Apocalyptical Jess, Eagle coast top All American Derby trials
Ty Wyant
Ruidoso Downs Race Track
Bill Robbins' champion multimillionaire Apocalyptical Jess, winner of the Ruidoso Derby, and Ernesto Palacio's Rainbow Derby winner Eagle Coast lead the 12 440-yard trials to the Grade 1, $1,550,855 All American Derby on Sunday afternoon at Ruidoso Downs.
First post time is noon.
The horses with the 10-fastest times from the trials qualify for the All American Derby on September 1. The horses with next 10-fastest times gain preference to race in the $100,000 First Down Dash, also on September 1.
The All American Derby winner receives an invitation to compete in the Grade 1, $600,000 Champion of Champions on December 14 at Los Alamitos Race Course.
Apocalyptical Jess is putting together an historic career. He is the number-one-ranked older horse in the American Quarter Horse Association national poll, has earned $2,187,386 for fourth place on the all-time leading money earning list for quarter horses and was named the 2018 champion two-year-old gelding after winning last year's Grade 1, $3-million All American Futurity.
This year, Apocalyptical Jess won the $319,975 Remington Park Oklahoma-bred Derby and the Grade 1, $958,766 Ruidoso Derby.
Apocalyptical Jess had a five-race winning streak broken when he was third in the Grade 1, $1,008,129 Rainbow Derby as the 11-10 favorite. Even with that defeat in his latest start, the gelding by Apollitical Jess retained his number-one ranking.
Ricky Ramirez rides Apocalyptical Jess, trained by Mike Robbins, from the eighth post position in the eighth trial.
Eagle Coast, the nation's second-ranked older horse, scored the most important win of his 11-race career when he won the Rainbow Derby by a neck over Five Bar Stoli while Apocalyptical Jess was third.
The Sergio Beccera Jr.-ridden Eagle Coast, a $20,000 Ruidoso Select Yearling Sale purchase, battled with Five Bar Stoli on the inside of the Ruidoso Downs' straightaway while Apocalyptical Jess was racing on the outside of the track.
A gelding by One Dashing Eagle, Eagle Coast showed his potential last fall when he won the Grade 2, $344,000 Hobbs America Futurity and finished second in the Grade 1, $150,000 Southwest Juvenile Championship.
"He's ready to roll," trainer Jose Muela said. "We're expecting a good outcome with a little luck on our side.
"I respect everyone involved and we'll see what happens. If we qualify, that would be great for the whole team."
Eagle Coast drew the ninth post position in the ninth trial with Sergio Becerra Jr. aboard.
Apocalyptical Jess is joined by the other two 2018 two-year-old champions — champion two-year-old colt Flying Cowboy 123 and champion two-year-old Flash and Roll — in the trials.
Paragon Farms, LLC's Flying Cowboy 123 grabbed his championship with a win in the Grade 1, $1,015,000 Texas Classic Futurity in November.
This summer at Ruidoso Downs, he raced to a fourth-place finish in the Grade 1, $958,766 Ruidoso Derby.
Ricky Ramirez rides Flying Cowboy 123 in the first trial for trainer James J. Gonzales. The half-brother to world champion Cold Cash 123 starts from the second post position.
Scott Bryant's Flash and Roll, an earner of $1,218,794, reeled off six consecutive wins before finishing fifth in her Rainbow Derby trial on July 7. She won her Ruidoso Derby trial in her previous start.
Last year, Flash and Roll earned her champion two-year-old and champion two-year-old filly titles with wins in the Grade 1, $1,878,000 Los Alamitos Two Million Futurity and the Grade 1, $977,000 Golden State Million Futurity at Los Alamitos.
Trainer Mike Joiner will have Raul Ramirez Jr. ride Flash and Roll for the first time.
The First Moonflash daughter is in the 10th trial with the fifth post position.
Tom Maher and Dick Tobin's consistent stakes performer Lynnder 16 faces Flash and Roll in the 10th trial. The Apollitical Jess-sired filly won the $864,000 Remington Park Oklahoma-bred Futurity, was third in the $319,975 Remington Park Oklahoma-bred Derby and qualified for both the All American Futurity and the Ruidoso Derby.
Trainer Jason Olmstead has Cristian Esqueda riding Lynnder 16 from the 10th post position.
The seventh trial promises to be entertaining with Rainbow Derby runner-up Five Bar Stoli starting from the fourth post position and $197,725 Zia Derby winner No Mires a La Luna next door in the fifth post position.
Garlyn O. Shelton's homebred Five Bar Stoli, trained by John Stinebaugh, finished second to Eagle Coast in the Rainbow Derby.
Jose Amador Alvarez rides Five Bar Stoli.
David Valdez and Byron Woodard's No Mires a La Luna raced to a third-place finish in the All American Futurity a year ago and came back this summer to take the Zia Derby for New Mexico-breds by a neck.
Raul Ramirez Jr. rides No Mires a La Luna for trainer K. Trey Ellis.
The fourth trial is also a strong race with Valeriano Racing Stables, LLC's homebred Im Jess Special V and supplemental nominee Valiant Tiberias.
Im Jess Special V had a strong 2018 summer at Ruidoso Downs with a second-place run in the All American Futurity and a fifth-place finish in the Grade 1, $1 million Ruidoso Futurity.
In his only 2019 start, the Jess Lips-sired gelding was third in his Rainbow Derby trial.
Trainer Toby Keeton has J.R. Ramirez riding Im Jess Special V with the fourth post position.
Owned by Sergio Holguin, Cliften Nielsen and Felix Rodriguez, Valiant Tiberias was supplemented by his owners at a cost of $50,000 to enter the trials. The Valiant Hero-sired gelding is the only supplemental nominee.
Valiant Tiberias is four-for-four at Ruidoso Downs this summer and capped his winning streak with a win in the $53,108 Adequan Ruidoso Derby Challenge on June 29, his latest race. The gelding easily handled his competition to win by three quarters of a length.
The Ricardo Armendariz-trained Valiant Tiberias gained attention when he won the $116,840 Maiden Stakes on May 27. He then won his Adequan Ruidoso Derby Challenge trial by two lengths with the fastest-qualifying time of :19.920 for 400 yards.
James Flores rides Valiant Tiberias from the 10th post position.
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