Monday, March 21, 2011
Michael Fuhs' Spinning Touch outran his 24-1 odds to win Sunday's $120,000 New Mexico State University Handicap (R) for state-breds at Sunland Park.
Ridden by Freddy Fong for trainer Arturo Chavez, Spinning Touch defeated Silver Matthias by 2 ¼ lengths while covering one mile and 70 yards in 1:42.12. The 4-year-old colt by Touchdown Ky returned a $51.40 win mutuel and teamed with Spinning Touch, who was sent to post as the 9-2 third choice, for a $244.80 ($1) exacta return.
Spinning Touch was bred by Michael and Jeanne Fuhs. His sire, Touchdown Ky, is a 12-year-old son of Hennessey who raced from 2001-02 and earned $19,945 from seven starts. Purchased for $900,000 by Donna Moore at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale in 2000, Touchdown Ky is a half brother to 13 winners, including two-time Grade 1 winner Prized and multiple graded stakes winner Exploit. He has sired the earners of more than $205,000 from 12 starters, and he stands at the Fuhses Z Lazy B Ranch at Ft. Wingate, New Mexico.
Spinning Touch's dam, Shimmering Sand, is a winning and stakes-placed 14-year-old daughter of the Mr. Prospector stallion Line In The Sand.
Spinning Touch has won three of 19 races, and the $72,000 winner's share of the NMSU Handicap purse increased his bankroll to $143,283. The colt was three starts removed from a third-place finish in the January 2, 1 1/16-mile Albert Dominguez Memorial Handicap (R) for New Mexico-breds at Sunland Park.
Last year, Spinning Touch won the 1 1/16-mile, $40,000 New Mexico State Fair Breeders' Stakes at The Downs at Albuquerque.
Lefty Who, the 3-1 second choice in the wagering, ran third to complete a $2,418.90 ($1) trifecta. Runnin Red, 2-1 favorite Desert Gamble, Brother Louie, Double Smart, Train Rider Blues, and Some Ghost completed the order of finish.
A gray or roan 7-year-old gelding by the Capote stallion Aledo, runner-up Silver Matthias has earned $161,075 from 37 outs, and his stakes resume includes a second-place finish to Hes A Tough Dude in last year's $40,000 University of New Mexico Handicap (R) for state-breds at Albuquerque. Silver Matthias was coming off of a two-length victory in a one-mile allowance route at Sunland on February 8, his first start after being claimed by Cody Kelley for $15,000 on January 25.
Lefty Who is a homebred 5-year-old Quinton's Gold gelding racing for Sam E. Stevens of La Mesa, Texas. Campaigned exclusively in New Mexico, Lefty Who has banked $634,894 from 21 races, and his 10 wins include last year's 5 1/2-furlong, $50,000 Sierra Blanca Handicap (R) for New Mexico-breds at Ruidoso Downs.