Rhonda Rowsey and jockey Mauro Rodriguez easily won the $63,905 Cherry Creek Futurity Sunday afternoon at Arapahoe Park.

© Coady Media

By H. David Smith, StallioneSearch

AURORA, CO—OCTOBER 12, 2025—Ronda Rowsey lived up to her billing as the favorite in Sunday’s running of the $63,905 Cherry Creek Futurity at Arapahoe Park, powering home to an authoritative victory over a field of talented two-year-old Quarter Horses going 350 yards.

With a strong start from post five, the brown filly quickly established control and drew away under jockey Mauro Rodriguez to score by two and one-quarter lengths in a final time of 17.786 seconds, earning a 97 speed index despite a 14 mph crosswind over a fast track.

Owned and bred in Colorado by George L. Seward, Ronda Rowsey is a daughter of the leading sire Favorite Cartel out of the Apollitical Jess mare Ms Jess Knockout.

Trained by Fernando Manriquez, she collected the winner’s purse of $25,562, boosting her career earnings in just seven starts to $35,324. The $50,000 repurchase from the 2024 Heritage Place Yearling Sale proved her worth on Sunday, displaying both speed and professionalism in the gate-to-wire score.

The winning connections of Rona Rowsey accept the Cherry Creek Futurity stakes trophy on Sunday © Coady Media

Runner-up honors went to Cowgirls Miracle, a black gelding by multiple stakes sire Flare For Ivory out of Hooray Cowgirl by Separatist. Bred in Colorado by Sierra Hugo Barron, Cowgirls Miracle races for Barron Racing LLC and is trained by Jose Barron.

Despite being bumped at the start, the gelding recovered well under jockey Jhaciel Soto and finished steadily to secure the second-place share of $12,781. Winless in three starts, he has finished second twice.

Stablemate Heirloom Ivory, also campaigned by Barron Racing LLC and trained by Jose Barron, finished third under jockey Martin Lazalde. The chestnut gelding, bred by Sierra Hugo Barron, is by Flare For Ivory and out of Shinning Bianca by One Handsome Man. After a clean break, he maintained his stride throughout and held off late challengers to earn $7,669 for his effort. This was only his second career start.

Pari-mutuel payoffs returned $4.00 to win, $2.20 to place, and $2.20 to show on Ronda Rowsey. Cowgirls Miracle paid $6.00 and $3.00, while Heirloom Ivory returned $2.20 to show. The $2 exacta paid $40.60, the $2 trifecta returned $36.40, and the $2 superfecta paid $895.80

The official order of finish was Ronda Rowsey, Cowgirls Miracle, Heirloom Ivory, Stars for Ivory, Dinamite Z, First Dream Maker, Dream Flyer, Hayleys Eagle, Apollitical Dashing, and Trip Corona.

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