Luxurie (#7), ridden by Joseph Belloc Jr., holds off King Dynasty (#10) to win the $190,386 Mountain Top New Mexico Bred Derby at The Downs at Albuquerque on June 13.

© Coady Media

By Emily Paulk, StallioneSearch

ALBUQUERQUE, NM–JUNE 13, 2026–Luxurie narrowly held off a determined challenge from King Dynasty to capture the $190,386 Mountain Top New Mexico Bred Derby on Saturday night at The Downs at Albuquerque. The race was contested over 350 yards with a 3 mph tailwind over a fast track.

Ridden by Joseph Belloc Jr. for owners Triple R Racing Stables LLC, Wallace Lynn Landrum, Ted Rushing and Rancho El 48 LLC, Luxurie broke sharply and maintained a slim advantage throughout before prevailing by a nose at the wire. The gelding stopped the clock in :16.977 while earning a 105 speed index.

Trained by James Gonzales III and bred by MJ Farms, Luxurie is a $300,000 graduate of the Ruidoso New Mexico Bred Sale. The son of Big Daddy Cartel is out of champion Jesse James Jr mare Astica ($411,623) and is a half-brother to world champion Asscher ($489,674). His pedigree also includes champion Alice K White ($276,837) as his second dam.

The winning connections of Luxurie accept the Mountain Top Derby stakes trophy on Saturday; Coady Media

The victory improved Luxurie's record to 8-6-0-0 and boosted his earnings to $319,521 after collecting the $79,962 winner's share of the purse. Among his previous accomplishments are victories in the Grade 2 Mountain Top New Mexico Bred Futurity and a fourth-place finish in the Grade 2 New Mexico Classic Futurity.

King Dynasty finished a game second under Raul Ortega for owner and breeder Meluking Ranch LLC and trainer David Gomez-Barraza. The gelding pressed the winner throughout and fell just short after a strong late bid.

The son of Eye Am King out of the FDD Dynasty mare Achildhooddream now owns a record of 6-1-3-1 with earnings of $101,975. His resume includes a victory in last year's New Mexico State Fair Juvenile Stakes.

MW Bcause Im First completed the trifecta under Christian Cardenas for owners Larry Marcum and Nancy Wells and trainer James Gonzales III. The filly remained within striking distance throughout and held on for third in the blanket finish.

A homebred, MW Bcause Im First now sports a record of 7-4-2-1 with earnings of $312,132. She concluded her juvenile campaign with a runner-up finish in the Grade 2 New Mexico State Fair Futurity.

CQ Coyame Jessy finished fourth and was followed by Jingle Wood, Pour Me A Drinkk, Hez Rio Trouble, Dads On A Roll, Beyond Big Daddy and Mi Capitan.

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