By Horse Racing Nation
SUNLAND PARK, N.M. (Feb. 27, 2022) — Jim Rome’s Straight Up G (1-1), who had not previously faced anything but California-bred rivals, led from gate to wire in winning Sunday’s $100,000 Mine That Bird Derby, a black-type stakes at sun-splashed Sunland Park. The race has become the main prep for next month’s Sunland Park Derby (G3), a win-and-you’re-in qualifier for Churchill Downs.
“We weren’t exactly sure,” Rome said after the race on Sunland Park TV. “We wanted to run outside California. We wanted to try some open competition. We wanted to see how he measured up. He showed me a lot of heart.”
Ridden by Ricardo González for trainer Richard Baltas, the homebred Straight Fire colt drifted out late but outlasted the late-closing Bye Bye Bobby (5-1) by three-quarters of a length. Classic Moment (4-1) was another three-quarters of a length back in third. Fowler Blue (17-1) finished a distant fourth in the field of eight.
The winning time was 1:42.96 for the 1 1/16 miles on the fast main track. Racing on Lasix for the first time, Straight Up G established fractions of 23.79, 46.88, 1:10.56 and 1:35.89.
“It’s always like a test,” Baltas said, “and he passed his test.”
Straight Up G was coming back from a neck loss at Santa Anita on Jan. 15 in the $200,000 Cal Cup Derby to Fast Draw Munnings, a horse he had beaten by 5 1/4 lengths the previous month in the $100,000 King Glorious at Los Alamitos.
After a fourth-place finish in his debut last October at Santa Anita, Straight Up G won his next two starts. He was 5 1/4 lengths clear of the field in his maiden victory Nov. 21 going six furlongs at Del Mar. Then he led the whole way going one mile to win the King Glorious.
Straight Up G is out of the Sky Mesa mare Gidget Girl, the only broodmare owned by the Jungle Racing partnership that is led by Rome, best known in racing circles for owning the late Eclipse Award winner Shared Belief.
“We own the broodmare, and we own a piece of the sire, so this is so deeply personal,” Rome said. “You have to understand I am in love with this horse. To see him run like this on a track like this on a day like this, it really was a career highlight.”
Baltas stopped short of saying Straight Up G would be back for the Sunland Park Derby on March 27.
“We’re definitely going to be looking at this race, yes,” Baltas said. “For sure.”
If not the Sunland Park Derby, Rome and Baltas could keep Straight Up G back home April 9 for the Santa Anita Derby (G1), a 100-40-20-10 from which the top two are all but certain to qualify for Kentucky.