The 2026 $1.75 million Reggae Trophy was the featured event on the programme of nine races and staged as race eight. Legacy Isle (USA), runner-up in the 2024 and 2025 Mouttet Mile to Funcaandun (USA) and Rideallday (USA), respectively, had only five rivals. He was bet to the tune of 1-5 with 60 points available in the run-up to qualification for a third tilt at the US$350,000 event on the first Saturday in December this year.
Always in control of the pace, Legacy Isle (USA), a six-year-old Shackleford (USA)-bred horse, was partnered by two-time and reigning Raddesh Roman to close a riding double. The huge importee won by just under 11 lengths for also Florida-based conditioner Rohan Crichton to open his stable’s seasonal account from just seven declarations this year.
Legacy Isle (USA) stopped the clock at 57.1 seconds for the five-furlong dash over the straight course.
As the season commences its second third, Roman, having won the seven-furlong opening event aboard Wilson (4-5) for trainer Oral Hayden to saddle the first of a stable double, has now moved his personal tally to 36, which is five more than his current main protagonist, Tevin Foster.
In-form apprentice Richie Shakes, scored by over two lengths aboard Michael Marlowe’s Always Wright (2-1) in race two, contested over seven and a half furlongs, continued his riding form and has had nine visits to the winners’ enclosure over the last four race days.
This underscores the improvement these promising reinsmen have made over the past year, and it will be interesting to see how much support they receive from owners and trainers once the apprentice weight claims after 60 winners no longer apply.
Demar Williams, like Shakes, a 2024 graduate of the Jamaica Racing Commission (JRC) Riding School, rode Lockdown (7-5) to a margin of over seven lengths in taking the seven-furlong race four for trainer Ryan Darby.
Jahiem Anderson, similar in status to Shakes and Williams, was aboard the four-year-old maiden Goodness Gracious (2-1), saddled by Wayne Binns, whose career as a trainer is now off to a start. This by a margin of nearly three lengths over the five-furlong straight sprint of race seven.
Dane Dawkins, the 2022 champion, was in double riding form and had the first of two wins on the day on the back of 7-2 bet Miss Marbella (USA), conditioned by Peter-John Parsard, to outsprint her nearest rival by over seven lengths at the end of the five and a half furlongs of race three.
Dawkins confirmed his second in tandem with the Oral Hayden outfit, as Wayne Princess (4-1) arrived in the final stride to score by a nose when the seven-furlong gallop of race five ended.
The result of the race six made for an interesting talking point as Super David (5-2), owned and trained by David Powell, had its first run six days earlier over the four-furlong straight dash. After being slow to get into stride, a finish of one and a half lengths second was a promising start for the Patton Proud-bred colt, and the gallop was effectively a preparation run.
Not surprisingly, today’s winning margin of just over ten lengths in a time of 1:20.2, over six and a half furlongs easing down, suggests Super David, with Robert Halleden at the reins for the first of his riding double, may enter the conversation about likely competitiveness in the upcoming Classics.
Truth be told, with champion juvenile and 2026 Triple Crown favourite We Jammin dominant in the Prince Consort Stakes, the rest of the unconvincing cast of contenders may very well be vulnerable to the emergence of a late bloomer like Super David.
Halledeen confirmed his second in the closing ninth event. Jason DaCosta’s 2024 Two Thousand Guineas winner California Crown, whose last success was in November last year, returned to form with a vengeance in the nightcap to beat 4-5 favourite Digital One (USA) by nine lengths in the six-furlong run for the Henry W Jaghai Trophy to honour the contribution to the industry of this JRC Hall Of Fame breeder.
