Ima Fancy Eye Opener wins Mighty Deck Three Stakes race

OKLAHOMA CITY — No one was happier with Ima Fancy Eye Opener’s win in the $75,000 Mighty Deck Three Stakes Sunday night than Sallisaw trainer Rhonda Valdivia.

“This was my first win ever as a trainer at Remington Park,” she said through her large smile, “and it was a stakes race! We had confidence in him. He is a very talented horse.”

This victory had a lot of firsts involved. Ima Fancy Eye Opener was making his first start as a 3-year-old. It was the first win for owners Shania and Terry Dale Cox of Sallisaw in this stakes series. It was also the initial trip to the winner’s circle for jockey Bryan Candanosa in the Mighty Deck Three.

This edition of the Mighty Deck Three was a quick one at 250 yards as Ima Fancy Eye Opener, an Oklahomabred son of Im a Fancy PYC, out of the Mr Eye Opener mare Lil Miss Eye Opener, stopped the timer in 12.987 seconds on the fast track, earning a speed index of 102. The track record is 12.839 seconds, set by Win Rabbits Fly on March 13, 2016.

Valdivia not only conditions Ima Fancy Eye Opener, but she was his breeder. The swift gray streak of lightning hit the ground running when he was foaled in 2022. His win Sunday night was the seventh time he has tasted victory in only nine starts. Despite his gaudy record, he was still sent off at generous 5-1 odds and paid $12 to win, $5.80 to place and $5.40 to show.

Ima Fancy Eye Opener won by three-quarters of a length after breaking on top by a half-length right out of the gate. Candanosa never had a doubt after the gates opened.

“He was standing in the gate perfect,” Candanosa said. “Then when he broke on top, I said, ‘they ain’t catching this horse today.’” Ima Fancy Eye Opener earned $42,000 from the purse and improved lifetime to nine starts, seven wins and one second for a bulging wallet filled with $198,834. He also won a stakes at Remington Park last year, capturing the $70,000 Easy Jet Stakes. Ima Fancy Eye Opener is becoming quite a horse for the course as well, winning all four starts at Remington Park in his young career. This was his third stakes victory overall as he also took down the Grade 3, $200,000 Speedhorse Futurity at Fair Meadows on July 20 last year.

The stakes race is named in honor of the ultrafast Mighty Deck Three who dominated 2-yearold competition in 1980. The Oklahoma-bred was undefeated through 10 races, including the Rainbow Futurity, and posted the top qualifying time for that year’s All American Futurity. He was upset in the All American, beaten a nose by Higheasterjet. Despite the loss, Mighty Deck Three was still voted the Champion 2-year-old for 1980.

After racing action Tuesday night at Remington Park, racing action will continue tonight through Sunday with the first race nightly at 6 p.m. tonight through Saturday night, with Sunday racing beginning at 4 p.m.