Cowboys Flying Stays Perfect, Takes $3 Million All American Futurity in Albuquerque

Undefeated 2-year-old Cowboys Flying captured Monday’s $3 million All American Futurity at The Downs at Albuquerque, closing out a remarkable — and disrupted — summer meet with the biggest win of his young career.

The victory came despite a late change in the colt’s camp. Previous trainer Ramiro Barajas Villarreal was among trainers barred from entering or working horses in Texas amid questions over the grading of written licensing examinations — a situation unrelated to any positive drug test or to Cowboys Flying’s form. Owners Jerry Deville and Jaime Cardenas of Double J Racing, with approval from New Mexico racing officials, transferred the colt to 29-year-old trainer Marco Chavez-Gutierrez roughly three weeks before the final.

Chavez-Gutierrez inherited a perfect record: Cowboys Flying had won his All American trial by 3¾ lengths and stood 5-for-0-to-5 entering the race. The colt made it six-for-six, covering 440 yards in 20.62 seconds.

“The horse is a super freak,” Chavez-Gutierrez told the Journal. “I stayed out of his way.”

Jockey Nestor Duran, who according to standard arrangements would earn about $150,000 of the owners’ $1.5 million share of the purse, said he was confident by mid-race. “This is like the Kentucky Derby for quarter horses,” the Dodge City, Kansas rider said.

As the heavy betting favorite, Cowboys Flying paid $2.60 to win, $2.20 to place and $2.10 to show. Ask Her To Fly finished second ($13 to place, $5.40 to show), with Chili Gato third ($3 to show).

End of an era for Ruidoso racing

The race was the final major event staged under Ruidoso Downs’ temporary arrangement in Albuquerque, where the summer quarter horse meet relocated for 50 races after catastrophic flooding damaged the Ruidoso facility in 2024 and 2025. The All American Futurity, run since 1959, is one of quarter horse racing’s defining events.

Ruidoso Downs’ premier Quarter Horse series — including the $1 million Ruidoso Futurity, $1 million Rainbow Futurity and the $3 million All American Futurity — moves to Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie, Texas, in 2027. Track owner Johnny Trotter continues to evaluate the Ruidoso property’s future, and major horse sales remain tied to the community. Trotter’s colt, Think Twice Perry, finished sixth in Monday’s final.

The relocation lands in a horse racing and wagering sector that has been under pressure in public markets. Churchill Downs Incorporated (CHDN), which operates live and historical racing venues and wagering businesses, traded at $87.07, down 3.56% from its previous close of $90.28, valuing the company at roughly $6.10 billion.

Fall racing continues Thursday at The Downs at Albuquerque with the opening of the New Mexico State Fair meet. In the Grade 1, $250,000 All American Gold Cup for 3-year-olds, Paradise Pete extended his stakes success with another win.

What to watch

Churchill Downs Incorporated’s next quarterly earnings report, details on Ruidoso Downs’ 2027 operations at Lone Star Park, the status of the Texas licensing review that prompted the trainer change, and any decisions on the future of the Ruidoso Downs property.

Source: original release