In the first race, it was 3-5 against prohibitive first race favourite Tigray Express, getting the benefit of the experience of veteran reinsman Paul Francis, the six-year-old bay horse was held up behind the three front runners and led inside the final furlong of the six and a half trip to score by two and a half lengths. Tigray Express was saddled by second generation conditioner Ryan Darby.
Race two was a maiden event, restricted to five-year-olds and upwards over six furlongs. Double The Cash (2-1), who could not have been unluckier, when he had his momentum interrupted twice at crucial stages to lose his last race by a half a length. He won here by a length with Tajay Suckoo at the reins for trainer Donovan Plummer’s second success from 12 declarations this year.
Trainer Fitzroy Glispie, who had a distinguished career as a jockey such as winning the first ever eight furlongs 2000 Guineas in 1975 aboard Xtra Classy and partnering three Derby heroes, including Legal Light 1977, has had significant success as a breeder as well.
Incidentally, up until till then, the Jamaica Guineas was a Classic, run over nine furlongs for both sexes, until the 1975 separation. George Hosang rode Baglonda to win this inaugural staging for the opposite sex.
The victory by Prince Roy (2-1), whom Glispie bred and owns, won race three over six and a half furlongs by over eight lengths with Richard Henry executing the riding honours. This colt will now obviously be a competitor in the imminent 2025 schedule of Futurities.
In race four, run at five furlongs round, Princess Ria, a winner of two of her last four races and saddled by Omar Williams, sprinted well enough to win at odds of 54/1.
Claiming jockey Eric Haughton induced her to run well enough inside the last furlong to defend her early advantage by two lengths.
Bred by veterinarian Dr Aston Marsh and ridden by 2022 champion Dane Dawkins for trainer Gary Subratie, four year-old Midnight Hawk bred chestnut colt Blood Moon, justified its status of 2-1 favouritism with a hard-fought victory in scoring by a neck over the six furlongs of race five.
In race six over six furlongs, winner Musketoon (4-1) declared by Paul Hylton won by over three lengths and ridden to be the first of a riding double by Shane Ellis. The winner is owned by Lawrence Freemantle, who also saddled 4-5 favourite Cappuccino (6th/claim void). The sceptics thought and said otherwise, but this was clearly an unpredictable outcome for the trainers of these two rarely sound horses.
For race seven, over the maximum five furlongs distance of the straight course, Midnight Flight, a 3-5 favourite bet with Tevin Foster astride, was just over four lengths better than the next horse to finish giving trainer Byron Davis his first success of the season.
Following a Steward’s Inquiry into incidents inside the last 200 yards of the maiden seven and a half furlongs race eight and an objection lodged by jockey Raddesh Roman adjudicated, first past the post by a head, US-bred Nephew (13-1) ridden by Trevor Simpson was disqualified for “intimidation and interference”.
The placings were reversed in favour of US-bred Girvano (6-5), declared by 2024 champion and 2025 early season-leader Jason DaCosta.
The featured Lloyd Lindberg “Lindy” Delapenha Trophy, run as race nine, was presented as a gift to the owners of Tiz Toz (USA). This two-time winner in the United States was very slowly into stride at the start of the Mouttet Mile and obviously would have been closer than just under five lengths fifth without that beginning. Conditioned by Anthony Nunes and up against vastly inferior rivals, Tiz Toz (USA) was bet at 1-5. Shane Ellis to confirmed his double success as the strapping four-year-old colt won the six and a half-furlong contest by over six lengths.
The hopelessly flawed claiming/condition system racing product continues to operate to the detriment of the industry as the mathematically challenged supporters and operatives resist the alternative of a proper method of classification of the horse population.
This claiming system, an American aberration, has been an existential threat not only to that of the United States but our local industry for the last 33 years as well. However, former owners, the Government of Jamaica and the present owners, were, and are prepared to provide support until it becomes unaffordable.
