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GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas (Saturday, July 1, 2023)
The stars of Texas horse racing were out this afternoon at Lone Star Park at Grand Prairie, competing in five restricted stakes races on the 11 race card.
$75,000 Assault Stakes
Triple V Racing's Singapore Flash was the first stakes winner of the day after winning the $75,000 Assault Stakes. The seven-year-old gelding trained by J.R. Caldwell was toward the back of the pack midway down the backstretch but responded well when asked by jockey Rene Diaz at the top of the stretch. Singapore Flash then took command down the lane beating multiple stakes winner, Sunlit Song by a length.
After the victory, Caldwell gave credit to the runner-up "Hats off to Sunlit Song, we've tried to out run him many times. That horse is a really nice horse and our horse showed up today and run a little faster than him today." He continued, "Hopefully they both come back and battle next year in the Texas-bred stakes."
Singapore Flash stopped the clock at 1:36.19 for the one mile turf race and paid $8.80 as the public's second choice in the race for Texas-breds.
$75,000 Valor Farm Stakes
It didn't take long for the jockey and trainer combination of Rene Diaz and J.R. Caldwell to strike again. In the Valor Farm Stakes, the duo sent Texas Ascot Queen to the track to face a field of seven other Texas-bred fillies and mares. The four-year-old sat just off the pace for most of the race but took a half-length lead as she straightened out for home. Texas Ascot Queen was able to maintain the lead and hold off a bid from Ima Discreet Lady winning by a half-length. The filly owned by Indigo Racing finished the six furlongs in 1:12.40, giving her win number five from 10 starts at Lone Star Park. Texas Ascot Queen returned $14.80 on a $2 win wager.
$75,000 Fiesta Mile Stakes
Coming in off a disappointing sixth place finish in last Saturday's Wasted Tears Stakes, Imaluckycharm broke alertly in the Fiesta Mile and never looked back. The four-year-old, Texas-bred filly grabbed an easy lead and stayed in control throughout the one mile turf race winning by 1 3/4 lengths with Ernesto Valdez-Jiminez aboard.
"This time we put her back on the way she likes to run, up in the front, wire-to-wire and it worked." said Imaluckycharm's trainer, Karen Jacks.
The filly, owned by Carl R. Moore Management, covered the ground in 1:36.68 and paid $6.40 to the winning bettors.
$150,000 Texas Thoroughbred Futurity (Colts & Geldings)
Strong Promise, a $125,000 purchase at the 2023 Texas two-year-old sale, entered the Texas Thoroughbred Futurity off of a 10 length maiden victory at Evangeline Downs. This win wouldn't come as easy though as the colt was engaged in a duel with True and Ready during much of the 5 1/2 furlong race. Strong Promise ultimately crossed the finish line first by half a length, stopping the clock at 1:06.31. C.J. McMahon, a former Lone Star Park riding champion, was in the irons for the stakes win for trainer Jayde Gelner and owner Norman Stables, LLC. Strong Promise was the wagering favorite, returning $5.80.
$150,000 Texas Thoroughbred Futurity (Fillies)
Trainer Jayde Gelner made it a sweep of both divisions of the Texas Thoroughbred Futurity with a winning performance by Divining Humor in the fillies division. It was a close race early on but as they rounded the turn, jockey Luis Fuentes asked and Divining Humor delivered with an increasing lead with every stride. In the end, the margin of victory was six lengths for the Texas-bred daughter of Divining Rod.
"Since the first day I got on her, I worked her, I didn't even think she was a two-year-old. She's very, very professional, she's a classy filly." said Fuentes. "She's one of those good horses you like to ride, as soon as you ask them, they give it to you. She's very impressive." the rider continued.
Jayde Gelner not only conditions the filly, but owns her as well. "Thank you for my dad, he picked her out." Gelner said about the $12,000 purchase from the 2022 Texas Summer Yearling Sale. "She does everything correctly, people who break our horses do a great job and my dad starts them out when they are young, the team there does a great job."
Divining Humor finished the 5 1/2 furlong affair in 1:06.28, paying $9.20 for the $2 win wager.
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