SF Hot Pass is the 2-1 morning-line favorite for Saturday’s 440-yard, $65,637 Bank of America Sam Houston Championship Challenge (G2) at Sam Houston Race Park.

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HOUSTON, TX—MAY 9, 2019—Shannon Fisher’s SF Hot Pass, a 6-year-old Ivory James gelding and the fastest qualifier, is the 2-1 morning-line favorite for Saturday’s 440-yard, $65,637 Bank of America Sam Houston Championship Challenge (G2) at Sam Houston Race Park.

SF Hot Pass won all four of his starts and earned $91,250 during his 5-year-old campaign, and this three stakes victories during the Lone Star Park fall meet included a head score in the 440-yard, $75,000 Refrigerator Stakes (G1). The gelding drew post 2 and will be ridden by Francisco Calderon for trainer Leon Bard.

Bard will also send out This Is A Deal Too, a homebred graded stakes winning Dealagame gelding campaigned by Pete A. Scarmardo. This Is A Deal Too made his 4-year-old debut with a one-length victory in his Sam Houston Championship Challenge trial on April 20, and he was coming off of a sophomore season during which he defeated aged runners in the 400-yard, $50,000 Lovington Stakes (G2) at Zia Park in New Mexico.

This Is A Deal Too drew post 4 and will be ridden by Nestor Duran.

Other contenders include Elite Oilfield Services’ EOS A Political Win. A 4-year-old Apollitical Jess stallion trained by Rolando Almanza, EOS A Political Win ended his 3-year-old season with a three-race win streak that included victories in the 440-yard, $163,000 Dash For Cash Derby (G3) at Lone Star Park, and the 400-yard, $139,000 Retama Park Derby at Retama Park.

EOS A Political Win drew post 6 and will be ridden by Jose Alvarez.

The winner of this race will earn a berth in the October 26, $250,000 Bank of America Challenge Championship (G1) at Albuquerque Downs. The complete lineup, in post position order including jockey assignments and morning-line odds:

1. Tempting The Ladies (Eleazar Hernandez), 20-1
2. SF Hot Pass (Francisco Calderon), 2-1
3. Kas Tempting (Sergio Becerra Jr.), 20-1
4. This Is A Deal Too (Nestor Duran), 4-1
5. Thecartelofmiracle (Victor M. Urieta Jr.), 12-1
6. EOS A Political Win (Jose A. Alvarez), 3-1
7. Eye Am Sizzlin (Ricardo Garza-Cruz), 10-1
8. TLC Dale (Manuel Gutierrez), 8-1
9. Financial Top (Oscar Andrade Jr.), 15-1
10. Favored One Sweet (Jose I. Martinez), 20-1

All Sam Houston Race Park races can be seen at Q-RacingVideo.com.