Photography
Champion
Noconi Rallies To Win Zia Park Quarter
Horse Championship
- HOBBS, New Mexico - December 5, 2010 —
R.D. Hubbard and Johnny T.L. Jones Jr.’s
homebred Noconi, the 7-5 favorite,
overcame a bump at the start to rally
and join the millionaire ranks with his
win the Grade 1, $150,000 Zia Park
Quarter Horse Championship on Sunday
afternoon. - Tommie
Morelos/ Coady Photography
Imco
Spirit Upsets Zia Distance Champ, Jannas
Pride Wins Eddy County Stakes
- HOBBS, New Mexico - December 5, 2010 —
Kirk Robison and Henry Dominguez’s Imco
Spirit, a 9-1 outsider, completed his
rise from $12,500 claimer to stakes
winner in three months with a
track-record victory in the $218,000 Zia
Park Distance Championship on Sunday
afternoon. - Tommie
Morelos/ Coady Photography
Favored
Stachys Holds Off Skip A Smile To Win $150,000 Zia Park Derby on
Saturday - HOBBS, New Mexico -
December 4, 2010 — Even-money favorite Stachys was able to rally
from near the pace and then held off a bid from Skip A Smile to
win the $150,000 Zia Park Derby on Saturday afternoon.
- Tommie Morelos / Coady Photography
Two new wagers added to Sunland track
format - Dec. 3, 2010 - Two of the
latest popular wagers in horse racing will be added to the
Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino wagering format when live
racing resumes Friday, Dec. 10. They’re the Grand Slam and the
Place Pick 5.
Santa Fe Art Dealer Eyes Raton Racino
- Raton, NM - Dec. 1, 2010 - Santa Fe art
dealer and businessman Gerald "Jerry" Peters eyes the
long-stalled La Mesa Racetrack and Casino in Raton.
Derby Numbers at Record Levels At Ruidoso
Downs for 2011 Runnings - RUIDOSO DOWNS, New Mexico (Nov. 29, 2010) – The 2011 grade 1
renewals of the All American Derby, Rainbow Derby and Ruidoso
Derby could reach records levels with the number of eligible
horses surpassing corresponding figures for the 2010 runnings.
Cold
Cash 123 Scores 10-1 Upset In $250,000 Southwest Juvenile
Championship - HOBBS, New Mexico (November 28,
2010) — T. Bill Stables’ homebred Cold Cash 123 accelerated down
the outside of the Zia Park straightaway to score a 10-1 upset
victory over a field stocked with three of the quarter horse
racing’s top-10 juveniles in the Grade 1, $250,000 Southwest
Juvenile Championship on Sunday afternoon. -
Tommie Morelos / Coady Photography
Hayley’s
Halo, Blazin N Shakin, Shesa First Ratify Shine On Ladies Day at
Zia Park on Saturday - HOBBS,
New Mexico (November 27, 2010) — Lathrop Hoffman’s homebred
Hayley’s Halo finally gained the lead over pacesetting Petition
The Lady after a prolonged battle to win the $55,000 Zia Park
Distaff at six furlongs on Saturday afternoon. -
Blazin N Shakin pictured: Tommie Morelos / Coady Photography
Sunland track to open Dec. 10 with high
purses - special report by Ray
Sanchez - Sunland Park, NM - Nov. 25, 2010 - Horse racing is
still in a state of flux around the country because of the shaky
economy. On top of that, a shock wave was sent throughout the
industry recently when it was announced that New York Off Track
Betting has filed for bankruptcy.
Raton Entangled
- Special report by Pete Herrera - Nov. 24, 2010 - As
another winter settles into the northeastern New Mexico plains,
the question of whether horse racing will return to Raton
remains on ice.
Fighter On Fire to Stand at MJ Farms
- Nov. 24, 2010 - Grade 1 winner Fighter On Fire will stand his
second season at stud at
MJ Farms near Veguita, New
Mexico. His fee will be $2,500. The 5-year-old son of all-time
leading sire First Down Dash stood his first year in California
at Burns Ranch. His first foals will arrive in 2011.
