ZIA DERBY QUALIFIERS

COURTESY OF STALLIONESEARCH.COM


Gun Battle tops the Zia Derby qualifiers on
Friday at Ruidoso Downs.
Photo by Bill Pitt, Jr.

Gun Battle Returns With Easy Win In Zia Derby Trial at Ruidoso Downs



RUIDOSO DOWNS, NM—JULY 13, 2007—Robert and Del Rae Driggers’ Gun Battle, runner-up in last year’s All American Futurity, made a successful return to racing with an easy win in the first of two trials to the $93,272 Zia Derby on Friday afternoon at Ruidoso Downs.
The 10 fastest qualifiers from the 400-yard trials are eligible to compete in the Zia Derby on July 29, which offers an afternoon filled with stakes races celebrating New Mexico-bred horse racing.

Gun Battle stumbled at the start of his Zia Derby trial, but jockey Esgar Ramirez let the gelding find his footing and they easily went to the lead to put away Mister WW, who defeated Gun Battle in the Shue Fly Stakes.

The Dash Ta Fame gelding won last year’s Zia Futurity, the richest race on the Zia Festival program, and should be favored to complete the Zia futurity-derby double. He easily set the fastest-qualifying time to the derby when he raced the 400 yards in :19.650 over a sloppy track that was reminiscent of the wet running of last year’s All American Futurity.

In the All American Futurity, Gun Battle pushed No Secrets Here for most of the 440 yards before coming up a neck short of No Secrets Here, who was clocked in a stakes record :20.88.

Gun Battle has proven to be among the nation’s premier members of his age group on fast and off racing surfaces. The earner of more than $570,000 has crossed the finish line in first or second in each of his latest four stakes appearances. In the Grade 1 Shue Fly Stakes on Dec. 30, his start before the Zia Derby trials, he crossed the finish line in second place, but was disqualified and placed ninth for interference.

Trial runner-up Mister WW, owned by Gerald Neff and trained by Blane Wood, is an accomplished stakes horse. He upset Gun Battle at 46-1 odds in the Shue Fly and then showed that race wasn’t a fluke when he won the New Mexico Horse Breeders Association Stakes over state-breds. The Dean Miracle gelding then stepped up against open company and finished second by a head in the Grade 2 West Texas Derby.

Mightys First Call, second to Gun Battle in the 2006 Zia Futurity, won the second of two trials with the second-fastest qualifying time of 19.753. The stablemate of Mister WW from the Wood barn broke slowly in her first start since March 4, but quickly hit her stride to pull away under jockey James J.J. Gonzales and secure her spot in the Zia Derby.

Gun Battle and Mightys First Call showed the strength of New Mexico-breds last year when after their 1-2 finish in the Zia Futurity, Mightys First Call finished fourth in the All American Futurity while Gun Battle was a challenging second in the finals to the Grade 1, $2 million All American Futurity.

Race: ZIA DERBY-RG2
Track: RUIDOSO DOWNS
Trials: JULY 13, 2007
Final: JULY 29, 2007
Purse: $93,272
Age: 3-YEAR-OLDS BRED IN NEW MEXICO
Distance: 400 YARDS

Horse Sex Sire-Dam, Dam Sire Time Owner Breeder Trainer Jockey

Gun Battle g. Dash Ta Fame--On A Bunny, by On A High :19.650 Robert M. & Del Rae Driggers Robert Driggers (NM) Fred I. Danley Esgar Ramirez

Mightys First Call f. Calligrapher--Might B A First, by First Down Dash :19.753 Richard R. Shearer Richard R. Shearer (NM) G. Blane Wood James Gonzales, II

Mister Ww g. Dean Miracle--Miss Whipkey, by On A High :19.778 Gerald Rush Neff Gerald Rush Neff (NM) G. Blane Wood Roy Baldillez

Rainbows N Diamonds f, Rabbits Rainbow--Shines Likea Diamond, by Coup de Kas (TB) :19.797 James T. Lewter James T. Lewter (NM) Joel H. Marr Bonifacio Perez

Miracle Snow g. Dean Miracle--Snow Peak, by Chicks Beduino :19.841 Melvin and Mary Neugebauer Melvin and Mary Neugebauer (NM) Wes T. Giles Tony Guymon

Miracle In Seattle g. Dean Miracle--Starbrite Starlite (TB), by Avenue Of Flags (TB) :19.952 Philip G. Troost Phil Troost (NM) Henry Dominguez Duane Sterling

Casino Dash c. Dash Ta Fame--Casino Lights, by Sixarun 20.086 Scott Accomazzo Paul Shissel (NM) Paul C. Jones Freddie L. Martinez

Wonder Child f. Dash Ta Fame--Just A Wildone, by Three Oh's Wild :20.229 William & Velma Rezzonico MJ Farms (NM) Bret Vickery Christopher G. Zamora

Blushing Blaze f. Chicks A Blazin--Blushing Empress, by First Down Dash :20.317 L.A. & P.J. Amestoy, J. Jones and R.D. Hubbard Ross &/or Ernest Amestoy (NM) Michael W. Joiner Mark Villa

Highly Blazin g. Chicks A Blazin--Medley High Note, by On A High :20.330 Rodney J. Veret Mike Abraham (NM) Russell M. Harris Arturo Carrillo

Trial Notes: Gun Battle won the first of two trials by 3/4 of a length over Mister Ww to post the fastest qualifying time.