Page 226 - December_2023

RACING NEWS
Mexican Breeders Derby
SOLD BLACK
by Luis Prieto Zamudio, translated by Speedhorse
There were two trial races on Oct. 8, where
17 three-year-old horses born in Mexico participated to determine the ten finalists of the Mexican Breeders Derby, the only one on the Quarter Horse calendar in Mexico that takes place over a distance of 440 yards under these conditions.
In the trials, the best time was for the gelding Temistocles, clocking :21.756. Rancho El Suspiro was positioned with three finalists in Sold Black, DK Dantera and Mr Juan, while the Cuadra Bronco Rider qualified BR Enamorado and BR Chivali Men.
With the withdrawal of RG Golden Eagle from Rancho Las Gaviotas, the final was held on Oct. 29 between nine runners, where the bets favored the two horses mentioned above with a marked preference for the one from Rancho El Suspiro which closed with odds of 1.00 to win.
Each participant and their rider took position in the gates. At the break, the first movements of AG Navigating Rush on Fire Black was noticeable, but the speed of the filly Sold Black also stood out, who from position #1 deployed at high speed and assumed the leadership of the group despite the fact that her jockey Martín Utrera Morales lost his strength in the
first yards. In the end, he was approached by Temistocles and Alfa Edy SJ, with the first being 3/4-length behind Sold Black.
The race had an extra dose
of adrenaline in the curve when
Martín Utrera Morales fell to the
ground while the filly continued
on with an injury (reported as
not serious but which required
veterinary attention at that
time) in the lower part of one of
her legs so she did not return for the photo in the winner’s circle. Martin was unharmed.
The time of the race was :21.51, while recording a career best 101 speed index, this being the first stakes on his record.
The award ceremony was held in the absence of Sold Black and trainer José Luis Alejo Cruz. The awards were presented by Javier Rosique León and Adriana Gómez Barnola, President and Manager, respectively, of the Mexican Association of Breeders and Horsemen of Quarter Horses, A.C., and were received by José Guadalupe García and Martín Utrera Morales, representing Rancho El Suspiro.
The purse for the race was $976,520 pesos ($53,407 U.S. approx.), of which $410,138 pesos ($22,362 U.S. approx.) was credited to the winner’s account.
Foaled on April 20, 2019, in Cuadra La Presita, Sold Black is the daughter of stallion Danny Cartel and out of La Texana Tree by Oak Tree Special, a cross that has already produced Texana
Cartel, AQHA Mexican Champion, Horse of the Year in Mexico and Champion Two Year Old, winner of 7 races and $267,935. With such merits from her daughter, La Texana Tree was named Broodmare of the Year (2021).
She began her career on April 16, 2022, with a second place in the Mexico Futurity trial. It wasn’t until July 24 that she won her maiden at 300 yards, a result she repeated in her next out when she qualified for the final of the Mexican Breeders Futurity Challenge, where she finished in ninth place. She closed the 2022 season with a second place in the Mexican Breeders Futurity.
Ridden by Martín Utrerea, Sold Black wins the Mexican Breeders Derby. 224 SPEEDHORSE December 2023
Hipodromo de las Americas
$53,407 • 440 yards :21.51 • SI 101
Corona Cartel
Danny Cartel
Takin Some Gold
SOLD BLACK, ‘20-f.
Oak Tree Special
La Texana Tree
Paint Me Golden
Miguel A. Espinoza, Hipodromo de las Americas