Escondido Gold strikes in QHRAI SSA Derby Invitational

Escondido Gold had a tough start, but he was as good as gold in the end, taking the title in the $30,000 Quarter Horse Racing Association of Indiana (QHRAI) Stallion Service Auction (SSA) Derby Invitational during the Saturday all Quarter Horse racing program at Horseshoe Indianapolis.

The race was for starters in the QHRAI SSA Derby Trials who did not advance to the final, providing an added race for the ones outside of the top 10.

Ridden by Diego Villamil Bocanegra, Escondido Gold came out of the starting gate sideways and lost ground and momentum for the first few strides. However, he rebounded quickly and began to move his way up into contention in the 400-yard dash.

Nearing the final strides, Escondido Gold had a short lead before Beach First and Rolando Pina came charging in on the far outside. After a brief look at the photo, Escondido Gold was the winner by a nose over Beach First.

John Wayne B and Giovani Vazquez-Gomez finished another neck back in third in the five-horse photo. Time of the dash was 20.27 seconds.

Escondido Gold, who finished 15^th in the trials for the QHRAI SSA Derby, was overlooked in the race, paying $10.40 for the win. The Escondido Beach sophomore is owned by Allen J. Brenner’s BFD Farms.

Natasha Perez trains the gelding, who earned his sixth career win with his earnings tally moving over the $120,000 mark.

“I was a little worried when I saw him load, and to be honest, he broke bad,” noted Perez. “But he’s a horse that always loves to come off the pace and he was flying at the end.”

It was the first stakes win for Escondido Gold. Bred by Thomas Wylie of Ohio, the sorrel gelding earned his second win of 2025.

For Villamil Bocanegra, it was his second career stakes win. He scored his first last year in the Escondido Beach Overnight Stakes before an injury sidelined him for the remainder of the season. He and Perez, a former jockey, have teamed up for many wins over the past two seasons in Indiana. Perez was trackside on her pony for the winner’s circle presentation.

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