Argentine-Bred Montjuic Triumphs at Maroñas in the Clásico Francisco Etcheverry Vidal
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The son of Endorsement delivered a standout performance on a heavy turf course, securing a 2 1/2-length victory over the Brazilian-bred Oliver to claim the feature event
MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay (Special for Turf Diario).— Important victories for Argentine-bred runners continue to stack up at Hipódromo Nacional de Maroñas. This Sunday, it was Montjuic's turn to take center stage, delivering a stellar performance on a heavy turf course to capture the 2026 renewal of the traditional Clásico Francisco Etcheverry Vidal (L-1200m).
Bred privately by Irene Guimaraes, the son of Endorsement had been turning heads with some promising performances within the juvenile ranks, but he has now emerged victorious in his first career encounter against older horses, fully capitalizing on a favorable assignments of 53 1/2 kilos.
The Stud Los Patriotas representative had previously secured runner-up finishes in both the Clásico Alvaro Vargas Guillemette and the Clásico Guzmán Vargas, in addition to a fifth-place effort in the Clásico Jorge W. Larrañaga Fraga, all following a victorious racing debut.
Entrusted to the polished hands of jockey Héctor Lazo, Montjuic shot out of the starting gates, established himself in the lead, and proved entirely elusive for his rivals, setting demanding fractions of 22.99s and 47.25s.
Oliver, who tracked him from the break, attempted to mount a challenge upon entering the homestretch but was never able to get on terms. The winner found another gear and maintained a 2 1/2-length advantage at the wire. Just a neck back, closing well in the final stages, fellow Brazilian-bred Figaro (Hat Trick) completed the trifecta. The final time stopped at 1m09.87s, while post-time favorite Ta-Valente (Gibraltar Point) performed below expectations, managing only a fourth-place finish, 3 3/4 lengths adrift of the winner.
Trainer Sergio Dorneles expressed his satisfaction with the colt's performance: "He is a youngster that is evolving constantly and had already been running well. We wanted to run him on the turf, we drew a good post, and Héctor took advantage of his natural speed to establish an early cushion and then hold on. He is very versatile because he runs well on both surfaces, and he has a bright future ahead."
Montjuic is out of the Catcher In the Rye mare Hi Joan, who was exported from Argentina to Uruguay in 2025, where she produced El Buen Ojo (Gouverneur Morris) that same season before being covered by the champion Hielo(Holzmeister).
The card also featured the Handicap Especial Colombia (2000m, dirt), which delivered an upset victory as Temple de Acero (Vineyard Haven) prevailed by a head over the Argentine-bred Siempre Happy (Hi Happy), under the guidance of Eguard Tejera and the preparation of María Marrero for Stud Toto y Benja Xeneize.
