Racing Preview

Unbeaten My Royal Swinger will put his perfect Ajax Downs record on the line Wednesday when he faces nine other 3-year-olds in the $59,670 Norman Picov Derby at 400 yards.

The final day of the Sandy Ridge Racing meet promises a memorable Sunday afternoon, with a stakes-packed 10-race program bringing the season to a close. First post is set for 1:30 p.m., and the card will build toward three major events: the $266,250 BOCO Futurity, the $165,600 Bluegrass Derby, and the fourth running of the $75,000 Cherokee Overnight Stakes.

The road to one of Iowa’s premier Quarter Horse events begins Saturday evening at Prairie Meadows, where 28 Iowa-bred juveniles will battle for just 10 coveted spots in the Jim Bader Futurity.

The biggest weekend in Quarter Horse racing has arrived, and the sport’s brightest young stars are set to take center stage on Labor Day at Albuquerque Downs. A loaded 10-race program will build toward the Grade 1, $3 million All American Futurity, with support from the Grade 1 All American Gold Cup and the $200,000 All American Juvenile Stakes.

The biggest weekend in Quarter Horse racing has arrived, and some of the sport’s most accomplished sophomore stars are set to take center stage Sunday at Albuquerque Downs. A loaded 10-race program will build toward the Grade 1 $1 million All American Derby, with the Grade 1 $700,000 All American Oaks and the $100,000 All American Invitational Stakes adding even more championship-caliber talent to the afternoon.

Already a PCQHRA champion, top qualifier Hi Octane will now aim to become a major graded derby winner when he leads a strong lineup of sophomores in the Grade 2, $171,900 Golden State Derby on Saturday night at Los Alamitos.

Canterbury Park’s annual Minnesota Festival of Champions gets underway on Thursday, featuring a pair of quarter horse stakes, and continues Saturday with six thoroughbred stakes. The Festival of Champions began in 1992, dedicating purse money exclusively to horses bred in the state. It has remained the centerpiece of the meet each season.

A field of 19 2-year-olds will compete in two 350-yard trials Sunday at Hipódromo de las Américas for the $81,148 Alfredo Castro Rea Classic, which includes a $15,000 contribution from Cuadra Santa Elena. The 10 fastest qualifiers will advance to the final on Sunday, September 20.

A field of 10 Mexican-bred 3-year-olds will line up Sunday in the $57,330 XII Derby Desafío Crianza Mexicana at Hipódromo de las Américas.

Trial winner A Perfert Legacy Df, who turned in the fastest performance of the August 15 trials, has been installed as the 3-1 morning-line favorite for Sunday's $203,050 Gillespie County Fair Futurity at Gillespie County Fairgrounds.

A talented field of accredited Louisiana-bred 2-year-olds will headline Saturday night's stakes-packed program at Delta Downs when they meet in the $561,054 LQHBA Sale Futurity (RG1).

A talented field of 10 2-year-old Quarter Horses will line up tonight in the $159,740 The Big Easy Futurity at Delta Downs. The 350-yard final, carded as Race 9, has an approximate post time of 9:35 p.m. (CDT). The finalists earned their berths through trials conducted on August 7.

One of the most popular days of the Ajax Downs' Quarter Horse racing season is Family Fun Day in support of the Ajax Pickering Hospital, set for this Sunday, August 30.

Stakes-winning juveniles A Mere Andrea and My Favorite Paris will face off in the main event of Sunday night’s card at Los Alamitos, a feature $13,300 allowance dash at 350 yards.

A championship afternoon of Quarter Horse racing is scheduled for Sunday, August 23, at Hipódromo de las Américas. The 10-race program will feature nine stakes or special events and will conclude with the XLII Futurity Subasta Selecta (RG2), Abelardo Gallegos Fernández.

Grade 1 Ed Burke Memorial Futurity winner Cv Fdddinasty Shan and Governor’s Cup Futurity winner Constituent will headline a terrific group of 59 juveniles competing in trials for the Grade 2, $300,000 PCQHRA Breeders Futurity on Sunday night at Los Alamitos.

Led by a group of top local stakes winners in Mayor Humdinger, SG Jacob Jay, SM My Valentine, and Slatedtoshine, a talented field of seven 3-year-olds lines up for Saturday night’s $30,000 Sgt Pepper Feature Handicap at 350 yards.

Quarter Horse trainer Jason Olmstead will saddle seven 2-year-olds, including the five fastest qualifiers, in the $59,400 Northlands Futurity Thursday at Canterbury Park. The Northlands is the co-feature along with the $36,675 Canterbury Park Quarter Horse Derby in which Olmstead is favored with Uncle Redheads, one of his four qualifiers in the 400-yard race. Both the Northlands and the Quarter Horse Derby date back to 1986 at the Shakopee, Minn. racetrack.

An intense week dedicated to racing Quarter Horses began with the draw for the lucrative *Futurity Subasta Selecta*.