Omar Labanca and the Hope of Closing a Great Year With Sono Perfetto

The trainer has enjoyed an impeccable 2025 campaign and now dares to dream with his colt as he points toward the G1 Gran Premio Dardo Rocha

Omar Labanca Holds a Live Chance for the Dardo Rocha / HLP

By Diego H. Mitagstein

Consistency has always been a trademark of Omar Labanca as a trainer. But in 2025, the veteran horseman is enjoying one of the finest seasons of his post-riding career—packed with victories and marked by remarkable efficiency.

The numbers speak for themselves: 47 wins so far—good enough to share seventh on the national leaderboard—paired with a sharp 16.8% strike rate, including eight stakes victories. Impeccable form, by any measure.

One of the pillars of Omar’s outstanding season has been Sono Perfetto, a colt from the first crop of champion Tetaze(Equal Stripes). He has established himself among the best 3-year-olds at La Plata, stamping that status with a decisive win in the G2 Clásico Provincia de Buenos Aires, the final leg of the track’s Triple Crown.

And it will be with this chestnut colt that Labanca takes aim at Wednesday’s challenge: the G1 Gran Premio Dardo Rocha, where he seeks his first G1 victory of the year and the fifth of his training career—having previously won top-level races with Mighty Hunter (Mutakddim) in the Montevideo, Shyster and Coordenada (Equal Stripes) in the Estrellas Juvenile Fillies, and Tremendo Tordo (Hurricane Cat) in the Gran Criterium.

“I’m really looking forward to the race—excited, anxious—because it’s the toughest one of the year at La Plata, when the 3-year-olds meet the older horses,” Labanca explained. “Sono Perfetto has been doing great. I think he won the classic very well, but this is a real test, full of tough horses like Treasure Island (Treasure Beach) or Don Champagne(Long Island Sound), with a lot of experience.”

Labanca continued: “These races are usually run at a strong pace, and my colt runs close—either on the lead or right there. He likes to be in front, but he’s not uncontrollable. He has a great temperament, he’s a steady, long-striding horse, and that helps him. The idea is for him to be up front, setting the pace, like he did last time, and also when he won the Ramírez. In the Jockey Club, he didn’t run as well as we expected, fighting a bit with Piñazo (John F. Kennedy), but we’re confident he’ll do well here.”

Sono Perfetto’s form line is strong: in the final leg of the Bosque Triple Crown he defeated the grey Winston (Forge) convincingly—Winston later finished second to Gordianus (Señor Candy) in the G1 Gran Premio Nacional at Palermo.

When asked about the opposition, Labanca was cautious: “It’s a very even Dardo Rocha. There isn’t one standout like Miriñaque (Hurricane Cat) was a few years ago. Several horses are coming in really well—Treasure Island, Don Champagne, Mannarino (Cosmic Trigger) from Pedro Molina, who ran huge… There are four or five at a very nice level. Even though my colt gets a weight break because of the time of year, it’s always tough for 3-year-olds when they face older horses.”

Working in tandem with his son Agustín, Labanca is enjoying a spectacular season—and now dreams of adding the perfect finishing touch with Sono Perfetto in the Dardo Rocha. He knows he has one of the leading candidates, but also that the race presents a serious, demanding challenge.

But as he said himself: “We’re going to run well.”

And so he goes, with hope at its peak—and with a colt any trainer would love to saddle for such an important test.