First-time starters Marked and Life Jacket won the two Mountain Top Thoroughbred Futurity (R) trials run at Ruidoso Downs on Saturday.
Trained by Todd Fincher for owner R. Lee Lewis and Brad E. King, Marked won the first heat by 6 1/4 lengths from Lead Monterey while covering 5 furlongs in :58.39. Tracy Hebert rode the homebred daughter of the Bernardini stallion Marking.
“She was quick on her feet and showed maturity in the stretch,” said Fincher of Marked. “The jockey shut her down, and she still won by six. She has a strong future if we can keep her healthy.”
Marked is the first starter foaled by Lookin Better, an unraced 7-year-old daughter of two-time Eclipse champion Lookin At Lucky.
Life Jacket won the second trial by 1 3/4 lengths from Lonzo Who in :58.30. Aldo Arboleda rode the dark bay or brown son of the Pulpit stallion Abstraction for owners Dale F. Taylor Racing LLC and Bob Matney, and trainer Todd Fincher.
Life Jacket was bred by Dale Taylor. The gelding is one of nine winners from as many starters produced by the winning Chimes Band mare Partyband, and he is a half brother to multiple stakes winner Roll Out The Band and stakes winner Raider Red.
Nine of the 10 Mountain Top qualifiers were making their first career starts in the trials. Five of the finalists were from the barn of trainer Todd Fincher.
The first five finishers from Saturday’s trials made the June 26, $123,991 Mountain Top Thoroughbred Futurity final. The complete list of qualifiers appears in alphabetical order below.
| Horse (Sex, Pedigree) | Owner | Breeder (State) | Trainer |
| ANNIE GET UR GUNS F, Awesome Indian-Silver Jonesy by Silver Season | Bobby J. McQueen | Jay Taylor and Paulette Taylor (NM) | Jose R. Gonzalez Jr. |
| CHIPPSTER C, Attila’s Storm-Samba Queeen by Giant’s Causeway | Jana Trotter | R.D. Hubbard (NM) | Casey Lambert |
| LEAD MONTEREY G, Monterey Jazz-Rosie Is A Leader by Fit To Fight | Reliance Ranches LLC | Reliance Ranches LLC (NM) | Todd Fincher |
| LIFE JACKET G, Abstraction-Partyband by Chimes Band | Dale F. Taylor Racing LLC and Bob Matney | Dale Taylor (NM) | Todd Fincher |
| LONZO WHO G, Comfort-Weekends For Love by Not For Love | Sam E. Stevens and Sammy L. Stevens | Sam E. Stevens and Sammy L. Stevens (NM) | Todd Fincher |
| MARKED F, Marking-Lookin Better by Lookin At Lucky | Lee Lewis and Brad E. King | R. Lee Lewis and Brad E. King (NM) | Todd Fincher |
| MARK’S WARRIOR G, Marking-Key To My Warrior by Majestic Warrior | Dale F. Taylor Racing | Dale Taylor and Debbie Taylor (NM) | Todd Fincher |
| MR. MERCEDES G. Attila’s Storm-Our Flying Angel by Abajo | Mike Abraham and Pierre & Leslie Amestoy | Pierre Amestoy, Leslie Amestoy and Mike Abraham (NM) | James Lackey |
| RIGHT ON TIME G, Right Rigger-Chiming Music by General Meeting | William Brook Henderson | Nancy Storer and dba Warfield Stud (NM) | Dan Dennison |
| WARRIORS MARK G, Marking-Flying Humor by Distorted Humor | Leslie A Amestoy and Pierre Amestoy | Pierre Amestoy and Leslie Amestoy (NM) | James Lackey |