KINGSTON, Jamaica - “The owner [Ian Kong] and I met recently and, after discussing the matter, the decision was taken to retire She’s A Maneater immediately.
“The two major concerns we had for her (She’s A Maneater) were the indefinite suspension of racing, occasioned by COVID-19, and the recent changes in weight by the Jamaica Racing Commission,” trainer of the six-year-old bay mare by Natural Selection – Ahwhofah, Wayne DaCosta revealed to this website.
She’s A Maneater started her career on September 24, 2016, as a two-year-old, when she won a maiden contest over five and a half furlongs in a fast time of 1:05.3.
After that opening salvo, which caught the eyes of all racing pundits, She’s A Maneater went on to racing glory in 2017 when she won the Triple Crown series of races (1000 Guineas, Derby, St Leger).
As if that was not enough, the Winston Kong-then Ian Kong-owned filly (2017) established her undeniable class when she proceeded to win the Superstakes and the Diamond Mile.
Those three-year-old performances saw She’s A Maneater being crowned the queen of the track, and every time thereafter that she raced, there was not only an air of expectant greatness but also the recognition that she was one of, if not the greatest thoroughbred ever to race in this land. Certainly, She’s A Maneater is the best female horse ever produced in Jamaica.
“She’s A Maneater is a dream horse.
“She was easy to train, she revelled in her greatness when she came onto the track, she was fearless. She had class, she had everything. Her record stands for itself.
“Now with COVID-19 around, which has led to the indefinite suspension of racing, we had to rethink our position of racing She’s A Maneater this year.
“It would have been unfair to have her preparing and just waiting to see when racing would return.
“You have to understand that this horse has given us, the connections, so much joy, so many brilliant and unforgettable moments that it would have been unfair to keep her in a state of uncertainty,” DaCosta said.
As to the second concern of the recently announced changes in weights he said,
“I believe that the change from 126 lb (57.0 kg) to 129 lb (59.0 kg) being allotted to horses at the top of the scale, and moving down from 110 lb (50.0 kg) to 101 lb (46.0 kg) was aimed primarily at She’s A Maneater. To me, it was a case of the those in power aiming directly at her — that is, the good suffering for the bad.
“Then you have to consider She’s A Maneater with 129 lb (59.0 k) and the bottom weight carrying 101 lb (46.0 kg), that’s a 28 lb approximately or 13 kg difference. I could not subject She’s A Maneater to that situation,” DaCosta stated.
The trainer then added another reason why retirement was decided on.
“There has been no ‘A’ Class race since last year; not many are planned, making the options available to race She’s A Maneater slim, at best,” the trained ended.
While at stud, She’s A Maneater is expected to be paired with the HAM Stables’ stallion, Sensational Slam.
She’s A Maneater was bred by Winston Kong.
