Rivals General Skywalker (blue silks) and Sugar N Pride meet in the $30,250 Open Derby on May 22

© New Image Media

AJAX DOWNS–MAY 20, 2024–Wednesday's $30,240 Open Derby at Ajax Downs will renew the rivalry between General Skywalker and Sugar N Pride, the top two juvenile Quarter Horses of 2023. The pair met five times last year, with Sugar N Pride, owned by George Coleman, having a 3 to 2 edge over his mate, who Marie Broadstock owns. Both horses are Ontario-sired and bred and trained by Bob Broadstock.

The Open Derby at 300-yards for 3-year-olds has attracted a strong field of eight and it is carded as race six on May 22, the third day of the 2024 Ajax Downs season.

General Skywalker and Sugar N Pride were expected to meet in prep for the Open Derby on May 8, but the rivalry did not materialize. Sugar N Pride dropped his rider, Rachael Isaacs, before the race and had to be scratched. General Skywalker went on to finish second after jumping up at the start.

The tall and lanky General Skywalker, a son of Look At Magics Form, won the Stallion Auction Futurity last June and was a close third in the rich Alex Picov Futurity in October. His regular rider is Ramiro Castillo, and the pair will break from post position 5.

Sugar N Pride is a more compact son of longtime leading sire Sugarman Perry. He won two of six races last year, including the Ontario Sires Futurity. The chestnut gelding and Isaacs drew post position two.

Willie Lump Lump (named after a Red Skelton character), who was second in the Alex Picov Futurity, draws the rail in the Open Derby. The gelding, who is still a maiden, had a slow start from the gate in his 2024 opener and was recently purchased by Rick Crispi and Craig Spada from Carol and Jaime Robertson. Jason Pascoe's Eye Tempt You, post 4, was fourth in the Picov Futurity and returns to Ajax after two starts in Kentucky in March.

The field is completed by newcomer Rbybybaby, last seen winning a maiden race at Will Rogers Downs in Texas in October with a hefty 90 speed index, CINDY LOO WHO, an impressive winner of her Ajax debut on May 8 and the Rick Kennedy-trained pair of Fiesty Feebee and Chasing Butterflies.

*The fifth race on Wednesday is the $11,500 Mayor's Cup, presented by Ajax Mayor Shaun Collier.

FIELD FOR THE 2ND RUNNING OF THE OPEN DERBY
Ajax Downs, May 22, 300 yards, Purse $30,250, Race 6

1. WILLIE LUMP LUMP Lauren Spada Alexis Sanchez 7-2
2. SUGAR N PRIDE Bob Broadstock Rachael Isaacs 3-1
3. RBYBYBABY Scott Reid Carly Furlonger 3-2
4. EYE TEMPT YOU Jason Pascoe Brian Bell 4-1
5. GENERAL SKYWALKER Bob Broadstock Ramiro Castillo 2-1
6. CINDY LOO WHO Jason Pascoe Diego Benitez 6-1
7. FIESTY FEEBEE Rick Kennedy Tony Phillips 10-1
8. CHASING BUTTERFLIES Rick Kennedy Cristian Benitez 8-1

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

*Parking and admission are always free at Ajax Downs. You can watch and wager on the race's trackside or from the expansive simulcast room. Wagering is also available through www.HPIBet.com/

Follow Ajax Downs on social media @AjaxDowns and visit our website, www.AjaxDowns.com, for news, track program, and more information. To learn how to own a share in a Quarter Horse, contact the Quarter Racing Owners of Ontario, Inc. at www.qrooi.com.