Round 1 Royalty Crowned: Barrel Racing Futurity and Derby Winners in Rock Springs

The Royal Crown in Rock Springs, Wyo., offers great opportunities to horses by Royal Crown incentive stallions, as well as horses of any breeding through the South Valley Equine (SVE) Open events. Round 1 of both the futurity and derby wrapped up on Thursday, with fast times and huge payouts. 

Warmup Race

An incredible week of racing kicked off with the $1,500 added Warmup Race on Wednesday. With 232 entries, it was no surprise to see the young rider on top of the leaderboard. Riding her great gelding Aint Seen Famous Yet (“Wally”), Dusky Lynn Hall clocked a 15.034 to take the $1,035 win. 2025 futurity horse and Royal Crown stallion, Wolverrine, finished second with Kit Johnson at 15.166 seconds. 

$600,000 Added Royal Crown Futurity

The $27,203 Round 1 win went to Skye Miller and FLF Caught Er Blazin (Blazin Jetolena x Princess Dasher x Dash Ta Fame) with a 15.053. 

Several 2025 standouts also pulled 1D checks: Heidi Gunderson and Wonder If Im Lucky (third), Lora Nichols and Blissful Version (fifth), Ashley Schafer and HP Hotrod (seventh), Kathy Grimes and KG Just Money (tenth), and Ashley Schafer and Wayde (thirteenth). 

Jodee Miller rode M R Bug B Streakin (French StreakToVegas x Bug B Gone x Famous Bugs) to a 15.807 for the 2D win. Skye Miller also placed seventh aboard A Blazin Judge K3 (Blazin Bulldog K3 x Feebees Summer Judge x Judge Cash). 

The 3D title went to Jenna Cox and Aint I Great (Aint Seen Nothin Yet x Dandys Nifty Lady x Hes A Bueno Jac).

$10,000 Added SVE Open Futurity 

Skye Miller also topped the 1D in the Open Futurity, adding $2,725 to the duo’s earnings for the run. 

Jordan Bailey and Streak My Judge (Judge My Class x Flashin N Streakin x Streakin Six) topped the 2D with a 16.071. 

$100,000 Added Royal Crown Derby

Fresh off several huge pro rodeo wins, Brittany Tonozzi and Sir Epic (JL Sirocco x So Very Epic x Epic Leader) topped the 1D in Round 1 with a speedy 14.830. The duo have proved tough to beat in any setup. From the wide open arenas of the summer run to the small indoor in Rock Springs, Tonozzi and “Sir” continue their winning streak. With $518,342 in lifetime earnings according to QData, this pair added another $9,728 to that number for the win, with more likely to come in open and incentive earnings. 

Right behind them, with a 14.867-second run, Anita Ellis and SGL Rico (The Goodbye Line x Version Blue x Winners Version) finished second. The Calgary Stampede arena record holders and 2025 Champions added $8,338 to their earnings for the run. 

Tonozzi also placed eighth aboard the newest member of her personal herd, JL Roc Lost A Sock (JL Sirocco x Reddy To Rebound x Red). Their 15.134 banked a little over $2,000, shortly after Tonozzi’s announcement that she had purchased the standout gelding with $445,828 in lifetime earnings per QData. “Mo” and Sir are the top two money earners by JL Sirocco.

Mckinlee Kellett topped the 2D with a 15.581 aboard Version Form (Winners Version x Annies Form x Rare Form). Tonozzi rode another horse to a Round 1 check with a third-place finish on KL Touch Of Heaven (JL Dash Ta Heaven x Junior Country Girl x Deep Note Jr). 

In its inaugural year, the 3D paid $600 to Leah Campbell and Fling The Sting (Feel The Sting x A Streakin Bailey x A Streak Of Fling) for their 16.130. 

$5,000 Added SVE Open Derby

Tonozzi and Ellis added to their winnings, finishing first and second in the SVE Derby, which open to offspring of any stallion. Tonozzi and Mo bumped up one spot, finishing seventh in the 1D. 

Michelle Merrick rode EC Renata (Volcom x Itea x Corona Cartel) to a 15.864 for the 2D win.