Mine That Bird Day set for November 28
- Nov. 23, 2010 - Churchill Downs fans will have
an opportunity to bid farewell to the long shot winner of the
2009 Kentucky Derby (G1) on November 28 when MINE THAT BIRD
makes his final appearance on the site of one of the biggest
upsets in American racing history.
NM Jockeys Receive Mount Fee Increase
- November 22, 2010 - The New Mexico Racing Commission, at its
meeting Nov. 18, approved an increase in base mount fees for
jockeys starting with the opening of Sunland Park Dec. 10.
Tango Blue Works For Win In King Rick
Rack at Zia Park
- HOBBS, New Mexico (November 21,
2010) – Donald Boyle and Paul Jones’
Tango Blue disposed of favored Shineys
Magic T and then drew out in the stretch
to professionally win the Grade 2,
$55,000 King Rick Rack Stakes over 870
yards on Sunday afternoon at Zia Park.
Tommie Morelos/ Coady Photography
New Mexico State Racing Commission Rejects
Proposed Raton Deal -
Albuquerque, NM - November 2010 - La Mesa Park president
would've put $10M in trust within 60 days to continue
construction on the planned $50M racino in Raton, but after an
often heated exchange with an attorney representing the stalled
racino, the New Mexico Racing Commission unanimously rejected
the proposal.
La Mesa Park Racetrack and Casino
agreement appears imminent -
Albuquerque, NM - November 17, 2010 - Raton's long-stalled La
Mesa Racetrack and Casino, which lost its gaming license in May
and whose racing license has been in jeopardy ever since, could
get the planned $50 million facility moving again.
SPIT CURL DIVA CONTINUES CHAMPIONSHIP BID
- November 17, 2010 – Spit Curl Diva continues her bid for a
championship title when she chases her fourth-straight stakes
win and second-straight Grade 1 victory in the $125,000 Merial
Distaff Challenge (G1) at 400 yards.
A SPRING SNOW AFTER SEVENTH STRAIGHT WIN
- November 16, 2010 – The Abraham Jaquez (of Albuquerque) owned
and -trained A Spring Snow guns for his seventh consecutive win
in a race filled with hot claiming-ranks warriors in the $75,000
Pfizer Starter Allowance Challenge over 350 yards.
Ducky Drakes Splits Horses To Win Lea
County Sprint -
HOBBS, New Mexico (November 14, 2010) –
Jockey Miguel Hernandez drove Ducky
Drake between two tiring pacesetters to
score a narrow victory in the $55,000
Lea County Sprint on Sunday afternoon at
Zia Park. Erin
Prendergast / Coady Photography
Posies
Woodette Breaks Track Record in New Mexico Breeders’ QH
Championship - Albuquerque, NM -
November 14, 2010 - David Bloomer’s Posies Woodette won Sunday’s
$40,000 New Mexico Breeders’ Quarter Horse Championship (RG3),
as The Downs at Albuquerque ended its 2010 meet.
Tommie Morelos / Coady Photography
ICU Cash 550 Yard World Record Confirmed
- Hobbs, NM - November 12, 2010 - On September
28, Juan Esquivel Jr.’s ICU Cash sprinted 550 yards in :26.096
to score by half a length in a $15,000 allowance/optional
claiming race at Zia Park. The clocking now has been confirmed
as a world record at the distance, giving the 5-year-old gelding
by Real Runaway a mark in the record books and James J. “JJ”
Gonzales his first world record as a trainer.
Mine That Bird to Retire -
November 7, 2010 -
The team behind Mine That Bird had hoped running him in the $1
million Breeders' Cup mile Saturday would help steady the
slumping horse.
Noconi Easily Handles Rivals In Lovington
Stakes at Zia Park -
HOBBS, New Mexico (November 7, 2010) – R.D.
Hubbard and Johnny T.L. Jones’ champion Noconi, under a firm
hold by jockey Jacky Martin, easily handled his six rivals to
win the Grade 2, $55,000 Lovington Stakes on Sunday afternoon at
Zia Park. - Lori Ritz / Coady Photography
Favored Anywhere Bully Takes O.B.
