Jess The One Proves Best In The $135,690 Open Graduation Stake

Jess The One (#4), under jockey Eleazar Hernandez, winning the $135,690 Delta Downs Open Graduation Stakes (not black type) Wednesday night at Delta Downs.

© Coady Photography

VINTON, LA–JULY 5, 2023–Delta Downs hosted a rare Wednesday night stakes race, and it was Omar Paredes’ gray colt Jess The One who proved victorious in the $135,690 Open Graduation.

The race was for 3 and 4-year-old horses who began the year as maidens and qualified through trials on June 14.

Jess The One was ridden by Eleazar Hernandez who got his mount out of the gate in good order before he battled for the lead in the 350-yard showdown. As the field of nine approached the finish line, Jess The One and Astieker engaged in a side-by-side duel that separated them by only a neck at the finish line.

Longshot Dress Me in Blue followed the pair to the line another neck back in third.

The winning connections of Jess The Once accept the Delta Downs Open Graduation stakes trophy Wednesday night Delta Downs. © Coady Photography

Jess The One covered the distance of the race in a time of 17.713. That clocking earned him a speed index of 88. Each race on the program was contested over a fast track.

Overall, Jess The One has now won three of 12 career starts. The Leonel Hernandez trainee earned $67,845 for the Open Graduation win and now owns a lifetime bankroll of $83,105. Jess The One was a $49,000 2021 TQHA Yearling Sale repurchase.

Bred in Texas by the Terrazas Family, Jess The One is a 3-year-old gray colt by champion Jess Good Candy, out of the stakes winning Prospect To The Top mare Paloma Blanca B.

Sent to the gate at odds of 4-1 by the wagering public, Jess The One paid $10.80 to win, $5 to place and $4.80 to show. Astieker was worth $6.80 to place and $4.80 to show. Dress Me in Blue returned $12.40 to show.

Astieker, a royally bred son of three-time world champion sire FDD Dynasty who got in the Open Graduation off the also-eligible list earned $23,067 for finishing second.

Trainer M. Heath Taylor conditions the New Mexico-bred gelding out of champion filly Astica by Jesse James Jr. Richard Elzy, Shawn Palmer and Chance Kiehne own the $92,000 graduate from the 2021 Ruidoso Select Yearling Sale. MJ Farms is the breeder.

Still winless in nine starts Dress Me Blue earned $13,569 for finishing third. Phillip Calais, Jr. trains the Louisiana-bred son of multiple stakes sire Jess Louisiana Blue for owner-breeder Paul Daigle. Arturo Alvarez had the riding call aboard the gelding out of Tete File by Game Patriot.  He has earned $27,589.

Ja Zooms, El Capi, Pop A Top Corona, Code Name Lethal, Playing The Field and Golden Doc completed the Open Graduation field.

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Delta Downs will race live again on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. First post time each night is at 6:10 pm. Friday’s action includes the $90,755 Firecracker Derby (G3). Saturday’s card features the $261,595 Firecracker Futurity (G2).

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About Delta Downs
Delta Downs Racetrack Casino and Hotel, a property of Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD), features exciting casino action, live horse racing and fun dining experiences. Delta Downs is located in Vinton, Louisiana, on Delta Downs Drive. From Lake Charles, take Exit 7 and from Texas, take Exit 4. For more information about the season, visit the track’s website at www.deltadownsracing.com.