KINGSTON, Jamaica - THE opening event, run at 1,100 metres on the nine-event programme, was won with consummate ease by 6/5 favourite Ali. The seven-year-old chestnut horse was saddled by Nicholas Smith and ridden by Javaneil Patterson (17) for a dominant scoreline margin of 11½ lengths, to extend the spate of too-frequent runaway successes continually making a mockery of the weight allotments.
Half an hour later this observation received further confirmation as the day’s second, contested over a similar trip, even-money favourite Rum With Me turned in a nine-length romp. Guided by leading reinsman Reyan Lewis (48), jockey-turned-trainer Fernando Geddes, in saddling Rum With Me, had his third winner from 22 declarations this season.
Race three over 1,000 metres of the straight course, restricted to four-year-olds and upwards, interrupted the sequence of wide-margin winners, with The Exodus — although unraced since May 2022 — catching the leaders late to score by three-parts of a length. Saddled by Steven Todd and offering odds of 5-2, former three-time champion Anthony Thomas (31) was confident enough using only the reins to ride the winning finish aboard The Exodus.
Contested over a similar distance, race four presented an opportunity for Jerome Innis to ride his first of two winners on the card. There was a roguish, ground-losing beginning by Badgyalriri (7-1), but she was soon taken close to grandstand side and from there sprinted to lead close home in scoring by just under one length. Badgyalriri’s last race was on May 27 for the Anthony Nunes camp, and therefore trainer Howard Jaghai had only a short time with the mare.
Nicely named and racing for the third occasion, three-year-old maiden colt I Am Interested (6-1), from the camp of Joseph Thomas, was four lengths superior to his closest rival in race five, run over 1100 metres. Popular winning reinsman Raddesh Roman improved his tally to ten this season as he was slated to add another two on the day.
Roman’s next ride was in race six over 1500 metres, and 6-5 bet three-year-old maiden Antarctica — tuned to unbeatable condition by Errol Waugh — was always clear and won by just over four lengths. To wrap up his best day in the saddle this year Roman’s task was made simple with 1-9 favourite Runaway Algo — conditioned by 2022’s Most Improved Trainer Dale Murphy — winning the featured 1400-metre Thunderbird Trophy, run as race eight, by over 14 lengths.
In race seven run over 900 metres of the straight course Sabina (1-5), saddled by Owen Sharpe, won for Innis to confirm the hard-working jockey’s dual success on the card.
In the 1300-metre nightcap 3-1 fancied Sweet Majesty had most-favoured rider Paul Francis executing an exacting task to secure success by three and a half lengths. Presented in immaculate condition by persevering conditioner Edward Stanberry, the five-year-old mare was not deemed by most pundits to be at a particularly advantageous point at the scales.
The Training Feat Award is presented to Edward Stanberry for the Best Winning Gallop displayed by Sweet Majesty. Paul Francis, for the application of his accomplished skill set, earns for himself the Jockeyship Award for inducing a convincing-enough career-best effort from the five-year-old mare.
