KINGSTON, Jamaica - THE Jamaica Racing Commission (JRC)-sponsored 1200-metre Thoroughbred Hall Of Fame Stakes Trophy was the featured event on the 10-race card. Headed by Chairman Clovis Metcalfe, there was a good turnout by staff members of both the JRC and the Betting, Gaming & Lotteries Commission at this popular annual race day littered with trophy races honouring many hall-of-famers.
Latest rising sprint star Jordon Reign’s (9-5) was prepared by Ian Parsard for the first of two wins from the stable and was ridden by former champion Dick Cardenas. Truth be told, this success was entirely predictable given the advantageous conditions of the weight allotment at 49.5 kilogrammes.
Jordon Reign’s was held up on the heels of battling stablemates Lure Of Lucy (USA) and Eagle One (USA), intent on denying each other the lead for 800 metres. The well-conformed, US-bred, four-year old gelding accelerated into the lead at the distance and scored by two and half lengths, which could have been twice that. This was Jordon Reign’s fifth victory from seven career starts and he looks likely to improve.
Lightly raced four-year-old filly She’s So Fabulous, first of two wins for Omar Walker, was always in control of the opening 1100-metre sprint and won by nearly six lengths at odds of 8-5.
Following a distant fourth by 16 lengths and in fifth by 15 lengths in the 2000 Guineas and the St Leger, respectively, it was 8-5 backed Morimoto’s time to return to winning ways in race two. Trained by champion Anthony Nunes and ridden for the first of two wins by Tevin Foster, Morimoto, now winner of three races from six starts, won by an uncomfortable two-length margin at the end of the 1820-metre gallop.
To join champion Anthony Thomas on 50 wins this season, Dane Dawkins — for his first of two — rode Funky Fashion (4/1) to a seven-length advantage in the third event run over 1500 metres at 4-1 for trainer Errol Pottinger. However, with victory by 2¼ lengths in race five, Thomas had what was only just the opening response over the 1000-metre straight course with Sudden Flight (4-5) for trainer Nicholas Smith.
Dawkins was on level terms at the end of the 1820 metres of race nine in partnering with eight-length runaway Big Jule (3-5) to confirm the Parsard stable double. However, in the tenth and closing event Thomas, riding the Howard Jaghai-conditioned filly Runway Icon (2-1), hurried for an early lead which went virtually unchallenged and was good for an advantage of 2¼ lengths over the 1400 metres of the maiden event restricted to three-year-old fillies.
Not to be too overshadowed by the leading protagonists, Foster confirmed his riding double in race four with XY Soul (7-5) trained by Gary Griffiths, running for the seventeenth occasion this season. The winner pressured 3-5 favourite, the pace-making front-runner Dodge This Link, into yielding in a war of attrition over the final 200 of the 1100 metres.
Claiming jockey Jawani Forbes was a career first-time winner when Hunter’s Ridge (2-1), trained by Colin Ferguson, proved to be nearly five lengths better than nearest rival at the end of the gallop of race six over 1000 metres straight. Forbes got a good reception from the fans but will need to work much harder on developing the requisite skills to follow up on this success.
In race eight it was the second win on the day, sealed for former six-time champion reinsman Omar Walker and number 19 from 72 starts for 2013 St Leger winner Superluminal (2-5). The durable, ten-year-old money-spinner ($16.3 million), who led over the 1500-metre trip, held off late challenges from two rivals by three parts of a length. Superluminal was scoring in his last three starts with favourite rider Walker at the reins.
The Training Feat Award is presented to Howard Jaghai for his work with Runway Icon who debuted on January 22 this year and was only able to return nearly six months later for this success. The Best Winning Gallop came from XY Soul, whose connections must be very aware this success has to be credited to the skills of Foster who gets yet another Jockeyship Award.
