Page 161 - May 2022

“When the race ran live, I wasn’t sure if we held him off or if he had got to us right at the finish line,” Gonzales said. “I was proud of the way he ran but I wasn’t sure. I was nervous to see what number we hung up there. I had some buddies there, some other trainers, saying, ‘You got him!’ You don’t know until you hang your number up there.”
Jesses Wish finished his 300-yard trip in :15.075, posting a 103 speed index. That topped
his :15.292 time in the March 12 trials, which led all qualifiers. Those are the gelding’s only two outs to date, but his total bankroll already stands at $152,465 with the $147,125 prize from this futurity.
Javier M. Chavez and Heysol Howlet own Jesses Wish.
“Javier, we have a couple of other horses, and this is year two training for him,” Gonzales observed. “Heysol, this is our very first horse we’ve ever had for her.”
And Jesses Wish, a $50,000 purchase in the New Mexico Bred Yearling Sale, looks to be a good one.
“He’s been awesome to be around. He’s real professional, he does everything right, you ask him to do something, and he does it,” stated the trainer.
As for Gonzales, he adds this result to a collection of graded stakes wins thus far in 2022 that includes the NMHBA Stakes-RG2, the Mesilla Valley Speed Handicap-G2 and the Red or Green Stakes-G2.
“When I started this thing, it’s your dream to compete in races like these,” Gonzales said, adding, “We’ve been fortunate to win.
“It all starts with the horses. A fast horse is a fast horse. When you have fast horses, they make you look like you know what they’re doing.
It’s just like a coach in any kind of sport. If the
coach has superstars, his job is much easier. When you have LeBron James and Michael Jordan, it looks like you’re a super coach.”
Gonzales noted that Jesses Wish looked
to come out of the futurity with no issues. Assuming he remains sound, the gelding will be pointed to the Mountain Top Futurity, to be held at Ruidoso Downs later this year.
“He just does everything right,” Gonzales said. “He’s only two, and he trains like
an older horse. He’s just super good to do anything, from the track to the barn. First time he does something, he just gets better with doing it every time.”
MJ Farms bred Jesses Wish out of Wish You Had One To, a 2009 stakes-placed mare with three in-the-money finishes in stakes competition.
Cruzin For Chickz (Jess A Chicks-Zoobie Cartel) finished second by three-quarters for owners Curtis Crenwelge,
Jim Laird and Jose Espinosa. Wesley Giles is the trainer and Cordarellton Benn did the riding.
Major Game (Gronkowski-A Major Chamisa) placed third. Jaime Perez, Andres Estrada and J. Santos Espinoza own the colt, a Wesley Giles trainee who had Sergio Dominguez in the irons.
The remaining order of finish was Mr Tres Effort (TF Featured Effort- Beyond 15), Sheza Ahotmess
(First Moonflash-Jazzsnspots), Sauvignon Smooth (Big Daddy Cartel-Tangled Vines), Fancyinallofus (Maxximuss-Track Fancy TB), Doin Something Right (Eye Am King- Start Somethin Bad), Doing Something Good (Big Daddy Cartel-Start Somethin Bad) and Daddys First Fire (Big Daddy Cartel-First Moon Fire).
RACING NEWS
Jesses Wish’s winning connections include owners Javier M. Chavez and Heysol Howlet, trainer James Gonzales III and jockey Mario Delgado.
Jesses Wish and Mario Delgado return to the winner’s circle.
SPEEDHORSE May 2022 159
Coady Photography Coady Photography