Altoona Derby Qualifiers
Altoona Derby Qualifiers

Relentless Rocket, pictured winning last year's Valley Junction Juvenile Stakes, put up the fastest time in the Altoona Derby trials. PHOTO: Jack Coady Photography
September 8, 2025 | Racing , Racing | Racing , Racing
Relentless Rocket on Monday won the first of two trials for the $110,420 Altoona Derby at Prairie Meadows and set the fastest qualifying time of :20.274 for 400 yards. Owned by Tom Maher and bred in South Dakota by Tom and Bill Maher, Relentless Rocket was one of six qualifiers saddled by trainer Jason Olmstead and one of three owned by Maher. Armando Alvidrez was aboard Relentless Rocket for his trial win.
Relentless Rocket, a gelding by Hes Relentless, picked up his third straight victory and eighth overall from 16 career starts. He shipped into the Iowa track after winning his trial and the final of the $42,300 Canterbury Park Derby in Minnesota. He also won two stakes as a 2-year-old, including the $80,400 Northland Futurity at Canterbury, and he sports a bankroll of more than $120,000.
The complete list of qualifiers for the September 26 final is as follows: Relentless Rocket (:20.274), I Know You Know (:20.364), Too Sixy By Far (:20.447), The Criminal (:20.485), Perry Political (:20.503), Flying Bandida (:20.572), Apollitical King (:20.630), Curlie D (:20.753), Captain Blood (:20.753) and Flashin Dynamite (:20.769).
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