Cockerell Handicap - Albuquerque, NM
- November 7, 2010 - Cody Jensen rode favorite Anywhere Bully
to a neck victory in Sunday’s $30,000 O.B. Cockerell Handicap at
The Downs at Albuquerque.
Sunday
Sunrise Prevails In Veterans Stakes at Zia Park -
HOBBS, New Mexico (November 8, 2010) – Sunday
Sunrise, a 7-1 outsider, wore down 2-1 favorite Imco Spirit in
the stretch to score the mild upset in the $55,000 Veterans
Stakes at Zia Park on Saturday afternoon. - Coady
Photography
Final Supplement Before Trial Entry For
Ruidoso Futurities On November 15 -
RUIDOSO DOWNS, New Mexico (November 5, 2010) – The final
opportunity to supplement yearlings (foals of 2009) to each of
the three 2011 Grade 1 futurities at Ruidoso Downs before the
trial-entry supplement is on November 15.
Coming soon: Mine That Bird, the movie
- ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. November 5, 2010 - Hollywood
has an eye on Mine That Bird. 'Dances With Wolves' producer Jim
Wilson is set to direct the film about the 50-to-1 longshot who
won last year's race.
Winners Version to MJ Farms in New Mexico
- VEGUITA, NM—NOVEMBER 5, 2010—A & C Racing and
Roping's grade 2 winner and multiple grade 1 finalist Winners
Version will stand the 2011 season at MJ Farms near Veguita, New
Mexico.
Double Smart Ruins Enchanted Outlaw’s Bid
In New Mexico Classic Championship at Zia Park -
HOBBS, New Mexico (October 31, 2010) — Roger
Beasley and Leach Racing’s homebred Double Smart, a 17-1
longshot, ruined Enchanted Outlaw’s bid to repeat as the winner
of the $180,000 Rocky Gulch New Mexico Classic Championship on
Sunday afternoon at Zia Park.
The Rocky Gulch New Mexico Classic Championship headlined the
stakes-filled New Mexico Cup card offered 11 races for New
Mexico-breds and $1.8 million in purses. - Lori
Ritz / Coady Photography
Special Report -
MORE OR LESS—A
STICKY ISSUE IN NEW MEXICO RACING
- By PETE HERRERA - So many race
days, so little agreement… In recent
years that has become the
finger-pointing theme when the State
Racing Commission and the state’s
trainers and horse owners get together
to decide how many days each of the
state’s five racinos will run live.
Board upholds La
Mesa gaming license revocation
- Albuquerque, NM
- Oct 28, 2010 - The New Mexico Gaming
Control Board on Wednesday voted to
accept a hearing officer’s
recommendation to uphold the board’s
revocation of the gaming license awarded
last year to the planned La Mesa
Racetrack and Casino in south Raton.
THANK YOU FROM THE
VERY BOTTOM OF MY HEART -
Oct. 28, 2010 - I want to start by
saying Mark was the most amazing man
I’ve ever known. He was a loving husband
and an adoring father. Losing him has
ripped a hole in our hearts. As my
children and I began a new journey that
we never wanted to take the love of so
many has been felt.
Mine That Bird Zips in Churchill Workout
- Oct. 25, 2010 - Double Eagle Ranch and Buena
Suerte Equine’s Mine That Bird, winless since
his huge 50-1 upset victory in the 2009 Kentucky
Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I), worked
five-eighths of a mile in 1:00 at Churchill
Downs.
Southwestern Heat
to Stand in New Mexico
- Southwestern Heat, a 6-year-old son of
Gone West produced from the champion
mare Xtra Heat, will enter stud in 2011
at Fred and Linda Alexander’s A&A Ranch
in Anthony, New Mexico. The fee will be
announced later.
Trio
Scores Again at Zia Park, Pulgarcito
Takes Governor’s Cup -
HOBBS, New Mexico
(October 24, 2010 ) – Owner Heiligbrodt
Racing Stable, North America’s
winningest trainer Steve Asmussen and
jockey Ken Tohill combined to win their
second Zia Park stakes race within a
week when Pulgarcito took the $55,000
Governor’s Cup Stakes on Sunday
afternoon. - Lori Ritz /
Coady Photography
Ruidoso Runners Shine In Texas Classic Futurity
Trials - RUIDOSO
DOWNS, New Mexico (October 24, 2010) – Four
horses who raced at Ruidoso Downs this summer,
led by the top-three qualifiers, stepped up in
the trials to the Grade 1, $1,120,662 Texas
Classic Futurity on Saturday night at Lone Star
Park near Dallas.
