Corona Cartel

Corona Cartel had looks, brains, ability – the true essence of an American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame stallion. Bred by Robert D. “Bob” Etchandy of Anaheim, California, Corona Cartel was from the first foal crop sired by Holland Ease, a son of Hall of Famer and all-time leading sire First Down Dash. Foaled in 1994, Corona Cartel was the first foal out of American Quarter Horse Hall of Famer Corona Chick, the track-record-setting champion racehorse famous for her speed and temperament.

Corona Cartel was purchased as a yearling at the 1995 Vessels/Schvaneveldt Sale for $42,000 by Celina Molina of Tucson, Arizona. Corona Cartel scored in six of 14 career starts, including three elite races, and then won the All American Futurity Consolation in a time faster than the winner of the All American Futurity that year.

When Corona Cartel walked in the saddling paddock, he looked like a Quarter Horse, a compact, refined and well-balanced package “like a little Jet Deck–really a nice horse, lots of class,” said trainer Jaime Gomez. When he got in the starting gate, Corona Cartel stood ready, ears pricked, focused down the track. And when the gate opened, Corona Cartel ran like a major winner among the fastest horses on earth. Corona Cartel retired from the track with earnings of $557,142.

Syndicated in 2001 and standing his entire career at Lazy E Ranch at Guthrie, Oklahoma, the stallion through February 2022 had sired 2,061 foals from 23 crops. Now the second-all-time leading race sire (behind only First Down Dash), Corona Cartel has sired 1,138 winners and the earners of more than $66 million from 1,664 starters. His get include nine champions, including world champion and second all-time leading money-earning mare Blues Girl Too and champion and All American Futurity winner Teller Cartel; and leading sires PYC Paint Your Wagon, whose sons include leading sire Freighttrain B, and Ivory James; and leading dams Remember Me Rose and Ms First Prize Rose. Corona Cartel also–so far–is the broodmare sire of six champions, including world champion Bodacious Eagle.

Corona Cartel has also sired horses that have won AQHA points in halter and performance and made their names in the National Reining Horse Association, National Reined Cow Horse Association, Barrel Futurities of America and other competitions. Among those are AQHA Supreme Champion Cartel Caliente and Wrangler National Finals Rodeo barrel horse Rosas Cantina CC.

Corona Cartel was euthanized December 18, 2019.

 “In terms of contributions to the breed, he’s second only to another Hall of Famer named First Down Dash as a sire in terms of dollars earned and stakes winners–Corona Cartel has got 31 Grade 1 winners alone,” says AQHA Past President Butch Wise, general manager of the Lazy E Ranch. “He’s the second-leading broodmare sire, and he’s a sire of sires. He has a number of sons in the top 25 leading sires, and there are more coming along all the time.

“He’s a significant horse in terms of sale yearlings,” Butch says. “They sell well, and then they go outrun you. What really made him exceptional as a sire was the minds he put on his offspring. Blane Schvaneveldt was asked what made the Corona Cartels so good. He said it was their hearing, kind of joking, but said, ‘I swear, those horses can hear the little pin move in the starting gate, because when that gate opens, they’re gone!’ They make tremendous second-career horses because of their minds.”

He was inducted into the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame in 2022.

Biography updated as of August 2022.