Fine Am Eye (pictured), a sorrel daughter of the Mr Jess Perry stallion Eye Am King racing for Backdoor Thoroughbreds LLC, is the fastest qualifier to the October 15, $250,000-added New Mexico State Fair Derby (RG3) for state-bred 3-year-old Quarter Horses.
Racing in the last of six trials at Albuquerque Downs on Saturday, Fine Am Eye defeated third-fastest qualifier Pick Your Pour by a half of a length while covering 400 yards in :19.114, a clocking accomplished while aided by a reported 15-mph tail wind. Noe Garcia Jr. rode the filly for trainer Fred Danley.
Fine Am Eye was bred by Mac and Janis Murray’s MJ Farms at Veguita, New Mexico, and she was a $27,000 yearling purchase at the 2021 New Mexico-Bred Sale at Ruidoso Downs. The filly is out of Starsmith, a winning daughter of ’01 AQHA champion 2-year-old colt Tres Seis, and she is a half sister to 2014 Shue Fly Stakes (RG2) winner Woodys Allstar.
Fine Am Eye has won six of 17 races and has earned $110,508, and she was a finalist in last year’s New Mexico Cup (RG2) and Mountain Top (RG2) futurities.
Second-fastest qualifier Vintage Bourdeaux won the fifth heat by three-quarters of a length from fourth-fastest qualifier KJ Daddys Money. Trained by Marco Flores for the Tungsten Racing Partnership and aided by a reported 15-mph tail wind, the sorrel son of Eye Am King went 400 yards in :19.166. Luis Flores-Garcia rode the gelding.
A $33,000 yearling buy at the 2021 New Mexico-Bred Sale, Vintage Bourdeaux was bred by MJ Farms. The gelding is out of Bridgette Bordeaux, a winning homebred Blushing Bug mare who ran second in the ’05 New Mexico State Fair Derby (RG3), and he is a half brother to graded stakes winner Jess Bordeaux.
Nine of the 10 New Mexico State Fair Derby qualifiers came out of the last two trials. The only one who didn’t, eighth-fastest qualifier Just En King, won the first heat, which was run with a reported 7-mph cross wind.
The complete list of qualifiers is below:
| Horse (Sex, Pedigree) | Owner | Breeder (State) | Trainer | Time |
| FINE AM EYE F, Eye Am King-Starsmith by Tres Seis | Backdoor Thoroughbreds LLC | MJ Farms (NM) | Fred Danley | :19.114 |
| VINTAGE BOURDEAUX G, Eye Am King-Bridgette Bordeaux by Blushing Bug | Tungsten Racing Partnership | MJ Farms (NM) | Marco A. Flores | :19.166 |
| PICK YOUR POUR G, Jesse James Jr-Tangled Vines by Dash Ta Fame | Orlando Granillo, Azucena Mendoza, and Rene Mendoza | MJ Farms (NM) | James Gonzales III | :19.200 |
| KJ DADDYS MONEY F, Big Daddy Cartel-KJ Kiss Me Goodbye by First Moonflash | John Lee, Kathy Lee, and Ruben Mares | John & Kathy Lee (NM) | Wes Giles | :19.288 |
| JENAVI F, Big Daddy Cartel-C Twister Seis by Tres Seis | Joshua Owens | Randy Smith (NM) | Mike Joiner | :19.318 |
| CODEX G, Big Daddy Cartel-Astica by Jesse James Jr | Uno Mas | MJ Farms (NM) | Wes Giles | :19.352 |
| WHITE KNIGHT G, Eye Am King-Alice K White by First Down Dash | Jose Moreno | MJ Farms (NM) | James Gonzales III | :19.367 |
| JUST EN KING G, Eye Am King-U R A Fury Lady by Furyofthewind | Ronald N. Ulibarri | Ronald N. Ulibarri (NM) | Omar Vargas | :19.443 |
| WOOD DEE QUEEN F, Eye Am King-Miss Woody Dee by Woodbridge | J & SM Inc., Don Reynolds, and M. Lane Reynolds | MJ Farms (NM) | Fred Danley | :19.443 |
| DASH FLASH G, First Moonflash-PT Feature Dash by Feature Mr Jess | Juan Carlos Ramos | Jimmy Dick (NM) | Jesus Rondan Jr. | :19.447 |