Ducky Drake Flies From Last, Wins
Tuesday Zia Park Feature - HOBBS, New Mexico (October 19,
2010) – Jockey Miguel Hernandez got
Ducky Drake flying and the veteran
gelding came from last place to defeat
odds-on favorite Kineticat Yankee in the
$35,200 featured seventh race on Tuesday
afternoon at Zia Park.
Fastation
Works For Permian Basin Win, Rematch Set
For New Mexico Classic Derby
- HOBBS, New Mexico (October 17, 2010) –
Heiligbrodt Racing Stable’s 3-10
favorite Fastation repelled challenges
for most of the six furlongs to secure
her fourth-straight stakes win in the
$55,000 Permian Basin Stakes for
2-year-old fillies on Sunday afternoon
at Zia Park. - Lori Ritz
/ Coady Photography
Quiet
Again Wins Albuquerque’s Budweiser
Special Stakes -
Albuquerque, NM - October 17, 2010 -
Quiet Again, a homebred 5-year-old
gelding racing for Paul B. Thomason,
sprinted to a three-quarter length
victory in Sunday’s 6 ½-furlong, $30,000
Budweiser Special Stakes at The Downs at
Albuquerque. - Tommie
Morelos/ Coady Photography
Sheet
Burns Shines In Herman Jefferson;
Gonzalez Wins Four New Mexico Classic
Fut. Trials
- HOBBS, New Mexico
(October 16, 2010) – The 8-year-old
Sheets Burns, at least four years older
than each of his six rivals, schooled
them with his third-straight stakes win
in the Grade 3, $55,000 Herman Jefferson
Stakes over 870 yards on Saturday
afternoon at Zia Park.
- Lori Ritz / Coady
Photography
Prospect To The Top Dominates Hobbs
America Futurity at Zia Park -
HOBBS, New Mexico
(September 10, 2010) — Joel Tavarez’s
Prospect To The Top thoroughly dominated
the Grade 2, $313,499 Hobbs America
Futurity on Sunday afternoon at Zia Park
to move into the championship-contending
level of the nation’s 2-year-old quarter
horse division. - Lori
Ritz / Coady Photography
Heza Bold Color Preps For Classic Cup
With Taos Express Win at Zia Park -
HOBBS, New Mexico
(October 9, 2010) — Maria Gonzalez’s
Heza Bold Color prepared for the
$140,000 New Mexico Classic Cup 870
Championship with a late-running victory
in the $40,000 Taos Express on Saturday
afternoon at Zia Park.
He’s A Tough Dude Wire to Wire in UNM
Handicap -
Albuquerque, NM - October 09, 2010 -
He’s A Tough Dude, a 5-year-old gelding
by Tough Men racing for Valle Racing
LLC, scored a wire-to-wire victory in
Saturday’s University of New Mexico
Handicap (R) for state-bred older horses
at The Downs at Albuquerque.
Tommie Morelos/ Coady
Photography
Race
For Jake Rallies to Win A.C. Kemp Stakes
- Albuquerque, NM -
October 03, 2010 -Brian Mundell’s Race
For Jake rallied through the homestretch
to win Sunday’s $30,000 A.C. Kemp Stakes
for 2-year-olds at The Downs at
Albuquerque. - Tommie
Morelos / Coady Photography
Hayley’s
Halo Rates and Wins Chaves County Stakes
at Zia Park - HOBBS, New Mexico (October 3,
2010) – Lathrop Hoffman’s homebred
Hayley’s Halo, the 3-1 second choice,
was masterfully rated by jockey
Alejandro Medellin and held off favored
No Other Time to win the $60,000 Chaves
County Stakes on Sunday afternoon.
