AQHA Racing Challenge Leading Horsemen

As the 2026 AQHA Racing Challenge season closes, four division winners are honored for their efforts in the program. The AQHA Racing Challenge has for decades increased the opportunity for American Quarter Horses around the world and has distributed well over $100 million to horsemen since its inception.

The AQHA Racing Challenge year-end AQHA Racing champion owner, Wrangler champion breeder, Wrangler champion trainer and Wrangler champion jockey are determined over the racing season through points accumulated in regional qualifying races.

Canadian juggernaut Jerry Stojan captures another AQHA Racing Challenge Champion Owner title. This is the Grand Prairie, Alberta-based owner’s third title. This year he raced the likes of John Deere Century Mile Juvenile Challenge winner Great Falls. He will win a custom buckle and cash in recognition of the achievement.

The Wrangler Champion Breeder is Dr. Steve Burns. From his Menifee, California-based Burns Ranch, horses he has bred have gone to racetracks around the world and this year accumulated 106 points, about 45% more than his next-closest competitor. He receives a custom buckle to commemorative this achievement.

Wrangler Champion Trainer Jason Olmstead will collect his sixth consecutive buckle as well as cash for his support of the Racing Challenge. His stable collected 100 points during the year while their horses pulled in earnings and black type in Racing Challenge stakes races around the country for their owners.

Earning his first title as the Wrangler Champion Jockey is Mario Delgado, who nipped the title by a nose over Mario Alberto Lopez Marmolejo. Delgado has ridden the earners of more than $14.9 million in his career, including Q-Racing Video Lone Star Distance Challenge (G3) winner Wynnchester.

To find out more about the AQHA Racing Challenge, or to provide a lifetime of opportunity for your horse with a single enrollment, visit www.aqha.com/racing-challenge.

AQHA News and information is a service of the American Quarter Horse Association. For more news and information, follow @AQHA Racing on X and on Instagram, "like" Q-Racing on Facebook, and visit www.aqha.com/racing.