Lone Star Park
Futurity and Derby time at Lone Star
The first important weekend of the fall Lone Star Park season starts on Friday night with the 6666 Ranch Handicap and then hits the Grade 1 level on Saturday night with the $432,090 Dash for Cash Futurity and the $214,500 Dash for Cash Derby.
The 400-yard Dash for Cash Futurity features a pair of late-developing juveniles: the fastest qualifier, Illegal Memories, and an All American Futurity finalist, Coronas Fast Dash.
Illegal Memories showed stakes class when he finished fourth in the Grade 1 Retama Park Futurity in June, but did not win his maiden until Sept. 6. He then backed up that win with his career-best performance, winning his Dash For Cash Futurity trial by one length. His time of 19.869 seconds was the fastest time from 13 trials.
Coronas Fast Dash won his maiden in the 440-yard All American Futurity trials when he won his trial by two lengths and earned a spot in the $2 million All American Futurity, finishing seventh. He then rolled to a one-length win in his Dash for Cash Futurity trial with the second-fastest time of 19.945 seconds.
In the derby, Diamond Tres Seis will go for his sixth straight win. He won the Grade 2 Sam Houston Derby two starts back and comes off a fastest-qualifying trial win in 21.791 seconds for 440 yards.
A gelding trained by Heath Taylor, Diamond Tres Seis had to work to win the Sam Houston Derby by a head, but had an easier time in his Dash for Cash Derby trial, when he pulled out to win by three-quarters of a length.
The second-fastest qualifier, Mister WW, has earned $325,000 and finished on the board in 12 of 15 starts. He has two stakes wins over New Mexico-bred competition and was second in the Grade 2 West Texas Derby.
Hiclass La Jolla was a close third in the Grade 1, $500,000 All American Derby two starts back and then won his Dash For Cash Derby trial by 1 1/4 lengths.
In Friday's 6666 Ranch Handicap, Ronas Wind Dancer comes off a win in the Classic Chevrolet Handicap. He has finished on the board in 5 of 6 2007 starts with two wins.