ELP Derby ($200.000 Purse)
ELP- For Three Year Olds
One Mile on the Dirt
August 14, 2022

A small field of five got together to run in the ELP Derby, a race that was almost in jeopardy of not filling at all. It would be just the fourth time that the race would be run, and now we can say that Angelos Stable has won half of them. The trainer also won last year with Electric, and this year it would be The Good Dinosaur, a highly versatile horse in terms of distance, heading to the winner’s circle. The winning jockey was C J Hernandez, and it’s his first win in the race. Congratulations to them! Our winning time for this race would be 1:34.79, and that’s the quickest edition of the race that was run at a mile. Here’s a look at it!

(1/4 Mile- :23.54)- The early leader of the race will be the D J C Racing Stables- trained Federation, as he prevails in a side by side battle over our eventual winner from Angelos Stable, The Good Dinosaur. As they move into the backstretch, that one will settle for being about a length behind. Running in the middle of the field, both Top Gun (D J C Racing Stables) and Foreign Relation (Nakamura Stables) are in a stalking position. Several lengths further back, Proud And Fearless (Angelos Stable) trails the field while practically crashing into the rail (if you use the overhead camera).

(½ Mile- :46.92)- Finishing the backstretch portion of the race, Federation and The Good Dinosaur are neck and neck now, while both running in good stride for now. Top Gun is in third, still about a length and a half from the frontunners, but he starts to put some distance between he and Foreign Relation. Proud And Fearless has still not gotten involved.

(Top of Stretch, 1.8F To Go)- Early in the turn, Federation was able to keep up with The Good Dinosaur, but midway through the turn, it was a different story. At this point, The Good Dinosaur was clearly the better horse, and would pull away from as they approached the top of the of stretch. Once they were at this point, The Good Dinosaur was leading by a length and a half and it seemed like the race was over now. After all, Top Gun had as much success with The Good Dinosaur as his stablemate did, and also lost ground in the turn, and so too did Foreign Relation. Proud And Fearless was content watching his stablemate take control.

(Finish- 1:34.79)- There are no surprises in the stretch. The Good Dinosaur was clearly the best horse in this field, and our pick to win the race lived up to expectations as he earned the victory. The only surprise was likely how emphatically he won it, and I look forward to seeing where he ends up next. Foreign Relation is second, not from a charge or anything, but with a steady stride that nips the tiring Federation for the spot. Top Gun and Proud And Fearless round it out.

About The Winner- The Good Dinosaur, trained by Angelos Stable and ridden to victory by C J Hernandez, is a three year old gelding by Con Artist and is out of Validation. He was bred by Smokey Stover as a first quarter two year old, and acquired by Angelos Stable with a $25.000 claim in October 2021. Congratulations to the connections! The win is his sixth in 13 starts, and his first stake win. His career earnings are now $322.550.

Track: Fast
Time: :23²  :46⁴  1:10¹  1:34³

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 5 – 2 Paid 8.80
$1 Trifecta: 5 – 2 – 4 Paid 19.10

Scratched: None

— NS

Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded