LOS ALAMITOS, CA—NOVEMBER 10, 2018—Martha Wells’ My Favorite Cartel continued his good form by defeating a field that included Grade 1 finalists Scoopie Jess and On Our Way in the $25,000 Town Policy Handicap for 3-year-olds on Saturday at Los Alamitos.

Ridden by Erasmo Gasca for trainer Matt Fales, the gelding by Favorite Cartel won the 400-yard race in wire-to-wire fashion while holding off the pressuring Scoopie Jess for the entire race.

My Favorite Cartel covered the distance in :19.922 and came into this race after finishing a solid fourth in a trial to the Grade 1 Los Alamitos Super Derby on October 20.

The three horses that finished ahead of him all qualified to the Super Derby final and My Favorite Cartel missed advancing as well by only 21/1000ths of a second. Prior to that derby trial, the homebred gelding was an allowance winner over Golden State Derby finalist Devil In A Blue Suit two races ago on September 21.

My Favorite Cartel, who earned $13,750 for his win in the Town Policy, improved his career record to three wins from 17 starts and has now earned $38,305.

His dam is Wells’ Chicks Tell, a stakes winner at Los Alamitos and a finalist to the 2002 PCQHRA Breeders Derby. A daughter of Chicks Beduino, Chicks Tell has produced three-time stakes winner Forrest Fire, who earned $335,306 during a tremendous 51-race career, and three-time derby finalist Chicks Favorite. Chicks Tell is also the granddam of 2018 Grade 1 Los Alamitos Winter Derby runner-up Yanque.

Making his first start at Los Alamitos in 2018, Two Feathers Series, LLC’s Scoopie Jess was strong in his local debut. He left the gate a stride behind My Favorite Cartel, but never allowed another horse to catch him in the race.

Trained by Bret Vickery and ridden by Cesar De Alba, Scoopie Jess earned $5,625 for finishing second. Prior to this race, the One Sweet Jess gelding spent time at Ruidoso Downs, where his four-race stay included a victory in a trial to the Grade 1 Rainbow Derby and an appearance in the First Down Dash Stakes. He ran in the Los Alamitos Two Million Futurity here last year.

Splendid Cause, an Apollitical Jess filly who won her Ruidoso Derby trial and raced in the La Primera Del Ano Derby earlier this year, finished third.

She was followed across the wire by On Our Way, Famous N Hot, Twenty One Gunz, La Rusa, and AR Royal Blue.

Courtesy of www.losalamitos.com.