Preview Racing


Relentless Pursuit Of First Stakes Win In Hobbs America Derby
Hes Relentless will be looking for his first stakes win in Sunday's Grade 2 Hobbs America Derby at Zia Park.

© Gay Harris / Ruidoso Downs
Relentless Pursuit Of First Stakes Win In Hobbs America Derby

HOBBS, NM—OCTOBER 1, 2014—Hes Relentless already has an impressive list of accomplishments. As a 2-year-old in 2013, he was one of only two horses to make the finals of three $1 million Quarter Horse futurities—the Heritage Place Futurity at Remington Park in Oklahoma, the All American Futurity at Ruidoso Downs in New Mexico, and the Texas Classic Futurity at Lone Star Park in Texas. (The other was Five Bar Cartel in three seven-figure futurities at Los Alamitos Race Course in California.) In his 3-year-old debut this year, Hes Relentless set the 350-yard track record at Remington Park. However, he has yet to win a futurity or derby final.

That could all change in the 440-yard, $175,000 Grade 3 Hobbs America Derby at Zia Park on Sunday. The 3-year-old bay Missouri-bred One Famous Eagle colt owned by R.D. Hubbard, William and Tom Maher, and Johnny Cope and trained by Jason Olmstead was the fastest qualifier to the Hobbs America Derby in 21.268 seconds, .141 seconds faster than second-fastest Rae of Fire, whom he beat by three-quarters of a length in the second of four trials on September 21.

“This will be his fifth final he’s made,” Olmstead said. “We’re hoping this is our chance to get the monkey off our back.”

Cody Jensen rode Hes Relentless for the first time in the trials. “I wanted to save a little for the finals, and he threw it in neutral,” Jensen said about Hes Relentless’ trial victory. “So I tapped him a few times, and he finished out real nice. He’s a push-button-type horse.”

The Hobbs America Derby finals will be somewhat of a rematch of the $1 million Rainbow Derby at Ruidoso in July where Hes Relentless took third, Rae of Fire finished fourth, and fellow finalist This Lady Is On Fire was 10th. “That looked like the toughest trial on paper of the day,” Olmstead said about winning the trial that featured all three horses.

A newcomer to New Mexico, Docs First Fire made the Hobbs America Derby finals with a victory in his Land of Enchantment debut in the first trial ridden by Jose Montoya. Docs First Fire, who was trained in California by Jaime Gomez, had qualified for some of the top futurities in the Golden last year in the $1.1 million Grade 1 Ed Burke Million Futurity and the $281,000 Grade 2 Kindergarten Futurity at Los Alamitos Race Course. Earl Armstrong said he began training the Walk Thru Fire gelding in January after owner Jaime Bujanda purchased him for $35,000.

“I had to build his heart back up because he was burnt out,” Armstrong said. Docs First Fire had run 10 times as a 2-year-old. “We turned him out for about a month or two, and he is getting better with age,” said Armstrong, who had started Docs First Fire just twice this year in the trials and finals of the Retama Park Derby in Texas in July prior to his Hobbs America Derby trial win.

Go And Get, a former claimer in Southern California, followed up his victory in the Manuel Lujan Stakes at Albuquerque with a trial win for jockey Jensen, trainer Umberto Belloc, and owner Alberto Villanueva. Ramon Sanchez will be aboard the Foose gelding the finals. Pretty Little Liar won her 2014 debut in the trials ridden by Roman Chapa for trainer Joaquin Lopez. The filly is by leading sire Mr Jess Perry.

The complete lineup, in post position order including jockey assignments—

  1. Kingsbury (J. Badilla, Jr) – 15/1
  2. Docs First Fire (J. Montoya) – 6/1
  3. Icing One Down (R. Aguirre) – 15/1
  4. El Senor Lucero (J.L. Enriquez) – 12/1
  5. This Lady Is On Fire (S. Becerra, Jr.) – 15/1
  6. Rae Of Fire (J.P. Leos) – 5/1
  7. Pretty Little Liar (J.L. Levario) – 9/2
  8. Go And Get (R. Sanchez) – 7/2
  9. Scattered Woman (A.A. Ramos) – 12/1
  10. Hes Relentless (C. Jensen) – 5/2

All Zia Park races can been seen at Q-RacingVideo.com.