KINGSTON, Jamaica - The 1300-metre opening event was won by odds-on favourite Devine Lexie (Dane Nelson), heralding another good day for second-generation trainers.
Owned by Alex Bjorn and trained by two-time champion and current leader Anthony Nunes, the five-year old mare had her 13th start this season, the 50th in an undistinguished career and won on the second occasion.
Trainer Gregory Forsyth continued his good 2021 strike rate, 12 wins from 40 starts, as long odds-on favourite Storm Princess was saved from defeat by the riding skills of joint champion Anthony Thomas in the 1000-metre straight second event. The now inconsistent mare had only a short head to spare over her nearest rival but ensured it was the first of two on the day for the leading 2021 reinsman.
Imported in utero, the sparingly raced four-year-old light-framed mare Ultimatum trained by Dennis Lee started as odds on favourite and duly obliged in the third to give the form players three-consecutive visits to the cashiers.
Promising apprentice Nicholas Hibbert, who suffered an injury to his right hand in an incident as the victim of a robbery earlier this year, confirmed there were no lasting ill-effects resulting from the trauma as he rode with confidence on his return to the saddle.
The successful run of favourites came to end in the fourth when 31/1 shot Innovator (Youville Pinnock) led the gallopers all the way in the 1300-metre fourth event to score by two lengths for trainer Joseph Durrant’s fourth success from 18 starts this season.
Trained by Anthony Subratie, nine-year-old inconsistent gelding Samora, four wins from 57 career races, came home over three lengths clear at odds of 5/1 for veteran Devon A Thomas’ seventh winning mount of the year in the 1000-metre straight fifth race.
Victory by Gentle Giant (Dick Cardenas), a 5/1 shot in the 1000-metre straight sixth event, kept the third-consecutive favourite out of the winners’ enclosure and indeed all for the remainder of the card. This was trainer Jason DaCosta’s first of two wins on the day to keep the remarkable 2021 feature of the trend of success for second-generation trainers on track.
Trainer Patrick Lynch posted El Profesor (Tevin Foster) in invincible condition to win the 1500-metre seventh event by nearly four lengths while the Cashbert Khawalsingh-conditioned Luminous Power (Shane Richardson) inflicted further punishment on the form players at odds of 6/1 in the 1100-metre eighth.
It was second-generation trainers’ time again in the 1200-metre ninth race with Midnight Blue making all the running to confirm Thomas’ double success. This was owner Carlton Watson’s repeat trip to the winners’ enclosure following his first with Gentle Giant and DaCosta’s second on the day for 22 successes since his first formal local success on the April 7 of this year.
With 381 wins in a 12-year career in the USA, all told, the 35-year-old horseman has now exceeded 400 wins and has made a seamless transition in managing the stable following the death of his dad, 18-time champion Wayne earlier this year.
Gresford Smith saddled Kay Boy (Aaron Chartie) to win the 1200-metre tenth and closing event and made it four wins on the card for the second-generation conditioners. The 2021 tally for these guardians of their family’s legacy is now a formidable 182 from 392 races.
The Training Feat Award is presented to DaCosta for the restoration of the ability of Gentle Giant. After making an impressive debut with a six-length canter over the 1000-metre straight course in a time of 1:00.0, the colt lost his subsequent five races by a total of over 96 lengths. Gentle Giant therefore deserves the Best Winning Gallop accolade and Cardenas gets yet another of his fairly frequent Jockeyship Awards for this triumph in a hugely competitive line-up of non-winners of two races.
