RUIDOSO DOWNS, NM—JUNE 6, 2017—A pair of experienced futurity horses with the top-qualifying times — High Rate Of Motion and Eagle Jazz — face promising rivals in the Grade 1, $1-million Ruidoso Futurity on Sunday afternoon at Ruidoso Downs.

There were two days of 350-yard time trials on May 26-27. The horses with the five fastest times on each of those days qualified for the Ruidoso Futurity. The horses with the next five-fastest times on each day have preference for the $100,000 Ruidoso Juvenile, also on Sunday.

First post time is 1 p.m. and there is always free parking and free general admission at Ruidoso Downs.

RIDE TV will be providing live updates of the Ruidoso Futurity and Ruidoso Juvenile on Sunday after covering the Ruidoso Derby and the Mr Jess Perry on Saturday. Ride TV can be watched on channel 248 of the DISH Network.

High Rate Partners 2017’s High Rate Of Motion led the 13 trials on the first day of qualifying when he raced the 350 yards in :17.994 while facing a 19 mph headwind. The afternoon’s strongest headwind was 20 mph.

High Rate Of Motion went to the lead and then drew out to the two-length win as the 7-5 favorite.

The Mike Joiner-trained High Rate Of Motion, a gelding by second crop sire High Rate Of Return, earned that favoritism after running a competitive third in the $50,000 West Texas Juvenile at Sunland Park.

Cody Jensen retains the mount with the eighth post position.

Juan Medina’s homebred Eagle Jazz topped the second afternoon’s 13 trials when he dominated his trial by two lengths in :17.874. He was running into an eight-mph headwind.

The One Dashing Eagle-sired Eagle Jazz came to Ruidoso Downs from Remington Park with a promising resume. The Judd Kearl-trained gelding won his first two starts and then was a head-bobbing second behind La Vencedora in the $932,500 Remington Park Oklahoma-bred Futurity.

Rodrigo Sigala Vallejo, who was up for the trial win, is aboard with the third post position.

Trainer Kearl also qualified Aeropodium on the second day of trials. The Bobby Cox homebred by One Famous Eagle won his trial by one-and-one-quarter lengths in :17.962.

Jose Amador Alvarez picks up the mount on Aeropodium, who qualified with Vallejo aboard, with the fourth post position.

Pete Scarmardo’s homebred This Is A Deal Too has stakes experience and the third-fastest time of :17.951 on the second day of trials. The Jackie Riddle-trained Dealgame gelding won his trial by one-and-three-quarter lengths.

This Is A Deal Too came to Ruidoso Downs after qualifying for the Grade 2, $484,000 Sam Houston Futurity. He had a very troubled trip and finished eighth while never having a competitive opportunity. He won his Sam Houston Futurity trial by one-and-one-half lengths in his first start.

Francisco Calderon rides This Is A Deal Too with the second post position.

Terry and Irene Stennett’s U R My Queen, a daughter of Walk Thru Fire, made her debut in the Ruidoso Futurity trials and the highly regarded filly responded with a game neck win and the second fastest time of :17.992 on the second day of trials.

A $57,000 Ruidoso Select Yearling Sale purchase, U R My Queen came into the trials with high expectations after setting the fastest time on her day of training races at Ruidoso Downs.

Trey Wood trains U R My Queen and also trains Paragon Farms LLC’s Corona Cartel filly She Eat Fire, the fourth-fastest qualifier on the first day of trials with an :18.155 time.

She Eat Fire, a $60,000 Ruidoso Select Yearling Sale purchase, won her trial by a neck in her first start.

Ricky Ramirez rode each Wood-trained horse to their trial score and will ride U R My Queen in the Ruidoso Futurity with the seventh post position. Sergio Becerra Jr. picked up the mount on She Eat Fire and starts from the outside post position.

Trainer Wes Giles saddled the second- and third-fastest qualifiers on the first trial afternoon.

Ezra Elton Lee’s homebred Big Daddys Winner, a New Mexico-bred by second crop sire Big Daddy Cartel, ran to his second win from three starts while winning his trial by one-half length in the day’s second-fastest time of :18.138. He ran into a 16-mph headwind.

Adrian A. Ramos is the only jockey he has known and is aboard with the ninth post position.

Melvin Neugebauer’s Uptown Dynasty, a gelding by Mr Jess Perry, impressed with a one-and-one-half-length trial win in :18.142. That was the third-fastest mark during the first afternoon of trials.

Cipriano Uscango Vidana pilots Uptown Dynasty from the fifth post position.

In the 350-yard Ruidoso Juvenile, which runs as the eighth race, the horses that had the sixth-fastest times on each day of trials — Vf Zeus and Kiss My Ivory — are back to chase the $100,000 purse.

Victory Farms’ Vf Zeus, a gelding by Foose, finished second by a neck to futurity qualifier She Eat Fire in the first day’s 13th trial. He was timed in :18.206.

While still a maiden, Vf Zeus has experience with three Remington Park starts before coming to Ruidoso Downs. The highlight of his Remington Park campaign was a third-place run in the $100,000 Remington Park Juvenile.

Benito Baca has the mount on Vf Zeus with the inside post position.

John Lee and Kathy Lee’s Kiss My Ivory could be very dangerous for trainer Giles. The Ivory James-sired gelding had a throw-out race in his only start at Sunland Park and then came to Ruidoso Downs and dominated his Ruidoso Futurity trial. He pulled out to an easy two-and-one-quarter-length win in :17.981.

Adrian A. Ramos has the mount with the ninth post position.