Seven New Mexico-bred 2-year-old Thoroughbreds, all of whom will be making their debuts in a two-turn race, are entered in Monday’s 1-mile & 70-yard, $50,000 Steve Prather Stakes (R) at Zia Park.

Sarge, the 2-1 morning-line favorite, is a homebred son of Abstraction trained by Joel Marr for owner C. Donnell Echols of Lamesa, Texas. The dark bay or brown gelding has earned $22,222 from three races, and he will be stretching out in distance off of his second-place finish, 3 1/2 lengths behind winner Champ Spirit, in the 6-furlong, $50,000 New Mexico Cup Juvenile Championship (R) at Zia Park on November 11.

Sarge is a half brother to E Bar Way, a son of The Way Home who won this race in 2011, when it was known as the New Mexico Eddy County Stakes. The gelding drew the rail post and will be ridden by Miguel Fuentes Jr.

Trainer Todd Fincher will send out five contenders, including Benjamin Who. A homebred Indian Firewater gelding owned by Sam E. Stevens and Sammy L. Stevens of Lamesa, Texas, Benjamin Who broke his maiden with a nose victory as the 4-5 favorite in a 5 1/2-furlong, $18,000 maiden-special-weight sprint at Zia Park on October 28.

Benjamin Who is one of three winners from four starters produced by Blue Eyed Bella, a homebred daughter of the Citidancer stallion Le Grande Danseur who won three New Mexico-bred stakes from 2008-09, including the ’08 Rio Grande Senorita Futurity (R) at Ruidoso Downs. The gelding drew post 6 and will be ridden by Shane Laviolette.

Trainer Casey Lambert will send out Pub for owners Jay Glover and Gary Stallings. An earner of $27,602 from eight outs, the bay Attila’s Storm gelding is a full brother to Cerveza, the winner of this year’s $50,000 Road Runner Handicap (R) at Ruidoso Downs in July.

Pub drew post 2 and will be ridden by Rodolfo Guerra.

The complete lineup, in post position order including jockey assignments and morning-line odds:
Sarge (Miguel T. Fuentes Jr.), 2-1
Pub (Rodolfo Guerra), 7-2
Coming Abstraction (Alfredo Juarez Jr.), 6-1
The Pacesetter (Tracy Hebert), 12-1
Stormin Texason (Enrique Gomez), 6-1
Benjamin Who (Shane Laviolette), 5-2
Dan Who (Isaias Enriquez), 12-1