AJ Big Cash Overcomes Bump, Posts Fastest Old South Derby Qualifier

AJ Big Cash did not get a clean launch, and that may be exactly why his qualifying run carried so much weight. Bumped at the break in one of four Old South Derby trials at Delta Downs, the Oklahoma-bred gelding still powered home to win by a neck in :16.698 for 330 yards and posted a 97 speed index, the fastest time in the April 24 session.

That kind of trip changes the read on a horse. AJ Big Cash was not aided by a perfect setup; he had to absorb contact, reset, and still produce the sharpest number of the night for the $112,225 final, set for May 15 at Delta Downs in Vinton, Louisiana. For horseplayers, that matters as much as the clock. A horse that can take a bump and still finish fastest is the kind that can hold value when the final gets rougher and the pressure rises.

The gelding’s profile fits the effort. Foaled January 25, 2023, AJ Big Cash is by Apollitical Jess out of Teller Baja, by Teller Cartel, with his female family also tied to champion Eagle Jazz. He is owned by Jimmy Dean Harrel and Ryan Terry, trained by Viviane Hill and ridden by Rodrigo Sigala Vallejo. In Quarter Horse racing, that combination of pedigree, conditioning and pilot matters because speed is rarely accidental. It is built, repeated and, on nights like this, tested in traffic.

Hi Octane gave Viviane Hill and Rodrigo Sigala Vallejo another major threat, finishing the second trial in :16.749 to rank second among the qualifiers. The Los Alamitos-based runner has been racing exclusively at Los Alamitos, owns a record of 8 starts, 3 wins, 1 second and 4 thirds, and had earned $247,859 in career money as of mid-April. AQHA notes that outside posts have contributed to him lugging out, including in the John Deere Los Alamitos Juvenile Challenge, but his résumé already includes graded company and enough class to make him dangerous in a 330-yard dash.

Chilley was the third-fastest qualifier at :16.754 after running second to AJ Big Cash in the opening trial, giving trainer Josue Ponce another live contender for the final. With the top ten fastest times advancing, the qualifying night created a clear hierarchy: AJ Big Cash at the top, Hi Octane right behind him and Chilley close enough to keep the final honest.

The deeper question now is whether the fastest trial time will translate to the winner’s circle on May 15. AJ Big Cash has already shown he can win the hard way, and that grit travels. But Hi Octane may have the cleaner championship profile if the final becomes a test of polished form and proven class over a perfect trip. Either way, Delta Downs got a sharp preview of a final that already looks loaded with speed.