A couple hours after securing a spot in the Derby Non-Pro semifinals with his owner, Smooth Strategy marked a career-best 224 and carried trainer Phil Hanson to a victory in July 31’s National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) Summer Spectacular Derby Gelding Open finals.
The horse (Smooth As A Cat x Diva In Denim x Smart Little Lena), owned by Kyle Manion, Aubrey, Texas, and bred by Kyle’s father, Tommy Manion, picked up his first limited-age victory and earned $4,979 with Hanson. The win pushed his Equi-Stat earnings to more than $43,000.
Smooth Strategy has a shot at adding quite a bit to that before the week is through. He qualified to compete with Manion in the Derby Non-Pro semifinals and Derby Gelding Non-Pro finals. He will also compete again with his Weatherford, Texas-based trainer, Hanson, in the Derby Open semifinals on Aug. 2.
“The times we’ve shown him a lot, it’s almost like he’s gotten a little bit stronger,” Manion said. “I just showed him a little while ago [late in the last set of Wednesday’s Derby Non-Pro second round], and got in some tough situations. For Phil and the horse to come back and win with one bunch in between, that’s pretty exciting.”
Manion and Smooth Strategy marked a second-go 214.5 late Wednesday afternoon. That score, paired with their first-set 218, earned them a place in the Non-Pro semifinals. Smooth Strategy and Hanson qualified for Aug. 2’s Open semifinals last week with a 218/216-434 start.
Desire A Lil Pepto (Sweet Lil Pepto x Playguns Desire x Playgun), and Lee Francois, Murchison, Texas, finished as Reserve Champions in the Derby Gelding Open with a 220.5 to earn $4,752. Desire A Lil Pepto, owned by Reagan Lancaster, Plano, Texas, and his trainer Francois will compete again in the Derby Open semifinals.
The NCHA Summer Spectacular concludes Saturday, Aug. 3 starting at 3 p.m. in Fort Worth’s Will Rogers Coliseum with back-to-back Derby Non-Pro and Derby Open finals.
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