(Tres a Blood captures Horseshoe Indianapolis QHRAI Derby / All Photos by Coady Media)
From the Horseshoe Indianapolis Media Team / Tammy Knox:
Tres a Blood all heart in Horseshoe Indianapolis QHRAI Derby
SHELBYVILLE, Ind. (Thursday, June 20, 2024) – Tres A Blood and Edgar Diaz rallied home winners in the 15th running of the $126,000 Horseshoe Indianapolis QHRAI Derby to close out the Thursday, June 10 racing program. The duo covered the 400 yard dash in a time of :19.960 seconds.
Starting from post eight, Tres of Blood was not the first out of the gate as Revvs Cowboy and Rolando Pina had the early lead in the center of the track. Several horses were in contention midway through the sprint with Cleave and Martin Munoz challenging on the outside of Revvs Cowboy and Jon 316 and Alberto Ceron holding their ground along the inside. As the wire neared, Tres of Blood hit another gear and rallied home for the win by a neck over Cleave with Revvs Cowboy holding his ground for third, just a head in front of Jon 316.
“He (Tres of Blood) is way too calm and gentle, and he doesn’t demonstrate what he can do before a race,” said Diaz. “But once he is on the track, he is all business and becomes professional. I knew he could close well today, and he did.”
Tres of Blood paid $10.80 for the win. The Apollitical Blood sophomore was a second place finisher behind Goodtimefreddash in the trials but turned in the second fastest time of the day. He is a recent acquisition by David Campos’ Campos Family Ventures of Indiana. Claudio Barraza trains the small in stature gelding, who is now two for three in 2024.
“Edgar (Diaz) and I actually went out to the sale this winter and picked this horse out,” noted Barraza. “We wanted something we could race in things other than the SSA (Stallion Service Auction) Derby. We had him ready, but we waited for the trials of this race before we started him.”
Tres of Blood relocated into Indiana with back to back wins at Zia Park and Sunland before heading to the Heritage Place Winter Mixed Sale, where he was purchased by Campos Family Ventures for $72,000. He has now won three of his last four starts and gave his new connections a stakes win already in Indiana. His win in the Horseshoe Indianapolis QHRAI Derby paid for his purchase price as he now has in excess of $130,000 on his card.
“We were actually worried a little going into the trials,” added Barraza. “He is so quiet, it’s hard to tell when he’s okay. He’s not lazy, he’s just very quiet, so you can’t tell much about him at times. He’s little, but he has a big stride. We thought he raced good in the trials, and he actually surprised me. We are just excited to get this stakes win here today.”
Barraza and Diaz have proven they are a tough pair in recent years in Indiana. The trainer-jockey duo has teamed up for numerous stakes wins, including four of six stakes wins with Indiana standout Mr Michel, who is a perfect two for two this season. Diaz was not aboard for his first win of the year due to injury but was back aboard for his win in the $34,000 Carter Riley Stakes earlier in June.
The win placed Campos Family Ventures over the $100,000 mark this season in earnings. It was their second win of the meet in the Quarter Horse ranks. The team of Barraza and Diaz have two wins for them and have finished in the top three seven of nine starts for 2024.
The 22nd season of live Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing extends through Thursday, Nov. 14. Racing is held Monday through Thursday at 2:10 p.m. All Quarter Horse dates are set for 10:45 a.m. Saturdays June 29, July 20, Aug. 10, Aug. 31, and Oct. 5. Indiana’s featured event, the Grade 3 $300,000 Indiana Derby is Saturday, July 6 with a first post time of 12 p.m. For more information on live racing at Horseshoe Indianapolis, visit www.caesars.com/horseshoe-indianapolis/racing or find the track on Social Media @HSIndyRacing.
