Naranccello confirmed his potential with a spectacular victory down the straight

The Mariana Eva colt maintained his unbeaten record with a powerful late rally on a Thursday that also saw impressive victories from the colt Lonely Boy and the filly Happy Valley

Naranccello finished with a powerful closing kick / JUAN I. BOZZELLO

In an unusual Thursday card, Hipódromo de Palermo enjoyed an entertaining race day that also proved positive economically. Across 11 races, betting totaled 428,428,304 pesos, averaging 38,948,028 pesos per race – figures 15-20% higher than the current average at San Isidro, and nearly 80% above La Plata, a trend that has held steady for several months.

On track, Priola (South Kissing) delivered the feature victory in the Handicap Jorge H. Iglesias, but there were other notable performances, especially from the promising juvenile Naranccello, homebred by Francisco Pérez’s Establecimiento Mariana Eva. The son of Le Blues and La Huracanada (Hurricane Cat) upheld his perfect record in the Premio Hechicero (1000m), confirming all the talent shown on debut.

Trained by Alfredo Gaitán Dassié and ridden by Eduardo Ortega Pavón, Naranccello produced a superb performance despite almost being eliminated at the start when Tabasco Pass (Distinctiv Passion) veered out sharply. Recovering swiftly, the chestnut accelerated powerfully to take control at the 250m mark and pulled clear to score by 5 lengths over Tabasco Pass, with Mask Bonito (Mask) a further 2 lengths away in third. The clock showed 57.54 seconds on a heavy track.

The program also featured maiden events for three-year-olds over 1200m. Among the colts, Lonely Boy (Remote–L’Parisienne, by Roman Ruler, bred by Haras Vacación) impressed with a front-running, 7-length romp in 1:10.63, a notably strong performance for trainer Gustavo Romero, jockey Rodrigo Bascuñán, and owner Stud Palagus.

Among the fillies, Happy Valley (Señor Candy–Ayla, by Roman Ruler, bred by Haras Rodeo Chico) secured her win after dueling throughout with Bachata Queen (Storm Embrujado), edging clear by half a length over Forming (Winning Prize) in 1:13.20. She is trained by José Lofiego, was part of a double for jockey Luciano Recuero, and races for Stud M. de G.

Overall, Palermo combined solid betting figures with strong racing performances, continuing its firm position as Argentina’s betting leader.