LS Prince in an earlier photo with Ramiro Castillo up. The gelding won his big races in 2017 with Josh Scott board. – New Image Media
Ontario’s top 3-year-old Quarter Horse LS PRINCE takes on the best on the continent Saturday night in the $180,000 (US) Adequan Derby Challenge (Grade 3) at Prairie Meadows racetrack in Altoona, Iowa.
The race is one of six major stakes events on Bank of America Challenge night, the biggest racing card of the year in North America.
Owned by Milena Kwiecien of Burlington, ON and trained by Pontypool’s Jason Pascoe, LS Prince won the Picov Derby and Adequan Ajax Challenge this year and is a head away from winning his last five starts. His last three Speed Index numbers of 103, 93 and 102 make him a contender in the 10-horse field that will dash 400-yards. Stormy Smith, a US rider with more than 950 Quarter Horses victories, will ride for the first time. Josh Scott rode the gelding to his major wins at Ajax Downs.
It was the Texas bred’s win in the Adequan Ajax Challenge in August that earned him a berth in the final which will go as the ninth race on Saturday night with a post time of 9:36 (CT), or 10:36 ET.
LS Prince is the first horse ever purchased at auction by Kwiecien, who has become a major player in Ontario Quarter Horse racing in the last two years. LS Prince is a son of Louisiana Senator. He is listed at 15 to 1 in the morning line odds and will start from post seven.
“This track is one of the nicest we have ever been to, absolutely love it here,” said Kwieciwn. “And although we are the Canadian underdogs we got so many agents and jockeys asking about ‘Chubby’. He is getting a lot of attention.”
A Canadian horse has never won a race at the Bank of America Championships which were inaugurated in 1981.
Kwiecien made her first trip to BOA with 2-year-old R Painted Pistol, who got sick during his stay at Los Alamitos.
“Last year Pistol got sick and it was a super anxious pre race experience for our team and a disappointment We can only improve and these two boys are doing awesome and their goofy, care free attitude is giving us all hope for much better results.”
LS Prince is not the only Canadian horse racing on Bank of America Championship night. Kwiecien’s 2-year-old gelding Carneros is in the John Deere Juvenile (Grade 2) worth $130,000 (US). The Oklahoma-bred was claimed by Kwiecien for $25,000 this spring at Remington Park. Carneros is a maiden winner who was second by a neck to top Ajax Downs 2-year-old Had to Be Ivory in that track’s John Deere Challenge qualifier. Had to Be Ivory did not use the free berth to the final so Kwiecien elected to send Carneros.
In the evening’s biggest event, the $330,000 (US) Bank of America Challenge Championship, Greg and Sue Watson of Bethany, ON are starting their gelding Fast Man Vic in the 440 yard race, using the free berth earned by One Famous Glass, who won the Ajax Downs qualifier. Fast Man Vic is listed as a 20 to 1 chance and Cesar Esqueda will ride from post 11.
The entire Bank of America Championship card can be seen on https://www.aqha.com/racing/pages/bank-of-america-racing-challenge/2017-bank-of-america-challenge-championships/
or on the Horseplayer Interactive betting platform at www.hpibet.com
