Race one of ten, open to claimers valued at $1.5 or $1.2 million and contested by a field of seven, was predictably won by 3-5 favourite D Head Cornerstone.
Conditioned by Peter-John Parsard and ridden by 2023 champion Reyan Lewis, the seven-year-old bay horse controlled the fractions. This aging Bern Identity progeny ran well inside the last furlong to be 1½ lengths clear when the winning post signalled the end of the 7 ½-furlong exertion.
Tuts, guided by Tajay Suckoo for owner/trainer Carlton Cunningham, was sent off at 9-5 favourite in race two for $350,000 claimers. The Berlino Di Tiger six-year-old chestnut mare led and ran gamely over the seven-furlong trip, winning by a half-length to open a riding double for title -chasing Suckoo. He will move on to 50 wins, with Roman at 62 and Tevin Foster at 68 but winless today; there could be a three-way battle with 26 race days remaining.
The Restricted Allowance III 5 1/2 -furlong race three for horses four years and older with less than four career successes went to Brahma Bull (13-1). Saddled by former three-time champion Anthony Nunes to open a double for his high-powered outfit. Claimer Romane Gordon ensured the inconsistent Brahma Bull got a clear advantage early, and no threat emerged from any of his five rivals, with the nearest left three lengths adrift at the line.
Nunes’ second was confirmed forty-five minutes later with promising two-year-old Sooryavanshi (4-5) taking race four. The event, a two-year-old Maiden Special Weight dash over four furlongs, saw the Successful Native chestnut filly scoring by nearly two lengths with two-time and reigning champion Raddesh Roman at the reins.
Former six-time champion Omar Walker had to apply his skills minimally as three-year-old maiden filly Beautiful Rose (7-5), schooled by Adrian Prince, won the sex-restricted race five Maiden Special Weight run on the straight course by nearly seven lengths.
On the other hand, in closing his riding double, Tajay Suckoo needed the full extent of his skill set to land the five-furlong race six to close his two-timer. This, a Restricted Allowance V for non-winners of two races at age five or older went to Gary Griffiths’ Whispering Magic (7-2). Suckoo’s well-timed finish secured victory by a head in a desperate three-cornered scramble, with only a nose separating second Rapida (4-1) and third Speed On Wheels (3-2).
Race seven, an eight-furlong Restricted Stakes for three-year-olds and up, had only three of the original five declarations facing the starter. Purosangue (USA), conditioned by Jason DaCosta, bet at 2-5 and ridden by Robert Halledeen, won by eight and a half lengths. This was the first of two wins on the day for the stable, confirming the depth of talent DaCosta, the four-time and reigning champion, has at his disposal.
My Honeydew (3-2) released her maiden tag in race eight, which was a Maiden Condition event for horses four years and upwards, run at 6 ½ furlongs. Winning rider Chalrick Budhai earned his third success from 40 rides, while trainer Henry Harrison Jnr had his second from 13 declarations this season. The tiny Hedge Fund-bred chestnut filly was a convincing five and a half lengths clear at the finish.
The 2022 titlist Dane Dawkins was aboard 6-5 bet You’re My Sweetie, the two-length winner of the 5 ½-furlong race nine Restricted Allowance V with eligibility for declaration determined by being four years or older with one win. Second-generation trainer Gary Subratie, with this win, was amongst the cohort of horsemen, Nunes, DaCosta, Parsard (actually third generation), Prince and Harrison Jnr, with this status accounting for eight of the ten races on the card.
The featured event on the programme was another renewal of the Gerry Skelton Memorial Trophy, a five-furlong straight sprint for the Overnight Allowance category. For those who may not be aware, Mr Skelton, an Englishman who was a jockey in the United Kingdom, rode here at Knutsford Park after migrating to Jamaica and eventually became a Jamaica Racing Commission Hall-Of-Fame trainer with successes in many of the major races.
In the Gerry Skelton, three-year-old colt Pepper Stepper (USA) nearly blinded his 10 rivals with speed and won by three lengths at odds of 5-1. Claimer Shaheem Gordon had the luxury of glancing behind to see if anything posed a threat two furlongs aboard the closing leg of the DaCosta stable double in what was the tenth and final event.
