Trainer Leo Alcala saddled A Separate Rose who posted the bulled work on Thursday at Remington Park.

© Dustin Orona Photography

By Richard Linihan

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK—FEBRUARY 6, 2025—Trainer Leo Alcala was the talk of the town going into the finals of last year’s $854,775 Remington Park Futurity with three qualifiers among the 10 Oklahoma-bred 2-year-old finalists.

He may have another solid runner this year with A Separate Rose among the 3-year-old set here.

This Texas-bred Quarter Horse filly by Separatist, out of the Shazoom mare Shazoomin Rose, was caught by clocker Cristina Soto in :11.47 seconds, handily from the gate over a good track, caused by overnight drizzle.

The effort was Thursday morning’s fastest of the day at that distance. Only four horses of 18 that worked 220 yards this morning broke the 12-second mark.

A Separate Rose has only raced twice in her career, but Alcala, owner and trainer of the filly, thought a lot of her when he entered her for the first time in the Oklahoma Futurity trials on March 8 at Remington Park last year.

She disappointed, finishing seventh and didn’t race again until Nov. 30, 2024, when she appeared back in form, breaking her maiden at Zia Park in New Mexico with maiden claiming company, winning by a neck at 12-1 odds.

Alcala, who has two homes, one in Jones, Okla., and another in Fort Myers, Fla., has given A Separate Rose another breather before her next start at Remington Park, and it seems to have made her a happy camper, working the bullet.

If anyone can find a nice winner, it’s Alcala, who has also shown his talents in the Remington Park track kitchen, where he has had long lines of hungry horsemen lined up to eat what he has cooked for the day.

Alcala qualified three of the top 10 finalists in last year’s Remington Park Futurity – including the 3-1 morning line favorite for that race, Cowgirls Can Fly, the fastest qualifier in the trials.

She and stablemate Js Freightrain were scratched from the final. Alcala ran fifth with his only starter of the three, Coronita KO, at 9-1 odds. She subsequently ran second in the $70,000 FL Lady Bug Stakes here at 7-2 odds on May 25, 2024.

The one that Alcala really proved himself with was As and Js, a mare that he purchased for $11,000 at a sale that a friend had to convince him to attend. She wound up earning $531,134 in her career, including two stakes races at Remington Park.

One of Alcala’s favorite things to do is to pull out his cell phone, show a picture of his mansion in Fort Myers, and say, “She did that.” Now he has As And Js as a broodmare.

It appears Alcala will see where the ceiling is on A Separate Rose. Judging from her workout on Thursday, it could be very high.

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Remington Park has provided more than $374 Million to the State of Oklahoma general education fund since the opening of the casino in 2005. Located at the junction of Interstates 35 & 44, in the heart of the Oklahoma City Adventure District, Remington Park presents year-round simulcast racing and casino gaming. The 2025 American Quarter Horse Season will begin on March 6. Must be 18 or older to wager on horse racing or enter the casino gaming floor. Visit remingtonpark.com for more information.