CT: Duncan Idaho threepeats in It’s Only Money
Reasserts division supremacy
Ted Black
April 19, 2026
One week after the West Virginia-bred fillies and mares were in the spotlight for the $75,000 Fancy Buckles Stakes, the spotlight shifted to the state-bred older males in the $75,000 It’s Only Money Stakes.
More specifically, the spotlight was on Duncan Idaho, the two-time defending champion of this event.
Not only had Duncan Idaho won the two previous editions of the It’s Only Money, but he was also the reigning West Virginia-bred sprint champion. He won his first five starts of 2025 before a stumbling start left him too much to do in the West Virginia Dash for Cash Breeders’ Classic, which went instead to Time to Rock.
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Trained by Jeff Runco for David Raim, Duncan Idaho went off at 1-2 in the It’s Only Money, and his performance on Saturday night would only validate those odds.
When the gates opened, Honeyquist (J.D. Acosta) broke best of all from between horses leaving the chute, but Duncan Idaho, who had missed the break when 2-5 in the Dash For Cash last fall, broke alertly on this occasion and joined the leader down the backside and by the opener in 21.44 with Dash For Cash champ Time to Rock well spotted a couple of lengths behind in third.
Midway on the final turn, Duncan Idaho collared Honeyquist and began to edge away from him as Time to Rock tired. Duncan Idaho prevailed smartly in his seasonal debut by 2 ¼ lengths, getting the 4 1/2 furlongs in 51.52 seconds as the odds-on choice.
Now a three-peat winner of the It’s Only Money Stakes, Duncan Idaho owns a stellar 16-3-2 slate and over $424,000 banked from 24 career outings and solidified his status as the top state-bred sprinter of either gender.
“When he breaks like that, I know none of these other horses can beat him,” winning rider Arnaldo Bocachica said. “I had so much horse under me going down the backside. Even going 21 and two, I know he’s got a lot left. He’s got such a tremendous stride. He’s a really, really nice horse. If he could have ever stretched out, he might have been as good as any one here.”
“I was really nervous before the race,” said Raim, who also won the nightcap 30 minutes later with one of his rare homebreds T Rex Union. “But I’m always nervous. When he breaks that sharp, then that helps ease things a little. He’s always been a really nice horse and Jeff does a great job getting him ready, like he does all of my horses.”
A full-brother to past state-bred stars Late Night Pow Wow, Muad’dib, and Overnight Pow Wow, Duncan Idaho has certainly carved out his niche as one of the more dominant state-bred one-turn sprinters in recent years, perhaps joining in the discussion with the late, great Dr. Feelgood, who never tasted defeat in 11 such races over the strip.
Four races prior to the It’s Only Money, Moonlit Notion (Larry Reynolds) forged the mildest of mild upsets as the 1.10-1 second choice in a one-turn allowance dash. The Tim Grams trainee broke alertly to press even-money choice Pleasenthanku down the backside and through the far turn then edged past that one in the final 100 yards for a half-length score with the rest far behind.
A four-year-old son of Great Notion out of the talented mare Moonlit Song bred by Tim and Judy Grams, Moonlit Notion notched his second win in four seasonal tries and now owns an 8-3-2 slate and nearly $200,000 banked from 14 career outings while getting the 4 1/2 furlongs in 52.10 as the clear second choice for trainer Tim Grams and owner-breeder Grams Racing.
Pleasenthanku (Sunday Diaz, Jr.) was clearly second best following their prolonged duel and actually garnered the role as beaten favorite, narrowly. In a win pool just shy of $38,000 Pleasenthanku was favored over Moonlit Notion by a scant $12.
“We knew going into the race that it was really between me and [Pleasenthanku] inside of us,” said winning rider Larry Reynolds, who had guided Maggie’s Girl to a narrow victory in the Fancy Buckles Stakes one week earlier for the same connections. “Having the outside post definitely helped. I was basically in the catbird seat just sitting outside that other horse. This horse likes to wait on horses a little. He doesn’t tend to draw off and win by more than a neck or half-length.”
One race prior, Social Chic (Warren Ebow, III) just lived up to his role as the tepid 8-5 favorite in a two-turn allowance/optional $15,000 claiming event for state-bred older runners when he rallied from just off the pace, swept to command on the far turn, and outfought Royal Pain late for a neck score. An eight-year-old Upstart gelding trained by Jeff Runco for owner H. Neil Glasser, Social Chic recorded his first win in four seasonal tries and now owns a solid 14-14-7 slate and $525,000 banked from 45 career outings after getting the 6 1/2 furlongs in 1:20.66.
In all, Runco won four races on the Saturday card, with Flight Level and T Rex Union joining Duncan Idaho and Social Chic in the winner’s circle. T Rex Union won a claiming event to close the card.
Flight Level, a four-year-old daughter of Goldencents trained by Runco for his own Coleswood Farm Inc., Level graduated at first asking by getting 4 1/2 furlongs in 52.26 as the odds-on choice. Under Arnaldo Bocachica, she won by nearly six lengths as the 7-10 betting choice, easily besting fellow firster Great Fiber, who herself was five clear of the rest.
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