Sunland Park racecourse can be found between the Rockies and the Rio Grande in the state of New Mexico and first held racing on 9th October 1959. In the early days the principal races were the White Sands Handicap and the Sun Carnival Handicap. Numbers dwindled in the early 1990's and a casino was opened to boost revenue. The 8 furlong oval dirt track, with separate 6 ½ furlong and 10 furlong chutes, share a 302 metre home straight and is currently owned by Stan Fulton. Today the principal races are the Sunland Derby for 3 year olds over 9 furlongs in March, and the Sunland Park Oaks, as well as the Borderland Derby, held each February, which can be viewed as a trial for the Derby. The Borderland Derby was first contested in 2001 when Parting Guest was successful for trainer Steve Asmussen. The WinStar Derby was first run in 2003 when won by Excessivepleasure ridden by Pat Day. In 2007 Song of Navarone completed a double for jockey Victor Espinoza who had also won in 2006 on Wanna Runner. The course also hosts the Juarez Handicap, a Group 3 event, which was transferred from Ciudad Juarez across the Mexican border on its closure.

Sunland Derby winners since its inception in 2003
2003 The Sunland Derby over 9 furlongs was won by Excessivepleasure trained by Doug ONeill and ridden by Pat Day
2004 The Sunland Derby over 9 furlongs was won by Hi Teck Man trained by Johnnie Nall and ridden by Ricardo Jaime
2005 The Sunland Derby over 9 furlongs was won by Thors Echo trained by Doug ONeill and ridden by Corey Nakatani
2006 The Sunland Derby over 9 furlongs was won by Wanna Runner trained by Bob Baffert and ridden by Victor Espinoza
2007 The Sunland Derby over 9 furlongs was won by Song of Navarone trained by Henry Dominguez and ridden by Victor Espinoza
2008 The Sunland Derby over 9 furlongs was won by Liberty Bull trained by Tom Amoss and ridden by Gerard Melancon
2009 The Sunland Derby over 9 furlongs was won by Kelly Leak trained by Mike Machowsky and ridden by Mike E Smith
2010 The Sunland Derby over 9 furlongs was won by Endorsement trained by Shannon Ritter and ridden by Robby Albarado
2011 The Sunland Derby over 9 furlongs was won by Twice the Appeal trained by Jeff Bonde and ridden by Christian Santiago Reyes
2012 The Sunland Derby over 9 furlongs was won by Daddy Nose Best trained by Steve Asmussen and ridden by Julien Leparoux
2013 The Sunland Derby over 9 furlongs was won by Governor Charlie trained by Bob Baffert and ridden by Martin Garcia
2014 The Sunland Derby over 9 furlongs was won by Chitu trained by Bob Baffert and ridden by Martin Garcia
2015 The Sunland Derby over 9 furlongs was won by Firing Line trained by Simon Callaghan and ridden by Gary Stevens
2016 The Sunland Derby over 9 furlongs was not contested
2017 The Sunland Derby over 9 furlongs was won by Hence trained by Steve Asmussen and ridden by Alfredo Juarez
2018 The Sunland Derby over 9 furlongs was won by Runaway Ghost trained by Todd Fincher and ridden by Tracy Herbert

ISBN 978-0-9957632-0-3

652 pages

774 former courses

ISBN 978-0-9957632-1-0

352 pages

400 former courses

ISBN 978-0-9957632-2-7

180 pages

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ISBN 978-0-9957632-3-4

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