Whose Da Boss is the 5-2 morning-line favorite for Saturday's $22,600 NDQHRA Quarter Horse Derby at North Dakota Horse Park.

© North Dakota Horse Park

By Louanne Wainscott, StallioneSearch

FARGO, ND–JULY 31, 2026–Saturday afternoon at North Dakota Horse Park promises an exciting day of Quarter Horse racing, with an eight-race program getting underway at first post at noon. The featured event is race six, where eight North Dakota-Bred 3-year-olds will square off in the $22,600 NDQHRA Quarter Horse Derby. Scheduled for approximately 2:30 p.m., the talented group will sprint 400 yards in what shapes up to be one of the weekend's most competitive races.

Trainer Robert Don Johnson will send out three of the eight starters and appears to hold a strong hand in the featured event. Leading the trio is 5-2 morning-line favorite Whose Da Boss, who enters the derby seeking his first career victory after showing steady improvement throughout the season. The gelding finished second in the Dan Lockie Derby earlier this year and has earned $14,518 despite just six lifetime starts.

Owned by Billy Buchholz, the North Dakota-bred gelding is by Freighttrain B and out of the FDD Dynasty mare Dynasty Time. Breaking from post five, Whose Da Boss will again have Kody Kellenberger aboard as the pair aim to turn consistent efforts into a breakthrough victory.

Johnson's second major contender is Prized Five Bar, listed at 3-1 on the morning line. Although the gelding has yet to make a significant impact in his three starts this season, he brings an impressive juvenile résumé into the derby. Last year, he captured both the NDQHRA Futurity and the VBA Open Futurity, establishing himself as one of the state's top 2-year-olds.

The Legacy Ranches homebred, by Five Bar Cartel and out of the Panther Mountain mare Panther Prize Me, has three victories and three third-place finishes in ten career starts, with earnings of $24,354. Scott A. Bethke will be in the saddle as Prized Five Bar leaves from post three, giving Johnson another legitimate shot at the derby trophy.

With a talented field of eight evenly matched North Dakota-bred sophomores set to line up, the $22,600 NDQHRA Quarter Horse Derby has all the ingredients for an exciting finish. The featured event kicks off the weekend’s stakes finales and should deliver a thrilling stretch run for fans and bettors as the state's top 3-year-olds battle for derby honors over 400 yards.

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