Features Lucky Charm California Bound After Upset In Merial Ruidoso Distaff

RUIDOSO DOWNS, New Mexico (August 28, 2011) – Lucky Charm Racing’s Features Lucky Charm earned herself a trip to Southern California with a 20-1 upset victory in the $34,470 Merial Ruidoso Distaff Challenge at Ruidoso Downs on Sunday afternoon.

The victory earned her a berth in the Grade 1, $125,000 Merial Distaff Challenge Championship during the Bank of America Challenge Championships at Los Alamitos on October 29.

Features Lucky Charm broke out slightly at the start of the 400-yard race for fillies and mares before jockey Roy Baldillez got her lined out. She sprinted to the lead and then held off Urbanite to win by a head in :19.706.

Favored Full Moon Dasher was three quarters of a length behind the top-two horses for third in the full 10-horse field.
The Blane Wood-trained Features Lucky Charm, a three-year-old daughter of Feature Mr Jess, scored her second career win in her ninth start. Her other win came when she won a Remington Park maiden race in May. She finished third in last year’s John Deere Ruidoso Juvenile Challenge through a disqualification.

Features Lucky Charm finished fifth in the second of two trials to the Merial Ruidoso Distaff Challenge, however was only a neck behind the trial winner in a very tight finish.

Second-place finisher Urbanite, owned by Royal Dream Ranch, won the first of the two trials by one-half length for trainer Alex Sanchez.

Bielau Oaks third-place finisher Full Moon Dasher was the Merial Ruidoso Distaff Challenge favorite after winning the Four Corners Senora two starts ago and then finishing a very close second in the tight second Merial Ruidoso Distaff Challenge trial.