Short-Film: The GREAT QH RACE

[@Marro2107]

Great short film

[@Rbaetagar911]

Great work! Loved the video. I wish I was there.

[@allanroberts637]

Awesome

[@roninslv]

Well done Greg, thank you sir.

[@jordanmiller3550]

I believe the greatness of the 2022 Champion of Champions was validated 3 weeks later by the result of the Championship at Sunland. For in that race there were the two most noticeable absences from the Champion of Champions, 4 year old Instygator, and earner of over $1.5 million, who spoiled Empressum's Ruidoso Derby Triple Crown bid last year while winning the All American Derby, who beat Empressum again in the January 2nd, 2022 running of the Championship at Sunland(run Dec 31st, so twice in 2022), and most recently had won the gr1 Refrigerator to become a Supreme Racehorse. The 2nd horse who would have made the 2022 Champion of Champions the undisputed best quarter horse field ever was Kj Desparado. A qualifier to the finals of the Ruidoso and Rainbow Futurities, he has been overshadowed in both by Jess Savin Candy. But he closed 2021 with wins in the All American Futurity and Texas Classic Futurity, both gr1s, had started 2022 by winning the gr1 Ruidoso Derby, and was coming into Sunland off a win in the gr1 Texas Classic Derby as a Supreme Racehorse and the 2nd leading earner in QH history needing a win at Sunland to push his earnings past Ochoa and near $3 million. But this summary of the resumes of these two horses is omitting some key facts. That between Instygator's win in the Jan running of the Champ at Sunland and the Refrigerator, he had been 2nd in the gr1 Leo and then a badly beaten 5th to Danjer in the Remington Park Championship and a non-threatening 4th to Powerful Favorite in the gr1 All American Gold Cup at Ruidoso. Kj Desparado, had won his trial to the Rainbow Derby and was heavily favored to win the final and take the first two legs of the Ruidoso 3 year old Triple Crown. However, he was outdueled to the wire by a neck to Apollitical Candy V, who simply wouldn't let him by. Then, for the All American Derby, while Kj Desparado won his trial he failed to qualify for the final, which Apollitical Candy V had won by almost 2 lengths. The was no doubt that when the Ruidoso meet ended, Apollitical Candy V stood atop the hill over Kj Desparado. However, the recent dominant gr1 wins by both Kj and Instygator at Lone Star suggested that the Champion of Champions, without either, maybe wasn't as definitive as was thought going in. Fortunately, the presence of two horses would provide an on-track test. The first was Flash Bak, and earner of over $1.2 million and 3 time gr1 winner including the recent Zia Championship. However, one thing had been proven repeatedly, he wasn't as good as Apollitical Pence or Empressum, losing to the former in the 2021 Champion of Champions and the 2022 gr1 Los Al Winter Championship, getting beaten by Empressum by 2.5 lengths in the gr1 Go Man Go, and in his final Los Al start before heading East, he was 3rd but beaten about 3 lengths by Apollitical Pence and Empressum in the gr1 Los Al Championship at 440 in October. But the most definitive test of the Champion of Champions would come from one of the top finishers of the race, 6 year old Danjer, whose entry to the Championship at Sunland had surprised many. Despite bringing in 9 open gr1 stakes wins, a World Champion title, and two titles as Champion aged runner as well as almost $2 million in earnings, Danjer was the least respected by bettors. Many locals at Los Al were skeptical, but his gallant 2nd place finish from post 2 won almost all over. Danjer was a true great. Yet, it was Kj Desparado, from the outside 6 post, that went off a fairly decisive favorite at Sunland. Instygator and Danjer were nearly identical odds. After the gates opened, Instygator, shot to a clear lead and for moments looked impossible to catch. Kj began his late run on the far outside before Danjer between these two, dug his hooves into the dirt and stuck out his neck, determined to reel in Instygator and give Kj the stiff-arm late. Danjer would win the Championship at Sunland by 3/4ths a length to Kj, and Flash Bak was able to get by Instygator late for 3rd only a neck behind Kj. Danjer had faced a similar challenge in the Champion of Champions. He had to catch the quicker Apollitical Pence, which he did, but unlike with Kj, Danjer had no answer to Empressum's challenge to the outside. Danjer was beaten 1.25 lengths, and Apollitical Pence, who ran a time right at the average of his two winning C of C times, was beaten 2 lengths because Empressum delivered a performance for the ages. To run a 21.08 in the "slow time era" at Los Al, the 4th fastest Champion of Champions final time, seemed impossible without a 20 mph tailwind, yet there was no wind when the CoC was run. What Danjer did at Sunland only made Empressum's dominance at Los Al more remarkable. The Champion of Champions indeed was a race for the ages, and its winner, Empressum, the clear 2022 World Champ.

[@scottramnarine6607]

Hey Greg do you have race videos or films from Los Alamitos from 1976 to 1983. Race call included?

[@cherylsmith-bell6509]

Thank you sir! Good job. Wish I could have been there with my kids!