2025 Champion Two-Year-Old Filly Dk Misty Cartel headlines Sunday’s Mexico Derby Trials at Hipódromo de las Américas as the 2-1 morning-line favorite.

© Luis Prieto Zamudio

By Stallionesearch / Louanne Wainscott

MEXICO CITY, MEX–FEBRUARY 25, 2026—The 2026 racing season gains momentum at Hipódromo de las Américas as official two-year-old schooling races commence February 26 at 12:00 p.m., with additional sessions scheduled for March 5, 12, 19, and 26. All schooling races will begin at 12:00 p.m. at the Mexico City oval. Official times can be found HERE.

On Sunday, March 1, the spotlight turns to a nine-race program anchored by the $16,329 Inaugural Classic and four trial heats featuring 29 entrants seeking berths in the Mexico Derby Finals. First post is slated for approximately 2:30 p.m., beginning with the Inaugural Classic, where seasoned runners, four years old and upward, will sprint 350 yards.

Breaking from the inside rail as the 6-5 morning-line favorite is Br Chivali Nazareno, a five-year-old standout whose résumé speaks volumes. With $293,150 in career earnings, he has captured 21 victories from 28 starts, including a flawless 5-for-5 campaign last season. The accomplished gelding is sired by Southern Corona out of Chivali Go, by Gone To The Man. Bred in Mexico by Maximiliano Perez Castaneda, he represents Cuadra Cartas Blancas under the conditioning of Jorge Alberto Ruiz Periban. Jockey M. A. Rodriguez has the return call and will guide the accomplished veteran from post one.

The $16,329 Inaugural Classic serves as the first stakes event of the 2026 meet, assembling four accomplished runners to dash 350 yards in what promises to be a sharp and competitive opener.

Races five through eight shift the focus to the Mexico Derby Trials, where 29 three-year-olds will race 300 yards with hopes of securing a coveted spot in the March 15 Mexico Derby Finals.

Headlining the fifth race is 2025 Champion Two-Year-Old Filly Dk Misty Cartel, tabbed as the 2-1 morning-line favorite. The consistent filly compiled an impressive juvenile record, finishing second in the Grade 3 Mexican Bred Futurity Challenge, third in the Subasta Selecta Futurity, and runner-up in the Mexico Futurity (RG3). She enters the trials as the leading money earner in the field with $138,498 earned for Cuadra San Martin.

Dk Misty Cartel is sired by Danny Cartel and out of Mingle Tingle, by First Moonflash. Bred in Mexico by Cuadra La Presita, she is trained by Luis Enrique Cruz Solís and will break from post three under jockey Néstor Durán.

In the sixth race, El Ilusionista Sr has been installed as the 5-2 morning-line favorite following a strong close to his juvenile season. The colt capped his two-year-old campaign with a victory in the $125,000 Mexico Breeders’ Futurity (RG3), marking his fourth consecutive win. From eight career starts, he boasts six victories and one second-place finish, missing the board only once while earning $96,000 for Cuadra San Martin.

A son of Swingin Good Reason out of Muscles Diablo by Valiant Hero, El Ilusionista Sr was bred in Mexico by Rancho Santa Rosa Chiapas. Trainer Luis Enrique Cruz Solís once again teams with jockey Néstor Durán as the colt departs from post six.

The Cuadra San Martin stablemates have previously squared off and now aim to begin their sophomore campaigns by securing Derby qualifications for their connections. With 29 talented three-year-olds set to contest the 300-yard trials, Sunday’s program promises both speed and high stakes as contenders race against the clock for a place in the Mexico Derby starting gate.

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