KINGSTON, Jamaica - At the start of the day, second-generation trainer Steven Todd with 309 starts is fourth on the list of active trainers behind Anthony Nunes 439, Wayne DaCosta 392, Gary Subratie 341 and ahead of Patrick Lynch 254, which positions him fifth on the list of top 10 trainers.
Todd saddled Luana (Anthony Thomas) to win the opening event and was back in the winners’ enclosure when Lion of Judah (Dane Nelson) secured the trainer’s return after the second race to pose for more photographs. The hardworking conditioner now has 38 winners and stable earnings at $20.5 million in stakes for his clients and staff.
Nelson secured a double when trainer Anthony Nunes’ Adonis won the third and Thomas had his turn when Michael Francis’ Court Call obliged in the seventh.
Apprentice Reyan Lewis then conjured a five-length triumph for the Wayne Parchment-trained Out On A Limb in the fourth and followed up in the nightcap with the Nunes’ Bruce Wayne to make it two as well for the trainer on the day.
Race five provided a great deal of satisfaction for trainer Patrick Lynch when his consistent filly, Msmyrtlerichiegirl (Aaron Chatrie), wore down front running favourite Harry’s Train to win the fifth by nearly two lengths. The reason, of course, is that there is no frequent occurrence of four-year-old horses graduating from non-winners of three to non-winners of four races and winning immediately.
With 16 declarations in the sixth event, a Restricted Stakes over the straight course, the highly competitive stampede was won by USA-bred colt Bold Aflair (Christopher Mamdeen) after being sent to the starting gates in unbeatable condition by Gary Subratie for owner Michros.
The distinctive white with blue diagonal stripes colours of Michros was expectantly in the Winners’ Enclosure again in the ninth — the 12th renewal of the Pick Three Challenge Trophy for juveniles. Bred by Michael Bernard and trained by Subratie, attractive bay colt Wow Wow (Ameth Robles) confirmed his superiority over his peers with a five-length victory, which could have been twice that victory margin if the rider decided to make that point.
Wow Wow has now won seven of his eight starts and with their other starter Nipster finishing third and Bold Aflair’s winning, the $2.4 million in purse monies accumulated on the day means that Michros has overtaken the approximately $660,000 lead of chief rival Carlton Watson who was winless but still garnered stakes of just over $1.0 million for his horses making the frame.
On a fast track with no wind around, Wow Wow established a stakes record of 1:24.4 for the 1,400-metre gallop and has extended his total victory margin to 48 lengths for the seven wins.
Earlier, in the seventh, the outstanding Wayne DaCosta mare, She’s A Maneater (Omar Walker), treated the patrons to another machine-like performance. This time the mare bettered stable companion Stranger Danger by three lengths over 1,200 metres with a four kilo weight swing in his favour when beaten six lengths in the Diamond Mile.
