Roll On Big Joe Rewards Florida Breeder Ubide

Roll On Big Joe's win in the Kelly's Landing Stakes (G3) at Churchill Downs June 28 rewarded Florida breeder Max Ubide tenfold June 28 by collecting his second graded stakes win of the year. Ubide bred, raised, and broke the 5-year-old son of Prospective until he departed for the 2022 OBS June 2-Year-Old Sale, where he sold under the Gayle Woods consignment. Ubide usually keeps his horses to race as he is a licensed trainer himself. But with his wife battling health issues at the time, they made the tough decision to sell the gelding with Rancho Temsecal going to $90,000 to land him. "We decided to sell him, I usually don't sell them, I usually like to race, but that's just the way it is, and my wife is still alive today," said Ubide. Ubide trained Roll On Big Joe's dam—Nina's Gift, who made 48 starts; and he bred every one of her foals before losing the mare after a dystocia where she foaled a filly—Nina's Last Gift. Roll On Big Joe breezed an eighth in :10 at the OBS June Sale and, although he was by an unpopular stallion, he still turned a lot of heads. "A lot of people had looked at him," said Ubide. "But he was by Prospective, who at the time wasn't doing great. He was a good-looking horse, correct, x-rayed clean." Ubide recalled Roll On Big Joe as a challenging yearling and 2-year-old to handle, saying the gelding had gotten away from him a few times when being turned out in his paddock. Roll On Big Joe now has career earnings of $494,400, hitting the board in 14 of his 18 starts. Prior to his win Saturday, he had notched a victory in the Palos Verdes Stakes (G3) Feb. 15 at Santa Anita Park. Last fall, he ran second to 2024 Eclipse Award champion male sprinter Straight No Chaser in the Santa Anita Sprint Championship Stakes (G2). Ubide was always confident in the gelding, but said he has now surpassed his expectations. "I didn't think he could be this good, but I thought he was going to be a pretty good horse, I sure did," he said. Ubide is no stranger to being around good horses. He worked for Hall of Fame trainer Lucien Lauren as a groom for four years, most notably while 1973 Triple Crown winner Secretariat was in the barn. "My claim to fame was in 1973 when Secretariat won the Triple Crown. I had to give that horse a bath after he won the Triple Crown," Ubide said. "That was my 15 seconds of fame, that was fun." Ubide credited trainer Robert Hess, Jr. with the astute training job he's done with Roll On Big Joe, and hopes the horse can keep on proving himself. "He's so tough," Ubide said of the gelding. "When he got in a battle (Saturday) he kept on going. He's a pretty nice horse and hopefully he keeps it going."