Project Leader headlines the $50,000 Winter Championship at Los Alamitos on Sunday night.

© Los Alamitos

LOS ALAMITOS–DECEMBER 6, 2024–Oh Jerry, See Through It, and Tizlightning are some of the best horses to ever race at 1,000 yards at Los Alamitos. Each of them won a rich final at 1,000 yards at least once, with Tizlightning being the only one to sweep the Summer and Winter finals in the same year at Los Alamitos.

James Crotts’ Project Leader has already added his name among the all-time greats at 1,000 yards at the Orange County oval. He’ll now look to join Tizlightning as the only ones to sweep the track’s two richest distance races when he heads the field to the $50,000 Winter Championship at Los Alamitos in race eight on Sunday night.

A full field of 10 will be in action in the Winter Championship with Project Leader, the 2-1 morning line favorite, against a solid group also featuring David Hinkins’ Lawless World and Battle Born Racing Stable’s Piper’s Causeway. They’re both 3-1 morning line choices in the 1,000 Yard Championship.

Project Leader has been perfect at this distance in 2024, winning every one of his seven starts at 1,000 yards. The gelding by Run Brother Run has won eight in a row here, and for his career, he’s won 16 of his 28 starts at 1,000 yards at Los Alamitos. The veteran won the Summer Final by two lengths on June 23, and from there, he’s two more victories in preparation for the Winter Championship. Ricardo Ramirez, who has piloted him in all of his outings during this eight-race local winning streak, will ride him from post three on Sunday night.

Lawless World, who Adan Farias trains, has won his last two starts, including an impressive daylight win against $40,000 claimers at Del Mar at six furlongs on November 8. He was no match for Project Leaders when they met in the Summer Final, but he’s expected to be a bigger factor due to his terrific current form coming into this race.

The Jesus Uranga-trained Piper’s Causeway has been in great form the entire year, as he’s finished third or better in 12 of his 13 starts. He’ll look to make Battle Born Racing Stables the first racing entity to win one of these 1,000 finals with more than one horse. Battle Born will look to become the first three-time winner of these finals.

Sunday’s card will also feature a $35,000 Winter Final for Fillies & Mares at 1,000 Yards. Daraline Squyres’ Lady Run has been the top point earner during the second half of the year pretty much all season long and enters this race with a pair of wins to her name. Jesus Uranga’s Coruscation has twice finished second in these finals, while the Mark Rheinford-trained Shared Future and Antonio Flores and Bruce Guttman’s Just A Little Luck both come into this race with two-race win streaks here. Ten distaffers will be in action in this event, which is set as the fourth race on the card.

**********************

Would you like more industry news delivered directly to your inbox? Click here to sign up.