Los Alamitos Winter Derby Qualifiers

Dunn Ranch's Ghost Witha Fire on Saturday posted the fastest qualifying time to the February 18, $183,350 Los Alamitos Winter Derby (G1).

Racing in the first of three 400-yard trials at Los Alamitos Racecourse, Ghost Witha Fire defeated third-fastest qualifier Good Wagon SA by 1 1/2 lengths in :19.581. Armando Cervantes rode the son of champion A Revenant for trainer Monty Arrossa.

Ghost Witha Fire was bred in Texas by Johnny Trotter, and he was purchased by Dunn Ranch for $65,000 at the 2021 Ruidoso Select Yearling Sale.  The brown gelding is out of Dash Through Fire, a winning Walk Thru Fire mare and a finalist in the 2013 Los Alamitos Two-Million Futurity (G1). His second dam, the Mr Jess Perry mare Dash Back Perry, won the 2012 Charger Bar Handicap (G1) at Los Alamitos.

Raced in California and New Mexico, Ghost Witha Fire has won two of six outs and has banked $15,080. He ended his 2-year-old season with a three-quarter length victory in a 400-yard Golden State Million Futurity (G1) trial on October 9.

"Ghost has been a little slow to get going," Arrossa said. "We had a few little issues with him early at Ruidoso. We brought him over here to Los Alamitos and he likes the track here. He's adapted really well.

"He ran a great race in the Golden State trials, and then had an abscess in his hind foot," the trainer added. "We missed the Los Alamitos Two Million trials with him. He put an excellent work here about three weeks ago. We were hoping he would come back and run to that form. He ran a nice race tonight and I was really proud."

Second-fastest qualifier Take A Swig Of This, a gelded son of A Revenant trained by Arrossa for owner Dunn Ranch, won the second heat in :19.733. Armando Cervantes rode Take A Swig Of This, who was winning for the second time in five outs and boosting his earnings to $203,090.

Take A Swig Of This was bred in Texas by Weetona Stanley of Medill, Oklahoma. A $40,000 buy at the 2021 Heritage Place Yearling Sale in Oklahoma City, he ran second in last year's 350-yard, $1.112-million Heritage Place Futurity (G1) at Remington Park. 

Click here for a complete list of qualifiers. Click here for a more detailed recap of the trials.

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