Governor’s Cup a family affair

The Governor’s Cup Futurity for California-bred Quarter Horses has become a family affair in recent seasons at Los Alamitos.

Last Saturday, the halfbrothers Constituent and Squid Word finished first and second in the $315,000 race at 350 yards. In 2019, the full brothers Pitbull and Lebowski finished first and ninth in the Governor’s Cup Futurity.

Full or half-siblings appear in the same race with some frequency in Quarter Horse racing, which permits registration of multiple foals out of a mare in the same year through embryo transfers.

Steve Burns, who operates Burns Ranch in Menifee, Calif., bred Constituent, Lebowski, Pitbull, and Squid Word. Burns was honored by the American Quarter Horse Association as the champion breeder of 2019.

Burns has a massive herd of mares that are recipient mares in the embryo transfer procedure. The ranch has about 250 foals a year.

Constituent, a colt by Separate Interest, was purchased for $27,000 at the Los Alamitos Equine Sale last October. Squid Word, by top stallion Favorite Cartel, was bought for $72,000 at the same auction. They are out of Tahma Hawk, a maiden race winner at Los Alamitos in 2006 in a five-race career. Favorite Cartel is by Favorite Trick, the 1997 Thoroughbred Horse of the Year.

Constituent, trained by Valentin Zamudio for M & G Farms, has won 3 of 4 starts and earned $139,315.

Tahma Hawk has five registered 2-year-olds this year. Curvy Path, a filly owned by Burns, was eighth of nine in a maiden race on May 16. Alltime Favorite, a two-time winner in the spring, was fatally injured when fifth in a division of the Governor’s Cup Futurity trials on July 11. Ocotillo Wells was last of nine in his lone start in a division of the Rainbow Futurity trials at Ruidoso Downs on July 4.

Constituent has been nominated to three futurities at Los Alamitos this fall and could be joined in those races with runners from Friday’s seventh and final race – a maiden special weight race at 300 yards.

Other World, third in his debut on June 13, heads a field of eight. Trained by Scott Willoughby for track owner Ed Allred, Other World was withdrawn from a similar race on July 10 for veterinary reasons. Apollitical Honey, second in a division of the Ed Burke Million Futurity trials on June 7 for trainer Roman Figueroa, is another runner with strong credentials.