WILD SIX IN RAINBOW FUTURITY TRIALS

COURTESY OF STALLIONESEARCH.COM


Wild Six, winner of the West Texas Futurity(G1)will run in the 17th trial.
Photo by Coady Photography

Wild Six Draws Into Tough Rainbow Futurity Trial Friday


RUIDOSO DOWNS, NM—JULY 1, 2007—West Texas Futurity winner Wild Six puts her three-for-three record on the line what could be the toughest of the 18 trials to the Grade 1, $625,000 Rainbow Futurity on Friday afternoon at Ruidoso Downs.
The 18 trials begin with a special 11:00 a.m. first post time and Wild Six faces Ruidoso Futurity third-place finisher Three Past Six in the 17th trial.

In the West Texas Futurity on April 22, Wild Six broke like a seasoned sprinter from the outside post position and accelerated past her rivals to win by half of a length in :14.952 for 300 yards while the infield flag hung limp.

The West Texas Futurity victory gave the New Mexico-bred miss her third win from three starts. “In her first two starts she really came from out of it,” said trainer Wes Giles of her maiden and West Texas trial victories.

Wild Six is owned by John Lee, Lincoln Sherwood and Herman Mineer, three longtime friends from Arizona. “We’re buddies and we’re having fun,” said Sherwood.

Giles saw the filly in a pasture last year at MJ Farms in Veguita, New Mexico and made a mental note that he liked the Tres Seis-sired filly out of Wild Vines. Then, at the Ruidoso Select Quarter Horse Yearling Sale, Sherwood saw the filly, not knowing that Giles had viewed her at the farm. Sherwood went to Giles and asked him to look at the sorrel filly. “When I saw her at the sale, I remembered it was the same filly and that I liked her,” Giles said. The three friends bought her for $32,000 and now they’re thinking of the Rainbow Futurity and then a $1-million payday.

“We’re pointing to the big one,” said Sherwood, referring to the $2-million All American Futurity (G1) on Labor Day at Ruidoso Downs.

“The All American is our main deal,” said Giles.

First though is Friday’s Rainbow Futurity trial and a meeting with the sharp Three Past Six, owned by R.D. Hubbard and Dennis Monroe. The Paul Jones-trained Three Past Six made her career debut in the trials to the $500,000 Ruidoso Futurity and came through with a dead-heat win and a spot in the Ruidoso Futurity. The Tres Seis filly stepped forward in the Ruidoso Futurity with her third-place finish and the lightly raced miss figures to improve when she makes her third career start in the Rainbow Futurity trials.

Money paid by horsemen into the Rainbow Futurity purse that exceeds the $625,000 futurity purse is carried over to next year’s Rainbow Derby. Approximately $235,000 will be carried over for the Rainbow Derby, meaning those derby horses could be racing for $600,000 in what is projected to be the third-richest derby of 2008 behind the Los Alamitos Super Derby and the All American Derby.

On Saturday afternoon at Ruidoso Downs, this year’s Rainbow Derby prospects race in the 440-yard Rainbow Derby trials. Expected to head those trials are Remember Me Rose and La Lalique, the one-two finishers in the Ruidoso Derby, and recent 400-yard track record setter Separate Bet.