Ed Burke Million Futurity(G1) finalist Kevins Wise Corona will head eight other juveniles in the $20,000 Holiday Handicap at 350 yards Saturday night at Los Alamitos Race Course.

© William Zuazo

LOS ALAMITOS, CA–DECEMBER 27, 2023–A brand-new season kicks off at Los Alamitos on Saturday night, December 30 with the running of the Holiday Handicap for juveniles heading the marquee for the first program of the 2023-2024 campaign.

Live racing will be held at the Orange County oval on Saturday and Sunday nights with first post set for shortly after the final daytime race in the Southern California Thoroughbred circuit. The year-round meet will continue through Sunday, December 22, 2024.

As always, great racing is on tap every weekend night complete with an outstanding stakes schedule of 64 races for horses in all Quarter Horse racing divisions.

Older horses will have the Grade 1 Champion of Champions to point to later in the year on Saturday, December 14, while the upcoming derby horses will be pointed to major races like the Grade 1 Los Alamitos Super Derby on November 10 and the Grade 1 Los Alamitos Oaks on March 23.

For the new class of 2-year-olds in 2024, Los Alamitos will host the Grade 1 Ed Burke Million Futurity on June 16 , Grade 1 Golden State Million Futurity on October 27, and Grade 1 Los Alamitos Two Million Futurity on December 15, plus a full program of stakes races starting with the Robert Adair Kindergarten Futurity trials on April 21.

The first Grade 1 race of the year will take place next Sunday on January 7 with the top mares in the nation competing in the $100,000 Charger Bar Handicap.  The Grade 1 Los Alamitos Winter Derby on Saturday, February 17 and the Grade 1 Brad McKinzie Los Alamitos Winter Championship on Sunday, February 18 are the next two Grade 1 events on the stakes schedule. For the full list of stakes please visit LosAlamitos.com.

The first of the 64 stakes is the $20,000 Holiday Handicap at 350 yards. Nine juveniles will be in action in the Holiday led by Grade 1 futurity finalists Kevin Wise Corona and Relentless Coronado.

Owned by Parsons Ranch and trained by Paul Jones, Kevins Wise Corona won two of six starts and earned $113,183 during a promising freshman season. The colt by KVN Corona also finished third in the Grade 1 Ed Burke Million.

Owned by Zynda Racing and trained by Eddie Willis, Relentless Coronado also enters the Holiday with Grade 1 experience after running fifth to Trane Station V in the Grade 1 Golden State Million Futurity. The gelding also holds the distinction of having won a race at Remington Park, Ruidoso Downs and Los Alamitos Race Course in 2023.

The other seven standouts that will race in the Holiday are Xpensive, CD Docs Candidata, Jessa Dashing Hero, M E Ettago Relent, Asscher, Favorite Nova, and Pappas Fame. Here’s some quick tidbits for each of these top juveniles.

Xpensive, a $132,000 yearling purchase, has won his last two starts at Los Alamitos, including a half-length victory in a trial to the Los Alamitos Two Million Futurity.

CD Docs Candidata is undefeated in his only two starts. His most recent victory was a ¾ length allowance win against fillies.

Asscher was fourth in his local debut and prior to his local arrival he finished eighth in the Grade 1 Rainbow Futurity.

Jessa Dashing Hero was purchased for $95,000 as a yearling and while he’s still a maiden, he was third in the Ah Sigh Stakes for juveniles.

ME Ettago Relent ran second in the Wild West Futurity to Five Bar Supreme, who then came back with a monster race when he finished second in the Grade 1 Los Alamitos Two Million Futurity.

Favorite Nova will complete the field. This $92,000 yearling buy has won three of six starts, including his local debut when posting a head win in a trial to the Golden State Million Futurity.

The field from the rail out is as follows:

1. Pappas Fame
2. CD Docs Candidata
3. Asscher
4. Jessa Dashing Hero
5. Kevins Wise Corona
6. M E Ettago Relent
7. Favorite Nova
8. Xpensive
9. Relentless Coronado

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For more info' please contact larace@losalamitos.com. Follow us on Twitter or Instagram at @losalracing or visit us online at www.losalamitos.com.