Sunland Park track report

Two turns is the next frontier for Cajun Pepper, who improved to 5 for 5 with his 4 1/4-length win in the Riley Allison Futurity at Sunland Park last Sunday. The race was the first stakes start against open company for Cajun Pepper, whose five wins have come by a combined 27 3/4 lengths.

"He's doing good. He came back 100 percent," said trainer Ramon O. Gonzalez.

Gonzalez said the next goal for Cajun Pepper is the $100,000 Borderland Derby, a 1 1/16-mile race Feb. 27. The race is the first leg of a $500,000 bonus series Sunland has tied into the Kentucky Derby. The bonus is for the horse who sweeps the Borderland, the $500,000 WinStar Derby at Sunland on April 2, and the Kentucky Derby.

Gonzalez said Cajun Pepper is a long-striding horse who has a chance to be effective around two turns. Cajun Pepper was bred in Colorado. He is a son of the Riverman stallion Barricade.

* Some Ghost, who was third to top-class New Mexico-bred Rocky Gulch in the $132,000 Johnie Jamison Handicap in his last start Nov. 27, will return to the allowance ranks in the featured 10th race Friday at Sunland. The six-furlong allowance is for 3-year-olds and up who were bred in New Mexico.

Some Ghost has never finished worse than third in eight career starts. Before running into Rocky Gulch, he won a conditioned allowance at Sunland on Nov. 12, his first start since March.