Saturday, August 12, 2023

THERE were two interesting ads in the official form book.

Firstly, advising the recommended training fees now stand at $3,500 per day to address the increase in the grooms' weekly wages to $5,000 per horse. The $1.3-billion gap between owners' collective support of the horse population, therefore, continues to widen with only around $700 million available in purses.

Secondly, there is an announcement by the Jamaica Racing Commission (JRC) of an intention to enforce Rule 27.

This is in response to certain trainers' breaches in maintaining a practice of saddling horses away from the saddling barn as well as mounting their jockeys outside the parade ring.

It is also curious that there is a reminder here that saddling, in what should be a sterile area, must be done by "only licensed personnel". Is this happening otherwise and if so, where is the necessary security?

The JRC generally does a good job of enforcement but also has the responsibility to exercise supervision of the promoting company and provide the requisite expertise to ensure the proper staging of race meetings — as per the Racing Rules — as well as to ensure quality control of the racing product with respect to fair handicapping and publishing of relevant and accurate information, the absence of which occurs too frequently.

Five declarations came under orders for this year's renewal of the featured 1000-metre straight Reggae Trophy — hardly doing justice to the memory of the consistent sprinter whose exploits over the distance were as predictable as well as legendary.

This emphasises the fact that the sport is operating without a truly competitive top class, and the immediate future does not paint a hopeful picture. At the end of the 2023 Classic season none of the winners — Ability, Mojito, Thalita, and Mamma — are anywhere near the highest Graded category.

Current leader and champion conditioner Jason DaCosta's free-scoring five-year-old mare She's My Destiny (1-2) led and made this Graded Stakes/Open Allowance Reggae Trophy win number 11 in a 22-race career.

This was the first of two successes on the day for DaCosta, who returned to the winners' enclosure with the victory of Outbidder (9-2) in the ninth and closing Overnight Allowance event contested over 1600 metres.

Season leader Reyan Lewis piloted both for DaCosta, but that was just two of a hat-trick for the title-chasing reinsman who won the 1,000-metre straight opener of the nine-race card with 6-1 shot Gone A Negril for 2023 Derby-winning trainer Patrick Lynch. Now in third on the top ten list of trainers, Lynch is also the second most successful breeder in the 2023 racing year in Jamaica.

Champion jockey Dane Dawkins helped himself to a triple, the first of which came aboard Gary Subratie's maiden BellaSoul (1-2) in race three over 1,000 metres round.

For his second, Dawkins rode even-money favourite Mister Mandate for trainer Steven Todd in the 1100-metre fifth event. Dawkins confirmed his three-timer in race eight, run over 1100 metres, with maiden Jack of Spades (5-1) saddled by Michael Marlowe. But this result still leaves him with 17 wins fewer than Lewis who performed similarly.

The division of a horse population of around 800 for racing, fragmented into 21 complicated categories, continues to stymie the development of the quality of the racing product, with seemingly too many farcical races.

Breaking Storm, bet at odds of 1-5 and ridden by two-kilogramme claimer Matthew Bennett for owner/trainer Nicholas Smith, won the day's second over 1,000 metres round by 14½ lengths. In race six, run at 1200 metres, Prince Dominick (Omar Walker) was a 17-length winner at odds of 7-2 for trainer Edward Walker.

In this event, three of the 10 starters, obviously lame, failed to finish.

Race four, over the straight course of 1000 metres, was won by Bazinga (3-1), ridden by veteran Oneil Mullings for former 14-time champion trainer Philip Feanny. The great trainer also saddled 1-2 favourite and 2022 Mouttet Mile hero Excessive Force (USA), who could only manage to finish 10 lengths behind in seventh place. Something is amiss most definitely, so it is back to the analogical drawing board.

The Training Feat Award is presented to Jason DaCosta for the progressive form of Outbidder in delivering the Best Winning Gallop with speed, courage and stamina in race nine as she responded to the skills of Reyan Lewis who earns himself yet another Jockeyship Award.

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