Los Alamitos: Viva Mi Corazon favored in Winter Derby

The 3-year-old Quarter Horses SS Paydirt and Viva Mi Corazon have kept trainer Trey Wood at Los Alamitos a little longer this winter.

In past years, Wood has raced at Los Alamitos through the end of the calendar year before moving his stable to Texas for the winter. With races such as Saturday’s Los Alamitos Winter Derby, and the Los Alamitos Maiden Stakes on Feb. 23, Wood has reasons to stay in California in January and February.

When he does head to Texas at the end of the month, Wood may have a new trophy.

SS Paydirt and Viva Mi Corazon were the fastest two qualifiers for the Winter Derby in time trials on Jan. 25. SS Paydirt won his division of the 400-yard trials by 2 1/4 lengths in 19.47 seconds. Viva Mi Corazon won by a half-length in 19.52 seconds.

Viva Mi Corazon will be favored in the final. Owned by Johnny Trotter and Burnett Ranches, Viva Mi Corazon won the Pacific Coast Quarter Horse Racing Association Breeders’ Futurity in October and was second as the 8-5 favorite in the Los Alamitos Two Million on Dec. 15.

Viva Mi Corazon was beaten three-quarters of a length by Foose Cash Sr after being bumped at the start in the Los Alamitos Two Million over 400 yards. Wood said the start may have cost Viva Mi Corazon.

“It’s tough to say,” he said. “He cut a quarter pretty bad. He was sore on it after the race. We don’t see any reason he can’t run a big race in the Winter Derby.”

SS Paydirt races for breeder Richard Frandsen. Last year, SS Paydirt won two stakes at Les Bois Park in Idaho for trainer Blaine Hadley before finishing fourth in the Juvenile Challenge Championship at Los Alamitos in November.

The Winter Derby trial was SS Paydirt’s first start for Wood.

“He’d been super successful before we got him,” Wood said. “We didn’t do any miracles with him. The only bad race he ran was in the Challenge Championship and that was his first race under the lights and first race at Los Alamitos.”

The field of 10 includes Dynasty of Habits, second in the PCQHRA Breeders’ Futurity; and Moonist, who was second in the Governor’s Cup Futurity last July.