The biggest weekend in Quarter Horse racing has arrived, and the sport’s brightest young stars are set to take center stage on Labor Day at Albuquerque Downs. A loaded 10-race program will build toward the Grade 1, $3 million All American Futurity, with support from the Grade 1 All American Gold Cup and the $200,000 All American Juvenile Stakes.

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The afternoon peaks in the tenth race, when the fastest qualifiers from the August 7 and 8 trial heats return for the Grade 1 $3,000,000 All American Futurity. The 2-year-olds are scheduled to load into the gate at approximately 6:15 p.m. for the classic quarter-mile distance of 440 yards.

The field was reduced by early scratches from No. 4 Tempting Lu and No. 6 Jess a Bad Lil Cat, leaving eight juveniles to chase one of Quarter Horse racing’s most coveted prizes.

Undefeated Cowboys Flying leads the field as the 9-5 morning-line favorite, entering the richest race of his young career with a perfect record and a rapidly growing résumé.

Cowboys Flying has commanded attention since his April 17 debut, when he recorded the fastest qualifying time in the $541,000 Texas Breeders Futurity. He returned in the final and delivered again, winning by three-quarters of a length to capture his first major stakes victory.

The gelding then traveled to Retama Park, where he raised the bar. After posting the fastest qualifying time for the Grade 1 $684,000 TQHA Sale Futurity, Cowboys Flying dominated the final by 2 1/4 lengths.

That performance convinced his connections to take their biggest shot to date.

After Cowboys Flying’s TQHA Sale Futurity victory, his owners paid the $50,000 supplemental fee to make him eligible for the All-American Futurity. The decision paid off when he delivered another winning performance in the trials, posting the third-fastest qualifying time over the two days and earning his place on racing’s biggest stage.

Double J Racing purchased Cowboys Flying for $53,000 at the TQHA Yearling Sale. The Texas-bred son of Flying Cowboy 123, out of the Carters Cartel mare Cartels Lady, was bred by Dr. Tommy Hays. Trainer Marco Chavez-Gutierrez will saddle him from post seven, with jockey Nestor Duran aboard as Cowboys Flying seeks to remain perfect in his sixth career start.

Think Twice Perry enters the All American Futurity as the 7-2 second choice on the morning line. Think Twice Perry earned his All-American berth with a one-length win in a trial on the second day of qualifying. The performance followed an impressive runner-up finish in the Grade 1 $1 million Rainbow Futurity, giving the gelding valuable experience against elite company heading into Monday’s final.

Over five starts, Think Twice Perry has posted two victories and a second-place finish, earning $191,878 for owner Johnny Trotter, who bought him for $90,000 at the Ruidoso Select Yearling Sale.

Bred in Utah by McColee Land & Livestock, LLC, Think Twice Perry is by Mr Jess Perry and out of the First Down Dash mare Budder Think Twice. Trainer James J. Gonzales II will send him from post two, with jockey Edwin G. Escobedo aboard.

Before the juveniles take center stage, older horses will compete over the demanding 440 yards in the ninth race, the Grade 1 $250,000 All American Gold Cup. The field of 3-year-olds and older is scheduled to enter the gate at approximately 5:40 p.m.

Paradise Pete has been installed as the 3-1 morning-line favorite and enters the Gold Cup with a two-race winning streak.

The 4-year-old gelding most recently captured the Grade 2 $40,000 Mr Jet Moore Stakes, unleashing a powerful late run to pull away by 1 1/4 lengths. His consistency has been a hallmark of his campaign, and he enters Monday with six wins, three seconds, and three thirds, with career earnings of $161,993.

Paradise Pete, a Maryland homebred for Stephen M. Harris, is another son of Flying Cowboy 123 and is out of the Walk Thru Fire mare Fire Specialist. David M. Gomez-Barraza conditions the gelding, who will break from post eight with jockey Christian Cardenas.

The depth of the All-American program will be on full display in the $200,000 All American Juvenile Stakes, one race earlier. Featuring the next group of the fastest horses from the All-American Futurity trials, the eighth race could prove to be one of the afternoon's most competitive events.

Grade 1 winner Fall Classic leads the field as the 3-1 morning-line favorite.

Fall Classic opened his career with three consecutive victories, highlighted by a win in the Grade 1 $1,159,000 Heritage Place Futurity. His unbeaten streak came to an end in the All-American trials, but the gelding lost little in defeat, battling to a game second-place finish, half a length behind My Golden Boy.

Through four starts, Fall Classic has earned $510,970 for owner Christopher A. Villatoro, who purchased him for $47,000 at the Heritage Place Yearling Sale.

Bred in Missouri by Jim Streelman or Bill Dale, Fall Classic is by Cyber Monday and out of the Mr Jess Perry mare Lady Bellaqua. Rodolfo G. Valles trains the gelding, who will start from post seven with jockey Christian Cardenas aboard.

Beyond the millions of dollars and championship implications, Monday’s All-American Futurity carries an additional layer of history.

First contested at Ruidoso Downs in 1959, the All-American Futurity became the defining final leg of the Ruidoso Triple Crown and one of the Quarter Horse industry's most recognizable races. Following the devastating flooding that forced racing to move away from Ruidoso, the event has been held at Albuquerque Downs for the past three years.

The 2026 running will now mark another turning point.

Race organizers announced that the All-American Futurity and its surrounding events will relocate to Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie, Texas, beginning in 2027, bringing an end to another chapter in the race’s New Mexico history.

Before that chapter closes, however, there is one more All-American champion to crown.

Eight juveniles will line up Monday afternoon with $3 million on the line, bringing together a field loaded with Grade 1 experience, stakes credentials and the speed required to survive one of the sport’s most demanding qualifying processes.

For each of them, one final 440-yard test remains between the starting gate and a place in All American Futurity history.

And from post seven, Cowboys Flying will attempt to do what he has done every time the gates have opened throughout his remarkable first season; win.

The races at Albuquerque Downs can be watched on Q-Racing Video.

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