UR El Modelo finds likely spot to leave maiden ranks
It has already been a busy year for the 2-year-old Quarter Horse UR El Modelo.
An Idaho-bred colt, UR El Modelo was third in a division of the Oklahoma Futurity trials on March 7 at Remington Park and finished fourth in the $30,000 consolation to the final – the Oklahoma Juvenile, on March 21.
Friday, UR El Modelo will have much needed class relief when he starts as the favorite in a 300-yard maiden race, the 10th and final race of the evening. First post time is 7 p.m. Eastern, or 6 p.m. Central. Wagering is available through DRFBets.com.
Trained by John Foutch, UR El Modelo will start from the outside in a field of 10 and is the only runner in the field with race experience. The field includes Quorumm, a colt by Tres Seis who has had two gate workouts at 250 yards since late February and appeared in one trial race at that distance on March 4.
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Michele Hurdle trains Quorumm.
Eddie Willis, who through Sunday led all trainers with 14 wins at the meeting, starts VF Showtime, a gelding who had two 220-yard workouts in March and is drawn to the inside of UR El Modelo.
There are two fillies in the field – FDD Diamonds and Tinys Good Girl. FDD Diamonds is trained by Monty Arrossa, who has won with three of his first 15 runners at the meeting. Tinys Good Girl is the first starter of the year for Connie Barnes. She last had a runner at Will Rogers Downs in November.
There is a minor stakes on Friday’s program – the $12,000 Paul Harber Memorial Stakes at 350 yards for Paints and Appaloosas.
DTL Samureye, who won the 2019 Harber, will have his 2020 debut Friday. Trained by Josue Ponce, DTL Samureye won 6 of 8 starts in 2019, racing in Oklahoma and Texas.
The Harber Stakes, the ninth race on the program, drew a field of nine. Painted Turnpike, the all-time leader in earnings for a Paint horse, races for the first time since a fourth as the 1-2 favorite behind DTL Samureye in the 2019 Harber.
Painted Turnpike, who has earned $463,836 in his career, is a 7-year-old horse who has won 26 of 30 starts. The loss in the 2019 Harber ended a 14-race winning streak from October 2016 to October 2018.