- Lori Ritz / Coady
Photography
Shesa First Ratify Shows Class With
Lubbock Stakes Win at Zia Park -
HOBBS, New Mexico
(October 2, 2010) – Sandy Erwin’s
homebred Shesa First Ratify, runner-up
in the 2009 $1.9 million All American
Futurity, displayed her considerable
class to easily win the Grade 2, $55,000
Lubbock Stakes on Saturday afternoon at
Zia Park. - Lori Ritz /
Coady Photography
Icu
Cash Sets World Record At 550 Yards at
Zia Park
- HOBBS,
New Mexico (September 28, 2010) – Juan
Esquivel Jr.’s ICU Cash ran the race of
his 12-race career to set a new world
record and a new track record at 550
yards while winning the fourth race on
Tuesday after at Zia Park.
- Lori Ritz / Coady
Photography
Glory Be Mine Impresses In Classic Cup
Prep at Zia Park -
HOBBS, New Mexico (September 26, 2010) -
Glory Be Mine pushed her winning streak
to six races and prepared for a probable
return on New Mexico Classic Cup Day
with an impressive win in the $39,200
featured 10th race on Sunday afternoon
at Zia Park.
Primvvera
Gets First Stakes Win in Senor Futurity;
U R A Fury Lady and Spinning Touchvictorious
-
Albuquerque, NM – Sept. 25, 2010 -
Second-fastest qualifier Primvvera,
owned and trained by Dominic Duree,
sprinted to a half-length victory in
Saturday’s $77,476 New Mexico State Fair
Senor Futurity (RG3) for state-bred
colts and geldings at The Downs at
Albuquerque. Tommie
Morelos / Coady Photography
Prospect
To The Top Sets Track Record And Fastest
To Hobbs America Futurity
- HOBBS, New Mexico (September
25, 2010) - Joel Tavarez's Prospect To
The Top dominated the trials to the
Grade 2, $310,000 Hobbs America Futurity
by setting a new track record for 400
yards while easily winning the sixth of
six trials on Saturday afternoon at Zia
Park. - Coady
Photography/Lori Ritz
Corona
For You Rallies for La Mariposa Victory
- Albuquerque, NM -
September 19, 2010 - Corona For You, a
one-time $20,000 claimer racing for Hugo
Barron Sierra and Romaldo Tarango,
scored her first stakes victory in
Sunday’s 400-yard, $30,000 La Mariposa
Handicap (G3) for distaffers at The
Downs at Albuquerque. -
Tommie Morelos/ Coady Photography
Strike It Quick Wins First Stakes In
James Isaac Hobbs at Zia Park -
HOBBS, New Mexico
(September 18, 2010) - Rosa Guevara's
Strike It Quick approached the 350-yard
track record while racing to his first
stakes win in his 20th start in the
Grade 2, $55,000 James Isaac Hobbs
Stakes at Zia Park on Saturday
afternoon.
Facil
Catana Extends Win Streak in
Albuquerque’s Fair Queen - Albuquerque, NM – Sept. 18, 2010
- Sent to post as the 3-5 favorite,
Facil Catana recorded her third
consecutive victory in Saturday’s
$30,000 Fair Queen Handicap for
3-year-old fillies at The Downs at
Albuquerque.
River
Echo Rallies For Upset In $100,000
Premiere Cup at Zia - HOBBS, New Mexico (September
12, 2010) — The $100,000 Premiere Cup
Handicap at Zia Park on Sunday turned
out to be the right race at the right
time for 19-1 winner River Echo.
- Coady Photography
Haitian
Hero Wins Harvest Stakes
-
Albuquerque, NM –
September 12, 2010 - Haitian Hero, a
colt by Petionville racing for Ramon O.
Gonzalez and Homero Varela, won Sunday’s
$30,000 Harvest Stakes for 3-year-olds
at The Downs at Albuquerque.
