RUIDOSO - Call Me Jessiecartel earned the first stakes win of his career Sunday afternoon, narrowly prevailing in the Grade 1, $387,688 Zia Quarter Horse Futurity at Ruidoso Downs.
Ridden to victory by Esgar Ramirez for trainer Eric Valenzuela and owners Empire Racing and Pavon Racing LLC, Call Me Jessiecartel broke a little to his left from his inside post position in the starting gate, but recovered quickly to battle for the lead. Inside the final 100 yards, Ramirez found a late gear aboard the 2-year-old son of Jess a Chicks and got up by a nose ahead of Crispyn and jockey Alan Hernandez.
Call Me Jessiecartel ran 400 yards in a final time of 19.69 seconds.
“We started rolling and my horse responded,” Ramirez said in the winner’s circle. “It was close right down to the finish line and I feel fortunate.”
Call Me Jessiecartel, the fastest qualifier for the Futurity when trials were held here on July 7, improves his lifetime record to three wins from six career starts. His best stakes race performance prior to the Zia Futurity was a second-place effort in the Mountain Top Futurity on June 18. Sunday’s win pads his career bankroll to more than $240,000.
Sent off as the 5-to-2 second choice in the wagering, Call Me Jessiecartel returned $7 to his winning backers. The $2 exacta with Crispyn paid $32.
Young Emperor finished third with jockey Sergio Becerra, Jr. aboard, while Loose and Lethal rounded out the top four finishers with Bryan Candonosa in the irons.
Post time favorite Jm Johnny Be Good was eliminated shortly after the start when bumped and squeezed out of contention between horses.
In other stakes race action on Sunday, longshot Sunny Surfer and jockey Jose Ortiz pulled off an upset, winning the $50,000 Zia 870 Championship. The 5-year-old state-bred gelding is owned by Maria Ortiz and trained by David Hancock, and ran 870 yards in a winning time of 46.25 seconds.
Sambas Mark and jockey Tracy Hebert romped home to a 2-length score in the $50,000 Road Runner Stakes for 3-year-old New Mexico-bred thoroughbreds. Owned by Norman Allen and trained by Todd Fincher, Sambas Mark crossed the finish line in a time of 1 minute, 5.07 seconds.
Corrina Corrina gave Hebert his second stakes-winning ride of the day when they scored an impressive 5 ¾ length victory in the $50,000 Lincoln Stakes. The 4-year-old filly, owned by Derrick Jenkins and trained by Gary Cross, stopped the timer in 1 minute, 5.61 seconds for 5 ½ furlongs.
On Saturday, Doing Something Good earned his fourth career win when he splashed home a half-length in front of Pick Your Pour in the Grade 2, $205,420 Zia Quarter Horse Derby with Noe Garcia, Jr. on board.
Owned by J&SM, Inc. and trained by Fred Danley, the 3-year-old son of Big Daddy Cartel got away from the gate relatively well and dueled for the lead from the outset. On a sloppy track that had been sealed due to showers which occurred before the running of the Derby, Doing Something Good prevailed by a neck over Pick Your Pour and jockey Ricky Ramirez.
Third place finisher White Knight and jockey Rodrigo Vallejo was only a neck behind the runnerup as the top four finishers were separated by only a length at the finish line. The winner ran 400 yards in a time of 19.70 seconds.
Doing Something Good snapped a five-race losing streak when winning the Zia Derby. His last win was a trial heat for last summer’s All American Futurity, which was followed up by a fourth-place finish in the $3 million event.
Doing Something Good finished second in his most recent start, beaten by a neck by Cruzin For Chickz, who was the fastest qualifier for the Zia Derby when trials were held here on July 8.
For his efforts, Doing Something Good earned more than $86,000 for his connections, bringing his career earnings to more than $355,000 while picking up his fourth win from 13 lifetime starts.
Sent off as the 2.60-to-1 second choice in the wagering, Doing Something Good returned $7.20 to his winning backers. The $2 exacta with post time favorite Pick Your Pour paid $27.
Cruzin For Chickz was scratched earlier in the day.
In other Saturday stakes action at Ruidoso Downs, Big Crush BB earned his third straight victory when he won the $50,000 Grade 2 Zia Stakes under jockey Emilio Tapia.
Owned by Javier Chavez and trained by Jose DeHerrera, the 4-year-old son of Big Daddy Cartel was prominent from the start in the 400-yard dash, eventually inching clear approaching the finish line to win by a length over Fly On Down and jockey Alfredo Sigala. Big Crush BB raced the 400 yards on a fast track in a time of 19.43 seconds.
Big Crush BB, a six-time winner from 18 career starts, is coming off a pair of back-to-back stakes victories. He opened the Ruidoso season last month with a win in the Jess Burner Stakes. Before that, he posted a 14-to-1 upset win in the Jimmy Drake Stakes on April 28 at SunRay Park and Casino.
Sent off as the 13-to-10 favorite in the Zia Stakes, Big Crush BB returned $4.60 to his winning backers. The $2 exacta with Fly On Down paid $14. Hs Paul Walker finished third while Diezs Daylight rounded out the top four finishers.
Big Crush BB earned $30,000 for his connections with the Zia Stakes win, bringing his career bankroll to more than $202,000.
Racing resumes at Ruidoso Downs on Friday. Locally, fans can watch and wager on races from across the country in the simulcast arena at SunRay Park and Casino. For more information on the current Ruidoso season, visit the track’s official page at equibase.com.
