Even money favourite, appropriately name All For Love racing on Valentine’s Day, won the competitive opening 1500 metres race. In a performance which generated some excitement, the filly prevailed where most horses would not have been good enough.
Held up to produce the usual late bid by the 2022 riding titlist Dane Dawkins to be the first of a riding double on the card, All For Love, about to challenge for the lead on the far rails with 150 metres remaining was nearly brought down when the gap closed.
A deft course correction by Dawkins got the Gary Subratie conditioned filly back in stride and taken sharply to the centre of the track to prevail by a neck from a seemingly hopeless position.
Race two, run over 1000 metres round, was won by 4-5 favourite Sugar Daddy, trained by Patrick Lynch to canter in by over 11 lengths for jockey Tevin Foster to claim the first of a double on the day.
Just about forty minutes later, race three, run at 1500 metres, was won by Nala’s Bushman (12-1) with reinsman Phillip Parchment’s well timed run landing the major portion of the purse for the stable of Michael Spencer.
The 1000-metre straight fourth event produced a consecutive winning odds of 12-1 with maiden Uncle Syl, declared by owner/trainer Carlton Cunningham turning out to be the first of a riding double for the hard-working Roger Hewitt.
For race five, run at a similar distance, Ryan Darby’s Phoenix Risen (2-1) with veteran Paul Francis at the reins, sprinted gamely in front to hold on by a half a length for victory.
Race six of ten on the card and third over the straight course, gave Roger Hewitt the opportunity for double success and he took it with aplomb for trainer Lennis Shim to open his stable’s 2023 account by saddling The Gifted One to score at odds of 8-1. Interestingly, being Valentine’s Day and in the spirit of the traditional exchange of gifts, Special Gift (2-1) was second in this event.
At the end of race seven and for the third time a 12-1 shot was in the winners’ enclosure. Raddesh Roman was aboard Ian Parsard’s 11-length runaway Amma over the 1400-metre distance. With normal improvement it is highly likely this filly, sired by Bern Identity out of prolific winner producing mare Blufield, will be taking her chances in the Futurities, especially those restricted to her own sex.
In the eighth, 5-1 shot Kissmet led to win by nearly two lengths for Foster to confirm his double riding success. Saddled by third generation practitioner Steven Todd, the four-year-old bay filly, imported in utero, had her pace leaving her field in trouble from early and although tiring visibly 100 metres out, had done enough by then to hold the lead safely.
While in race nine, James (5-1) with Robert Halledeen at the reins for trainer Spencer Chung, in similar fashion to Kissmet, gave his nine pursuers no hope over the 1200 metres.
The featured traditional Ash Wednesday Trophy was strongly contested by a field of eleven with the first three to finish sharing less than the space of half a length. Bet at 88-1, Taurus Boy led convincingly until overtaken by 6-1 shot Get A Pepsi (6-1), who led inside the last 50 of the 1300 metres but he himself succumbed to the impressive finishing speed of Green Gold Rush (7-2). Dawkins, to secure his double, partnered the seven-year-old gelding for trainer Dalton Sirjue.
