Apollitical Redflash needs top effort in Ruidoso Futurity

Afternoon races at Ruidoso Downs are a better fit than evening races at Remington Park for the 2-year-old gelding Apollitical Redflash, who starts in Sunday’s $1 million Ruidoso Futurity.

Apollitical Redflash finished fourth and third in two starts at Remington Park in late March and early May. In a division of the Heritage Place Futurity trials on May 8, Apollitical Redflash started from the inside post and ducked out noticeably at the finish. He did not qualify for the final.

“He made a right-hand turn at the wire,” trainer Clinton Crawford recalled Friday. “He was a little green under the lights.”

Two weeks later, Apollitical Redflash won a division of the Ruidoso Futurity trials at 350 yards by 2 1/2 lengths in 17.99 seconds. The horses with the five fastest times from the trials on both May 22 and 23 earned berths in Sunday’s final. Apollitical Redflash had the fifth-fastest time May 22.

“I thought he finally figured it out and tried to be a racehorse,” Crawford said. “He had a strong headwind that day. He came back in good shape after the race.”

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Apollitical Redflash qualified while racing into a 13 mph headwind, the highest of any of the qualifiers on May 22. The wind gusted to 16 mph during a few of the 14 trials that day.

Apollitical Redflash figures to be among the favorites in the Ruidoso Futurity, the first leg of the Triple Crown that continues with the Rainbow Futurity on July 19 and the All American Futurity on Sept. 7.

Owned by Don Cavenaugh, Apollitical Redflash is by Apollitical Jess and was purchased for $100,000 at the Heritage Place yearling sale in Oklahoma City last September, the most expensive colt of the auction.

Sunday, Apollitical Redflash will be ridden by Ricky Ramirez. Francisco Calderon rode Apollitical Redflash in the Ruidoso trials, but has opted to ride Jettz on Sunday. Jettz had the fastest qualifying time from the May 23 trials.

Ramirez, who won the 2019 Ruidoso Futurity on Fernweh, has been aboard Apollitical Redflash for a recent gallop, Crawford said.

Jettz, trained by John Buchanan for owner and breeder Bobby Cox, was timed in 17.81 in the trials. At Remington Park, Jettz was fifth in the $891,900 Remington Park Oklahoma-Bred Futurity at 330 yards on April 18.

Jettz, who breaks from the outside post Sunday, is the only runner in the Ruidoso Futurity field with experience in a futurity final. Seven of the runners had their first starts in the Ruidoso Futurity trials, including Cyber Monday, who impressed Crawford by overcoming a troubled start to win by a half-length May 23.

Post time for the Ruidoso Futurity is 6:54 p.m. Eastern. Wagering is available through DRFBets.com.