TRAINER TAYLOR, OWNER-BREEDER DOENZ, HIT UPON SUCCESSFUL FORMULA, TWO RUNNERS WIN TRAINING RACES, INCLUDING FASTEST

by Richard Linihan

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – March 5, 2025 – Trainer Josh Taylor and breeder-owner Bill Doenz may have hit upon a successful formula with their half-brothers, Cowboy Cadilac and Billys Brandi, winning two of the nine training races Wednesday at Remington Park.

Cowboy Cadilac had the fastest race of the day, running a 250-yard time of :13.468 over a fast track, good for an 82 speed index with a 19 mph tailwind and the temperature on the rise at 49 degrees. Both Cowboy Cadilac and Billys Brandi are owned and were bred by Doenz of Sheridan, Wyo. Taylor, a 45-year-old trainer who resides in Norman, Okla., said his dad, Mike, raced in Wyoming for years and that’s how the Taylor outfit joined forces with Doenz.

Doenz purchased these two horses’ dam, EC Brandi, who was unraced, but they decided to take a chance on her as a broodmare. She has given her connections great hope after her offsprings’ efforts today.

“She worked out at Los Alamitos once and came back really sore, so she wasn’t raced, but her mother was CR Sugar N Spice, who could run,” said Taylor. “Turns out the reason EC Brandi was sore is that they found an aneurysm in her back. She can’t even carry a foal to full term, so we had to take her embryos and put them in a surrogate mare.”

EC Brandi’s dam, CR Sugar N Spice broke her maiden at Remington Park at first asking on March 13, 2019, came back and ran second in the Remington Park Futurity trials the next month before an admiral finish of third in that Grade 1 final. She also won her trial as the 4-5 betting favorite under Hall of Fame rider Larry Payne in the Heritage Place Futurity trials that spring, but didn’t run in that final.

Cowboy Cadilac, under jockey Bonifacio Quiroz, was impressive in his training race, the fourth of the day. The 2-year-old bay colt won his heat by a half-length. The colt is a son of Flying Cowboy 123, and EC Brandi is by Hes Relentless. It doesn’t get much better in breeding top and bottom.

Cowboy Cadilac’s half-brother, Billys Brandi is from the same dam, but his sire is possibly the hottest barn of the five days of training races yet this season – Cyber Monday.

Taylor comes from a family of horsemen as his mother, Marissa Black, conditions thoroughbreds during the fall meet at Remington Park. Taylor’s barn wasn’t the only one on fire Wednesday. While he had two of the top four fastest horses, trainer Fernando Manriquez sent out three winners in the schooling events, mostly for 2-year-old runners that are preparing for their career debuts. Manriquez had the third fastest (BTD Heart of Gold), the fifth-fastest (Singles Corona), and the seventh-fastest (Imperial Energy).

Other than the fastest training race winner, the other winners (2-year-old American Quarter Horses unless otherwise noted), their times (in order from fastest to slowest winners), speed index, trainers and race number were:

• Coronas Golddigger, :13.483, 81, Haley Hobbs, race seven
• BTD Heart of Gold, :13.497, 81, Fernando Manriquez, race three
• Billys Brandi, :13.635, 75, Josh Taylor, race six
• Singles Corona, :13.662, 74, Fernando Manriquez, race eight
• Dolls Flying Higher, :13.700, 72, Jose Gamez, race nine
• Imperial Energy, :13.703, 72, Fernando Manriquez, race five
• Hes a Capo Dash (4yo), :13.756, 70, Jose Gamez, race one
• Queen Blue (Appaloosa), :14.023, 60, Jesus Ruiz, race two

The Remington Park 2025 American Quarter Horse, Paint and Appaloosa season begins Thursday night with a first post time of 6 p.m.

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Remington Park has provided more than $376 Million to the State of Oklahoma general education fund since the opening of the casino in 2005. Located at the junction of Interstates 35 & 44, in the heart of the Oklahoma City Adventure District, Remington Park presents year-round simulcast racing and casino gaming. The 2025 American Quarter Horse Season, features the historic 84^th edition of the Oklahoma Futurity on Saturday, March 22. Must be 18 or older to wager on horse racing or enter the casino gaming floor. Visit remingtonpark.com for more information.