Flash Bak fastest in first Los Alamitos Super Derby qualifier
Flash Bak is having a much better year at Los Alamitos than he did at Ruidoso Downs during the summer.
Flash Bak won the $203,950 Los Alamitos Winter Derby in February and is the fastest qualifier for the $925,650 Los Alamitos Super Derby on Nov. 7 after winning the first of five time trials on Saturday.
At Ruidoso Downs in the summer, Flash Bak was ninth in the $678,253 Rainbow Derby in July, and third in the $100,000 All American Invitational on Sept. 5, the consolation for the All American Derby.
In Saturday’s trial, Flash Bak ($7.20) ran 400 yards in 19.66 seconds, beating Counting the Ways, who was third in the Governor’s Cup Derby in August, and Fallout, who was third in the Heritage Place Derby at Remington Park in May. Counting the Ways and Fallout qualified for the Super Derby.
The trial race was Flash Bak’s first win since the Winter Derby, and his sixth win in 14 career starts for owners Jim Streelman and Bill Dale and trainer Jaime Gomez.
The trials were marred by an incident after the third division when race winner Favorite Doc collapsed on the backstretch with an apparent internal injury and could not be saved, according to track stewards. Favorite Doc, second in the All American Derby, had set the second-fastest qualifying time of 19.71 seconds.
It was not immediately clear whether there would be nine runners in the final, or if Tuckk, the 11th-fastest qualifier and the winner of the fourth of five trials, would be given a berth in the final.
The other qualifiers are A Dash of Sign, A Dangerous Flash, Apollitical Patty, SC Divas Cartel Man, Rite on Time, and Reason to Fly Mv.
A Dangerous Flash was third in the Rainbow Derby, while Apollitical Patty won the Los Alamitos Oaks for fillies in March.
The winner of the Super Derby receives a berth for the $600,000 Champion of Champions against older horses at 440 yards on Dec. 11.