June 15, 2013, Churchill Downs, Kentucky ~For the second time in two years, Arabians raced at the famous Churchill Downs track on June 15. Valiant Boy SFBAR (Darweesh(UK) x Thumb Print(FR), the 2012 Arabian Horse of the Year and champion 4-year-old colt, won a five-length triumph under jockey Joe Rocco Jr over In X Hess, ridden by Corey Lanerie in Saturday’s $103,695 President of the United Arab Emirates Cup (Grade I).
Owned by Guy Neivens, the win was the second for Ron Martino in this series, as he won with Sam Vasquez’s T M Fred Texas in 2011. Valiant Boy SFBAR has both Amer and Manganate in his pedigree. Sent to post as the 6-5 favorite in the field of eight, Valiant Boy SBFAR clocked 1 1/16 miles in 1:55.10, as Smoke House came in third.
As they finished: Spin Doctor, Sand Blastt, So Big Is Better, Secret Treasour and Vip.
Ron Martino, trainer of VALIANT BOY SBFAR, said after the win: “I don’t care how many races like this you win, it’s always special. To get lucky enough to get a good rider like Joe to ride our horse…we felt we had a super horse. It’s nice being able to train the best caliber horse for the people we train for. They’re great owners. It’s a lot of teamwork.”
Photos thanks to Paul Smoke
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