MAY 2026 THE RIDER /23


Q.R.O.O.I.: 50 Alexander Crossing’s, Ajax, ON L0S 1T6 Telephone: (905) 426-7050 • Fax: (905) 426-7093 Email: qrooiheadoffice@gmail.com


www.qrooi.com Had to Be Fabulous voted 2025 QROOI Horse of the Year


PRESIDENT Bob Broadstock 18101 Cedardale Road, Nestleton, Ontario L0B 1L0 (905) 986-0044 email: bob_broadstock@hotmail.com


VICE-PRESIDENT Chantelle Bourgeois 416-985-7046 Chantelle.Bourgeois@t4g.com


Director – Corey Illman – 1 year Director – Brooke Sisson – 2 years Director – John McInerney – 2 years Director – Scott Reid – 3 years Director – Nadia Faccin – 3 years


in January 2026 by the AQHA with the Dam of Distinction title. Mosqueira, who rode


almost every Robertson starter in 2025, won his first Ajax Downs jockey title with 38 victories, 299 QROOI points and purses of over $324,000. Mosqueira, who also is a Thoroughbred jockey, won his 100th Ajax Downs race during the summer of 2025. Runner- up Brian Bell, the High Point Jockey the last two years, celebrated a mile- stone in 2025, winning his 800th career race, the most of any Canadian Quarter Horse rider. Trainer Jason Pascoe


won his seventh straight title with 410 points from 35 wins and his horses earned


just over


The Had to Be Fabulous Team after winning the Quarter Racing Owners of Ontario’s (QROOI) Horse of the Year award for 2025. Like her older half-


brother before her, Had to Be Fabulous was named the Quarter Racing Own- ers of Ontario’s (QROOI) Horse of the Year thanks to a spectacular, unde- feated season at Ajax Downs. Had to Be Fabu- lous, a half-sister to 2-


time Horse of the Year, Had to Be Ivory, was also the year’s High Point 3- Year-Old Filly with 52 QROOI points. The 2025 Ontario


Quarter Horse Awards ceremony was held Sat- urday, March 7 at the Ajax Convention Centre.


Had to Be Fabulous,


owned and bred by Carol and Jaime Robertson of Hillsburgh, ON and trained by Bryn Robert- son, won all seven of her 2025 starts at Ajax Downs including four stakes races. The Horse of the Year honour is


voted on by the board of the QROOI. Following a sensa-


tional juvenile campaign in which she won five of six starts, Had to Be Fab- ulous rolled through her 3-year-old season win- ning three stakes Trials and four added-money events: the QROOI Derby, Ontario Bred Derby,


Princess


Derby and the Nor- man Picov Derby over the boys. Rid- den in each outing by Ismael Mosqueira, the brown filly with the small snip on her nose, made every victory look effort- less.


“I don’t recall


The Had to Be Fabulous Team after winning the Quarter Racing Owners of On- tario’s (QROOI) Horse of the Year award for 2025. (New Image Media photo)


ever riding a horse like [her],” said Mosqueira following the win in the Picov Derby. “What can you say about her? She stands for her name – she’s a fabu- lous filly.”


$510,000. Pascoe, who is from Pontypool, beat out Bob Broadstock, who had 281 points as runner- up.


Milena Kwiecien of Bryn Robertson,


who won 19 races from 32 starts, matching his previous best number of wins set in 2017, was often surprised at how low-key his star filly was before her races. “She’s very quiet and


she never stresses her- self,” Bryn said. “Some- times I think, maybe today won’t be her day but she just loves it.” Had to Be Fabulous


is the fifth and final foal of her remarkable dam Had to Be Fandango, bought by Carol and Bryn in 2009 for just $2,000. Her foals have earned just over $1 mil- lion.


Both Had to Be Fab-


ulous and Had to Be Ivory, who is the richest Ontario-bred Quarter Horse in history, have been named the Canadian Quarter Horse of the Year by the AQHA on multiple occasions. Had To Be Fandango was honoured


Burlington edged Marie Broadstock by just two points to take the High Point Owner award and James Bogar of Cameron won his third consecutive High Point Breeder award. Ontario’s High Point


3-Year-Old Male was John Wilson and Scott Reid’s The Batmann, who ended his 2025 cam- paign with an upset win in the Ontario Sires Derby, his fourth win of the campaign. A grey On- tario-bred by Caviar and Corona, The Batmann was bred by trainer Reid and Carly Furlonger.


MORE AWARDS One of Ajax Downs’


most popular runners is the ageless Maryland Magic, who was the High Point Aged Stallion at the age of 11. The remark- able dark bay, who has several crops of foals rac- ing, won six races in 2025, provided jockey


Brian Bell with his 800th career win and collected 42 points. He is owned by Kwiecien and trained by Pascoe. Relentless Betty, a


Bogar homebred, was the 2025 High Point Aged Mare and the High Point 2-Year-Olds were Marie Broadstock’s Ontario bred and sired filly Ala- bama Mooonshine and Amelie Aubut’s Ontario bred and sire Agent Ice, bred by Guylaine Paquin.


The 2026 Quarter


Horse season is set to begin on Wednesday, May 6.


QROOI AWARDS Presented to point


leaders (Horse of the Year voted on by QROOI Board) 3-Year-Old Filly Had to Be Fabulous


3-Year-Old Colt/Geld- ing The Batmann


Aged Mare Relentless Betty


Aged Stallion/Gelding Maryland Magic


2-Year-Old Colt/Geld- ing Agent Ice


2-Year-Old Filly Alabama Moonshine


Owner Milena Kwiecien


Trainer Jason Pascoe


Owner/Trainer Bryn Robertson


Breeders James Bogar


Jockey Ismael Mosqueira


-story by Jennifer Morri- son


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