For immediate release                            Contact:     Tim Keithley
                                                                                        575-937-4708
Saturday, May 23rd, 2026                                  tkeithley@raceruidoso.com

TRIPLE CROWN REPORT Presented by:

Highly Lethal V Scores Big Win Late, Qualifies Fastest for $1 Million Ruidoso Futurity

(Albuquerque, NM) Highly Lethal V, a two-year-old gelding, finished strong on the rail with jockey Francisco Calderon on board to win trial race twelve at the Downs of Albuquerque Saturday qualifying with the fastest time, 19.966 seconds, for the $1 million Ruidoso Futurity at 350-yards.

“When we were running I looked at the flag and it was down, then came back up—I knew we were going fast because he ran straight as an arrow,” Calderon said. “He nearly dropped me behind the gates. He’s tough—his time is impressive.”

Highly Lethal V is an Oklahoma-bred owned by Sammy Valeriano and trained by Raymond Valerio. He is sired by Apollitical Jess out of the mare Lethal Class (Tres Seis). The gelding paid $12.00, $6.40 and $4.60. My Golden Boy and jockey Jacob Ennriquez ran second and also qualified for the June 7 final.

Other quarter horses that qualified for the Ruidoso Futurity final include Nine Degrees and jockey Jose Enriquez, winner of trial race three. Lethal Wind and jockey Noe Garcia ran second to qualify from the same race. Dulce Dreams and jockey Christian Cardenas won race eleven to qualify.

Horses to qualify in Day Two Trials for the $1 Million Ruidoso Futurity:

Xavier Rodriguez, trainer for La Feliz Montana Ranch in Hondo, was suspended by New Mexico Racing Commission stewards before Saturday’s trials for the $1 million Ruidoso Futurity.

The trainer’s suspension led to the scratch of seventeen two-year-old quarter horses that were scheduled to race under Rodriguez’s name on Saturday. According to racing officials, the decision to suspend Rodriguez was based on a routine inspection of the barn area by an integrity team made up of race track and industry officials.

A hearing on the matter of Rodriguez’s suspension is expected to be held by the New Mexico Racing Commission Board of Stewards in the near future. In the meantime, La Feliz Montana Ranch and other quarter horses that are listed under the trainer’s name will not be allowed to race including three-year-olds that are entered in Sunday’s trials of the $600,000 (est.) Ruidoso Derby.