Cyber Attack fastest of Ruidoso Derby trial winners
Cyber Attack, the champion 2-year-old Quarter Horse colt of 2022, won his 3-year-old debut in a division of the Ruidoso Derby trials at Ruidoso Downs on Sunday, setting the fastest qualifying time for the $892,666 final on June 10.
Ridden by Eduardo Nicasio, Cyber Attack ($3.60) won the seventh of 10 trials by a head over Ivory Senator, finishing 400 yards in 19.59 seconds.
Ivory Senator has the second-fastest qualifying time for the final, but his status for the final is unclear. Ivory Senator was vanned off after the trial. A New Mexico state veterinarian did not return a phone call seeking comment on Monday regarding Ivory Senator’s condition.
Cyber Attack, owned by Connie Rosenthal and trained by Chris O’Dell, has won 5 of 8 starts and earned $1,157,917. In 2022, Cyber Attack was second in the Rainbow Futurity at Ruidoso Downs in July, and second in the Golden State Million Futurity at Los Alamitos in November before a win in the Los Alamitos Two Million Futurity in December.
Rock a Jess V, who won the Texas Classic Futurity at Lone Star Park in November, was third behind Cyber Attack in Sunday’s trials and earned a berth in the final.
Other finalists include trial race winner Shakers No Secret, who won the West Texas Maturity against older horses at Sunland Park in March; and Beneficial, who is trained by Eric Valenzuela and won a trial by 2 ¼ lengths in 19.88 seconds to secure the 10th and final qualifying berth.
Valenzuela has three of the 10 qualifiers for the $1 million Ruidoso Futurity at 350 yards on June 11, including Lets Leave, who won the ninth of 16 trials on Saturday by an eye-catching 5 1/2 lengths in 17.39 seconds despite a 16-mile per hour headwind.
The five fastest finishers from each day of trials on Friday and Saturday advance to the final, which will have nine trial race winners and one second-place trial finisher.
Lets Leave has won 2 of 3 starts. He was second by a neck to Kj Little Duce Coup in the West Texas Futurity at Sunland Park on April 1. Kj Little Duce Coup won a division of Saturday’s trials by two lengths in 17.66 seconds, but was vanned off after the race.
Co-owner John Lee said on Monday that Kj Little Duce Coup struck his head on the starting gate before the race, causing a cut, and that jockey Adrian Ramos jumped off the gelding after the trial as a precaution.
The O’Dell-trained Trusty Jess set the fastest qualifying time of 17.39 seconds from Friday’s trials. Trusty Jess, a $55,000 yearling purchase, had his career debut on Friday.
Heath Taylor, honored as Quarter Horse racing’s champion trainer of 2022, has two finalists for the Ruidoso Futurity in trial race winners Ar Victorias Legacy and Kiss My Wine.
Taylor has two of the 10 qualifiers for the $900,000 Ed Burke Futurity at 350 yards at Los Alamitos on June 18 after time trials on Sunday.
The Taylor-trained Political Rivalry set the fastest qualifying time of 17.71 seconds by winning the eighth of 10 trials.
Owned by Keith Nellesen, Political Rivalry is unbeaten in three starts. He won a division of the Kindergarten Futurity trials at Los Alamitos on April 28, but was held out of the $275,900 final on May 14 in favor of Sunday’s trials for the more lucrative Burke.
The 10 finalists for the Burke include eight trial race winners and two runners who were second and third in trial races.
Paul Jones has three finalists, notably Kevins Wise Corona, a trial race winner in a sharp 17.74 seconds.
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