- Coady Photography
Posies
Woodette Tops NM State Fair
Breeders’ Derby Finalists -
Albuquerque, NM -
September 11, 2010 - David Bloomer’s
Posies Woodette, a homebred daughter
of the Dash Ta Fame stallion
Woodbridge, outran her 10-1 odds to
win the second of two New Mexico
State Fair Breeders’ Derby (RG3)
trials at The Downs at Albuquerque
on Saturday. - Coady
Photography
Smash Dancer Proves Best
In Zia Park Opening Day Feature
- HOBBS, New Mexico (September 11, 2010)
— Barbara Coleman’s homebred Smash
Dancer, the 3-1 second choice, left
little doubt who was the best horse in
the $39,200 featured 10th race with a
resounding victory on opening day,
Saturday, at Zia Park.
RGR
Lyon A Tac is Fastest NM State Fair
Senor Futurity Qualifier
-
Albuquerque, NM – Sept. 10, 20101 - J.
Martin Bourdieu rode RGR Lyon A Tac to a
wire-to-wire, three-quarters of a length
victory in the second of five New Mexico
State Fair Senor Futurity (RG3) trials
at The Downs at Albuquerque on Friday. - Coady Photography
Spice
Girl Breaks Maiden in NM State Fair
Senorita Futurity Trials
-
Albuquerque, NM - September 10, 2010 -
Spice Girl, a homebred bay filly owned
and trained by Raymond Carlisle Jr., won
the last of four New Mexico State Fair
Senorita Futurity (RG3) trials on Friday
and posted the fastest qualifying time
for the September 25, $40,000-added
final at The Downs at Albuquerque.
- Coady
Photography
Mr
Piloto Upsets Field In Very Close All
American Futurity
- RUIDOSO
DOWNS, New Mexico (September 6, 2010) -
Mr Piloto, a 22-1 longshot, ran down the
outside of the track to narrowly defeat
favored JLS Mr Bigtime and Dominyun in
the Grade 1, $2,050,000 All American
Futurity presented by Sentient Jet on
Monday afternoon at Ruidoso Downs before
21,402 fans. - photo by Doug McAlister/SureBet
Quiet
Again Takes Thoroughbred Championship
-
RUIDOSO DOWNS, New Mexico (September 6,
2010) ‑ In the race after the $2,050,000
All American Futurity at Ruidoso Downs,
4-5 favorite Quiet Again scored a 2
1/4-length victory in the $50,000
Ruidoso Downs Thoroughbred Championship
Handicap for 3-year-olds and up.
Cold
Cash 123 Posts 14-1 Upset In All
American Juvenile at Ruidoso Downs
-
RUIDOSO DOWNS, New Mexico (September 6,
2010) - T. Bill Stables' Cold Cash 123
drew out in the final 100 yards to
record a 14-1 upset win in the $150,000
All American Juvenile at Ruidoso Downs
on Monday afternoon.
Van
Zant Wins Manuel Lujan Stakes
-
Albuq. NM - September 07,
2010 - Harvey Baeza’s Van Zant earned a
hard-fought victory in the 350-yard,
$30,000 Manuel Lujan Stakes for
3-year-olds at The Downs at Albuquerque
on Monday. -
Belinda Madrid/ Coady Photography
Favored
Double Down Special Wins Record All
American Derby- RUIDOSO DOWNS,
New Mexico (September 5, 2010) - Vanessa
Bartoo's even-money favorite Double Down
Special placed himself firmly in the
hunt for 2010 world champion honors with
a win on Sunday afternoon in the Grade
1, $1,548,076 All American Derby, the
richest derby in quarter horse racing
history, at Ruidoso Downs.
Champion
Noconi Shows Class With All American
Gold Cup Win
- RUIDOSO DOWNS, New Mexico (September
5, 2010) - Champion Noconi showed his
considerable class by holding off
Higheasterjet Handicap winner Shy Ann
Jess to win the Grade 3, $40,000 All
American Gold Cup on Sunday at Ruidoso
Downs.
Skip
A Smile Circles Rivals To Win Ruidoso TB
Derby -
RUIDOSO
DOWNS, New Mexico (September 4, 2010) -
Rose Mary Chandler's Skip A Smile raced
to a stakes win in his second start with
an impressive late-running win in the
$40,000 Ruidoso Thoroughbred Derby on
Saturday afternoon at Ruidoso Downs.
