Following is a recap of all official American Quarter Horse stakes and trials for the week of June 3-8. For recaps of most graded stakes, AQHA Racing Challenge stakes and trials, and most stakes with purses of $100,000 or more, see the individual recaps in the Racing News section. This page will be updated throughout the week.

Delta Downs
Delta Downs hosted its only stakes race on Saturday night, the $35,000 Virgil Bond for 3-year-olds and upward competing at 870 yards. The race was won easily by Jumonville Farms’ Power Of The Smile under jockey Ubaldo Luna.

At the break, Power Of The Smile got away behind early leader Iveseenwhatyoucando, who built a three-length leading heading into the only turn. As the leader began to bear out away from the rail, Power Of The Smile took command and began to put the field away. The Kenneth Weeks trainee poured it on to the finish, reporting home five lengths in front of Blue Castle, who rallied for second. Mr Secret Lee wound up third, another three-quarters of a length behind the runner-up. Power Of The Smile covered the distance over a fast racetrack in a time of :46.22, which equaled a speed index of 92.

The win by Power Of The Smile was his first in stakes company and his fifth overall. He bagged $21,000 for the tally and now has a bankroll of $87,645. Bred in Louisiana by his owner, Power Of The Smile is a 4-year-old gray gelding by Power Jam, out of the Mr Jess Perry mare Beyond The Smiles.

Horseshoe Indianapolis
Famous Lollipop just made herself a little more prominent at Horseshoe Indianapolis. The second-longest shot on the board rallied home for the win in the second running of the $34,000 Carter Riley Overnight Stakes on Tuesday.

Famous Lollipop and jockey Juan Marquez broke from the gate well but were following along in the early stages of the 350-yard dash as stablemate After School and Alberto Ceron had the early advantage. Horses were tightly bunched heading into the final stages of the race.
Midway through the stretch, Marquez had Famous Lollipop in full gear. Once she matched strides with the field, she gained another gear and swept past her opponents to score the win by three-quarters of a length. After School held on for second over Dupont Beach and Edgar Diaz in the seven-horse photo.

Famous Lollipop paid $39.40 for the win. The 4-year-old daughter of Fast N Famous Eagle is owned and trained by Hector Sanchez. She was originally purchased from the Louisiana QHBA Yearling Sale for $5,700. Her win in the Riley Overnight boosted her career bankroll to more than $50,000.

Famous Lollipop is now on a two-race win streak for Sanchez. Marquez, 2023 leading jockey at Horseshoe Indianapolis, has been aboard for both wins. It was her first stakes win and her third career trip to the winner’s circle.

The race is named in honor of Carter Riley, who won the inaugural pari-mutuel Quarter Horse race in Indiana in 1997. Riley was trackside to present the trophy to Sanchez and his family following the win in the race named in his honor.

Los Alamitos
Valentin Zamudio, Paul Penuelas and Santos Montemayor’s Beyond Repair, who posted the top time for the Grade 2 Robert Kindergarten Futurity, showed that his middle of the pack finish in the Kindergarten was just a minor blip on his record, as returned with a tremendous victory in the $24,000 Fred Scane Stakes at 300 yards on Sunday night.

In picking up his third win from four career starts, Beyond Repair showed that his engine is still in tip-top shape. In fact, his winning effort in the Fred Scane appears to be a perfect tune-up for the Governor’s Cup Futurity trials to be held Saturday, July 5.

“I felt the post position didn’t help him in the Kindergarten,” Zamudio said. “He had been on the inside in his previous starts. He just didn’t have his best race from out there and I feel that this victory shows us that those concerns did play a role. The horse came back in good form after the Kindergarten and we worked diligently to get in ready for this race to build some endurance as we prepare him for what’s next.”

Beyond Repair started from post nine in the Kindergarten on May 11 and ran fifth to the mighty winner named Beuteeful. With Ruben Lozano in the irons for this race, Beyond Repair started from post three and sailed to a ¾-length victory as the second choice in the wagering at 2-1 odds. Covering the distance in :15.602, the Steve Burns-bred gelding by Fly Thru The Fire and out of the mare Sweetest Illusion earned $13,200 for the win. He’s now earned $37,618 in his career.

“We have a lot of faith in him, and he’s been very professional,” Zamudio said. “He does things the best he can and always tries hard.”

The Fred Scane featured a trio of Kindergarten finalists. To go along with Beyond Repair, the race also included Jose Flores, Layne Sprouse and Marta and Mark Winslow’s Fireworks Over Paris, who was the Kindergarten runner-up, and Salvador Flores Jr.’s Elmer Romero, who was seventh in the Kindergarten. Elmer Romero ran second this time around with Fireworks Over Paris completing the trifecta after running third.

Ridden by Jesse Gonzalez for trainer Felix Gonzalez, Elmer Romero earned $5,400 for running second, while the Flores-trained and Cruz Mendez ridden Fireworks Over Paris added $3,000 for finishing third. Eleazar Gonzalez’s Separatist Tornado ran fourth in the Fred Scane, his first blemish after winning his first two career outings. JJ The Boss and Shinning Favorite completed the field.

AQHA News and information is a service of the American Quarter Horse Association. For more news and information, follow @AQHA Racing on X and on Instagram, "like" Q-Racing on Facebook, and visit www.aqha.com/racing.