The Ruidoso Downs horse racing meet at the Downs of Albuquerque features two major quarter horse races this upcoming weekend.
The 400-yard Ruidoso Derby for 3-year-old quarter horses will take center stage with 10 horses scheduled to run on Saturday, June 6. The first major derby of the meet will be race No. 10 on the evening card, scheduled to start at 9:50 p.m. Saturday’s first race begins at 6:05 p.m. The Ruidoso Derby is worth $850,000.
The 350-yard Ruidoso Futurity for 2-year-old quarter horses will take place with 10 horses scheduled to run on Sunday, June 7. The Ruidoso Futurity will be race No. 9 on the afternoon card and is scheduled to start at 4:50 p.m. Sunday’s first race begins at 1:30 p.m. The Ruidoso Futurity is worth $1 million.
Both races are the first leg of the quarter horse Triple Crown during the spring and summer meet for each age group. The other Triple Crown races for 2-year-olds are the Rainbow Futurity and the All American Futurity. The other Triple Crown races for 3-year-olds are the Rainbow Derby and the All American Derby.
The horses in the Ruidoso Futurity and Ruidoso Derby qualified in time trials May 23-25.
2026 Ruidoso Derby odds: Post position, horse, jockey, morning-line odds
1. Gf Shes Sinful (Noe Garcia, Jr.) 3-1
2. Cowboy Corona 123 (Luis Valenzuela) 15-1
3. Midnite Smokin (Christian Cardenas) 8-1
4. Eagles Diamond (Daniel Medrano) 20-1
5. Flying Chance (Joseph Belloc, Jr.) 9-2
6. Jarvis V (Bryan Candanosa) 15-1
7. Politician V (Francisco Calderon) 10-1
8. Envestor (Gilberto Linares) 7-2
9. Shimmery (Jacob Enriquez) 20-1
10. Rf Runaway Cowboy (Edwin Escobedo) 6-1
2026 Ruidoso Futurity odds: Post position, horse, jockey, morning-line odds
1. Nine Degrees (Jose Luis Enriquez) 8-1
2. My Golden Boy (Jacob Enriquez) 20-1
3. Highly Lethal V (Francisco Calderon) 5-2
4. Ask Her To Fly (Ramiro Haro Garcia) 9-2
5. Tell A Scout (Ricky Ramirez) 10-1
6. Lethal Wind (Noe Garcia, Jr.) 20-1
7. Happy Flying Bird (Gabriel Medrano) 12-1
8. Heatseeker V (Bryan Candanosa) 8-1
9. Dulce Dreams (Christian Cardenas) 7-2
10. AJ Invictus Player (Luis Martinez) 20-1
Felix Chavez’s picks to win 2026 Ruidoso Futurity, Derby
Felix F. Chavez can be reached at fchavez@elpasotimes.com; @Fchavezeptimes on X
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: 2026 Ruidoso Futurity and Ruidoso Derby highlight weekend QH racing
Reporting by Felix F. Chavez, El Paso Times / El Paso Times
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Felix F. Chavez, El Paso Times | USA TODAY Network
